Pulsed-laser source characterization in laboratory seismic experiments

The present study aimed to characterize the properties of a laser-generated seismic source for laboratory-scale geophysical experiments. This consisted of generating seismic waves in aluminum blocks and a carbonate core via pulsed-laser impacts and measuring the wave-field displacement via laser vibrometry. The experimental data were quantitatively compared to both theoretical predictions and 2D/3D numerical simulations using a finite element method. Two well-known and distinct physical mechanisms of seismic wave generation via pulsed-laser were identified and characterized accordingly: a thermoelastic regime for which the incident laser power was relatively weak, and an ablation regime at higher incident powers. The radiation patterns of the pulsed-laser seismic source in both regimes were experimentally measured and compared with that of a typical ultrasonic transducer. This study showed that this point-like, contact-free, reproducible, simple-to-use laser-generated seismic source was an attractive alternative to piezoelectric sources for laboratory seismic experiments, especially those concerning small scale, sub-meter measurements.