Laser detection of ultrasonic waves with concave portions of the wave fronts

Special features of ultrasonic pulse wave field detection with concave regions of the wave fronts are investigated with the use of ultrasonic laser interferometry technique. Experimental proofs of the wave front with concave regions are obtained and it is found that the nonmonotonic wave front profiles are well described by the fourth-order even polynomial. The model proposed is applied to the investigation of the spatiotemporal structure of elastic wave fields on solid surfaces. The results obtained can be used for estimating the local wave front curvature.