Shock Wave Generation in Water for Biological Studies

Abstract

We have used a pulsed power generator based on stacking MOSFET switches to create breakdown in water and generate shock waves. The pulses with an exponential decay have a maximum voltage of 4 kV. With the pulse application of approximately 50 μs, the breakdown voltage is approximately 3 kV. Post-breakdown events, such as shock wave emission and bubble expansion and collapse were recorded by a fast camera. The shock speed was recorded as 1.5 km/s and the maximum bubble diameter is 2.3 mm. This shock wave generator can be used on the microscope and provides a means of studying the shock impact on biological cells.