Analysis of Oscillational Instabilities in Acoustic Levitation Using the Finite-difference Time-domain Method

The aim of the work described in this paper has been to investigate the use of the finite-difference time-domain method to describe the interactions between a moving object and a sound field. The main objective was to simulate oscillational instabilities that appear in single-axis acoustic levitation devices and to describe their evolution in time to further understand the physical mechanism involved. The study shows that the method gives accurate results for steady state conditions, and that it is a promising tool for simulations with a moving object.