ABSTRACT
Human efforts in underwater detection were spurred in 1912 by the sinking of RMS Titanic by collision with an iceberg. It was quickly demonstrated that the resolution for iceberg detection was improved at higher frequencies, leading to a push toward the development of ultrasonics as opposed to audible waves. Optics and acoustics have followed parallel paths of development from the beginning. Indeed, most phenomena that are observed in optics also occur in acoustics. Although ultrasonics in nature is a fascinating study in its own right, of far greater interest is the development of the technology of ultrasonic waves that is studied in the laboratory and used in industry. A key element in the explosive growth of ultrasonics for electronic device applications and material characterization in the 1960s and beyond was the acceptance of ultrasonics as a serious research and development tool by the condensed matter research community.
