Nonlinear bulk and surface shear acoustic waves in materials with hysteresis and end-point memory

Nonlinear shear wave propagation in inhomogeneous materials is described by evolution equations in which second-order nonlinear processes account for hysteresis and end-point memory phenomena. It is demonstrated that odd harmonic generation and hysteresis absorption lead to the transformation of a monochromatic signal into a sawtooth-shaped wave. Nonlinear refraction phenomena cause an instability of the plane waves', self-trapping of acoustic beams and the existence of a nonlinear shear horizontal surface acoustic wave. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.