Real-time imaging of acoustic waves on a bulk acoustic resonator

Time resolved images of acoustic waves in the 100 MHz-2.2 GHz range are obtained for an electrically excited thin-film bulk acoustic wave resonator by means of an ultrafast optical technique. Electrical pulses, synchronized to ultrashort laser pulses, piezoelectrically excite the device, and synchronous near-infrared laser pulses interferometrically detect surface motion. The frequency dispersion is extracted using spatiotemporal Fourier transforms, revealing both longitudinal and surface acoustic modes.