Ultrawide band gaps in beams with double-leaf acoustic black hole indentations

Abstract

Band gaps in conventional phononic crystals (PCs) are attractive for applications such as vibration control, wave manipulation, and sound absorption. Their practical implementations, however, are hampered by several factors, among which the large number of cells required and their impractically large size to ensure the stopbands at reasonably low frequencies are on the top of the list. This paper reports a type of beam carved inside with two double-leaf acoustic black hole indentations. By incorporating the local resonance effect and the Bragg scattering effect generated by a strengthening stud connecting the two branches of the indentations, ultrawide band gaps are achieved. Increasing the length of the stud or reducing the residual thickness of the indentation allows the tuning of the band gaps to significantly enlarge the band gaps, which can exceed 90% of the entire frequency range of interest. Experimental results show that with only three cells, the proposed beam allows considerable vibration energy attenuation within an ultra-broad frequency range including the low frequency range, which conventional PCs can hardly reach. Meanwhile, the proposed configuration also enhances the structural integrity, thus pointing at promising applications in vibration control and a high performance wave filter design.