Acousto-Optics and Its Perspectives in Research and Applications

The term acoustoopticsx/ has appeared for about 20 years when due to the invention of lasers a new stimulus in examination of light and sound interaction phenomena initiated further discoveries and many applications in that domain.However, an origin of acoustooptios may be dated on 1932 when two independent experimental papers on ultrasonic light diffraction phenomena oy Debye and Sears [4] in USA and Lucas Biquard [5] in France have appeared.The 50th anniversary of that fact was checked off by Martens [6] during the 12th Congress on Acoustics in Paris in 1983.However, looking back in the history one must find that since the theoretical papers of arillouin (1922)[7] the ideas on light and elastic waves interaction nad exzstad and were used as a background to stimulate experiments on light scattering by molecular elastic waves (or thermal waves Brillouin [7] and Mandalszta-n [a] [1926), Landsbarg and Mandalsztam (1928) [9], Roman and Krishnam [101(1928) and Gross [ii] .Taking that into account one can speak about 65t anniversary of acouatooptics.Moreover.some static elastooptic effects were observed as early as in 1816 (birefringans of a glass plate under bending discovered oy Brewster) and phenomenologically formulated in 1690 by Pockels D2].Such acoustoopticel experiments as photographing of sound waves with shadow and schlieran methods were described in 1906by Toeplar [i .In the evidence of that the history of acouatooptics has more than 170 years.One can go even before "Adam andEve" as emphasized by Graguss in 1983 d] when consider sound and light interaction being present at the act of creation of the universe.However. the date 1932 is significant as the starting point for eystematical examinations of light and ultrasonics interaction.x/Tha term opto-eonice is also used,however mainly in integrated optics and opto-slectronics.The term photo acoustics is ressh ved for phenomena of generating sound by light being a base for photoacoustics spectroscopy and will not be discussed in may talk.