Poursuivant l'essor des méta-matériaux micro-ondes et photoniques, les cristaux phononiques, organisations périodiques de matériaux acoustiquement différents présentant notamment des bandes d'arrêt, c'est-à-dire de plages de fréquences pour lesquelles aucun mode ne se propage dans la structure, laissent entrevoir des applications acoustiques hors de portée des technologies existantes. Dans cette thèse, nous visons des réalisations aux fréquences RF afin de viser des applications complémentaires des résonateurs ou des filtres acoustiques largement employés dans le domaine des transmissions sans fil. Nous avons tout d'abord développé un procédé de fabrication simple permettant de réaliser des cristaux phononiques à deux dimensions à l'échelle micrométrique sur membrane piézoélectrique, afin de rendre ces systèmes compatibles avec les composants à ondes de Lamb développés au CEA-LETI pour des applications de filtrage de canal dans des architectures de transmission sans fil faible consommation. Ce procédé a été utilisé pour réaliser des cristaux phononiques, ainsi que des résonateurs à ondes de Lamb, ou à ondes de volume et des structures plus complexes comme par exemple des filtres passe-bande. Une étude paramétrique des composants à ondes de Lamb nous a permis d'affiner notre maîtrise de ces dispositifs, ce qui nous a été utile pour la mise au point des lignes à retard permettant de caractériser les propriétés de transmission acoustique des cristaux phononiques. Du point de vue théorique, un modèle de simulation par éléments finis a été mis en place, dans un premier temps pour dimensionner les structures réalisées et prendre en compte les modifications apportées par la réalisation technologique. Nous avons ensuite réalisé des cristaux phononiques que nous avons caractérisés électriquement et optiquement, en collaboration avec l'Institut FEMTO-ST. Les mesures confirment la présence de bandes d'arrêt, aux fréquences attendues, mais d'une largeur a priori bien supérieure à celle prévue par la simulation. Une étude détaillée des diagrammes de bandes attribue ce phénomène à la présence de bandes sourdes dans le cristal ne pouvant être excitées par les transducteurs utilisés. Cet aspect est d'une importance critique dans le dimensionnement de cristaux phononiques en vue d'une utilisation dans des applications pratiques. / In the straight line of photonic and microwave meta-materials, phononic crystals are foreseen to enable novel acoustic applications that existing technologies cannot reach. These phononic crystals are periodic organisation of acoustically different materials exhibiting, for example, qtop bands, which means frequency ranges in which no wave can propagate in the structure. In this thesis we target RF frequencies in order to investigate applications complementary to the conventional resonators or filters widely used in mobile telecommunication systems. We developed a simple process flow to realise micrometric two-dimensional phononic crystals on a piezoelectric membrane. These structures are fabricated along with Lamb wave devices studied in CEA-LETI for channel filtering in low consumption wireless transmission architectures, and with bulk wave resonators or more complex structures like band-pass filters. A parametric study of Lamb wave resonators sharpens our knowledge on these devices, which allow us to design and fabricate delay lines to characterise acoustic transmission properties of phononic crystals. From a theoretical point of view we set up a simulation model using finite element method. This model was used to design the phononic crystal we realised, and to take into account the effects of the modifications brought by the technological realisation. We then fabricated phononic crystals, and electrically and optically characterised them, in collaboration with FEMTO-ST institute. Measurements confirmed the presence of band gaps at the targeted frequency, but over a wider frequency range than predicted by calculation. A detailed study of band diagrams is attributing this phenomenon to the presence of deaf bands, which cannot be excited by interdigitated fingers. This shows that the determination of these deaf bands is of critical importance in designing phononic crystals for practical applications.

Ce travail de recherche est dédié à la simulation de la réponse transitoire des assemblages de poutres soumis à des chocs. De tels chargements entraînent la propagation d’ondes haute fréquence dans l’ensemble de la structure. L’énergie qu’elles transportent peut être dommageable pour son fonctionnement ou celui des équipements embarqués. Dans des études précédentes, il a été observé sur des structures expérimentales qu’un régime vibratoire diffusif tend à s’installer pour des temps longs. Le but de cette étude est donc de développer un modèle robuste de la réponse transitoire des assemblages de poutres soumis à des chocs permettant de simuler, entre autres, cet état diffusif. Les champs de déplacement étant très oscillants et la densité modale élevée, la simulation numérique de la réponse transitoire à des chocs peut difficilement être menée par une méthode d’éléments finis classique. Une approche utilisant un estimateur de la densité d’énergie de chaque mode de propagation a donc été mise en œuvre. Elle permet d’accéder à des informations locales sur les états vibratoires, et de contourner certaines limitations intrinsèques aux longueurs d’onde courtes. Après avoir comparé plusieurs modèles de réduction cinématique de poutre à un modèle de Lamb de propagation dans un guide d’ondes circulaire, la cinématique de Timoshenko a été retenue afin de modéliser le comportement mécanique haute fréquence des poutres. En utilisant ce modèle dans le cadre de l’approche énergétique évoquée plus haut, deux groupes de modes de propagation de la densité d’énergie vibratoire dans une poutre ont été isolés : des modes longitudinaux regroupant un mode de compression et des modes de flexion, et des modes transversaux regroupant des modes de cisaillement et un mode de torsion. Il peut être également montré que l’´evolution en temps des densités d’énergie associées obéit à des lois de transport. Pour des assemblages de poutres, les phénomènes de réflexion/transmission aux jonctions ont du être pris en compte. Les opérateurs permettant de les décrire en termes de flux d’´energie ont été obtenus grâce aux équations de continuité des déplacements et des efforts aux jonctions. Quelques caractéristiques typiques d’un régime haute fréquence ont été mises en évidence, tel que le découplage entre les modes de rotation et les modes de translation. En revanche, les champs de densité d’énergie sont quant à eux discontinus aux jonctions. Une méthode d’éléments finis discontinus a donc été développée afin de les simuler numériquement comme solutions d’´equations de transport. Si l’on souhaite atteindre le régime diffusif aux temps longs, le schéma numérique doit être peu dissipatif et peu dispersif. La discrétisation spatiale a été faite avec des fonctions d’approximation de type spectrales, et l’intégration temporelle avec des schémas de Runge-Kutta d’ordre élevé du type ”strong stability preserving”. Les simulations numériques ont donné des résultats concluants car elles permettent d’exhiber le régime de diffusion. Il a été remarqué qu’il existait en fait deux limites diffusives différentes : (i) la diffusion spatiale de l’´energie sur l’ensemble de la structure, et (ii) l’équirépartition des densités d’énergie entre les différents modes de propagation. Enfin, une technique de renversement temporel a été développée. Elle pourra être utile dans de futurs travaux sur le contrôle non destructif des assemblages complexes et de grandes tailles. / This research is dedicated to the simulation of the transient response of beam trusses under impulse loads. The latter lead to the propagation of high-frequency waves in such built up structures. In the aerospace industry, that phenomenon may penalize the functioning of the structures or the equipments attached to them on account of the vibrational energy carried by the waves. It is also observed experimentally that high-frequency wave propagation evolves into a diffusive vibrational state at late times. The goal of this study is then to develop a robust model of high-frequency wave propagation within three-dimensional beam trusses in order to be able to recover, for example, this diffusion regime. On account of the small wavelengths and the high modal density, the modelling of high-frequency wave propagation is hardly feasible by classical finite elements or other methods describing the displacement fields directly. Thus, an approach dealing with the evolution of an estimator of the energy density of each propagating mode in a Timoshenko beam has been used. It provides information on the local behavior of the structures while avoiding some limitations related to the small wavelengths of high-frequency waves. After a comparison between some reduced-order beam kinematics and the Lamb model of wave propagation in a circular waveguide, the Timoshenko kinematics has been selected for the mechanical modelling of the beams. It may be shown that the energy densities of the propagating modes in a Timoshenko beam obey transport equations. Two groups of energy modes have been isolated: the longitudinal group that gathers the compressional and the bending energetic modes, and the transverse group that gathers the shear and torsional energetic modes. The reflection/transmission phenomena taking place at the junctions between beams have also been investigated. For this purpose, the power flow reflection/transmission operators have been derived from the continuity of the displacements and efforts at the junctions. Some characteristic features of a high-frequency behavior at beam junctions have been highlighted such as the decoupling between the rotational and translational motions. It is also observed that the energy densities are discontinuous at the junctions on account of the power flow reflection/transmission phenomena. Thus a discontinuous finite element method has been implemented, in order to solve the transport equations they satisfy. The numerical scheme has to be weakly dissipative and dispersive in order to exhibit the aforementioned diffusive regime arising at late times. That is the reason why spectral-like approximation functions for spatial discretization, and strong-stability preserving Runge-Kutta schemes for time integration have been used. Numerical simulations give satisfactory results because they indeed highlight the outbreak of such a diffusion state. The latter is characterized by the following: (i) the spatial spread of the energy over the truss, and (ii) the equipartition of the energy between the different modes. The last part of the thesis has been devoted to the development of a time reversal processing, that could be useful for future works on structural health monitoring of complex, multi-bay trusses.

En accord avec l'équation de propagation des ondes élastiques dans la matière, l'expression de la vitesse du son n'interdit pas à la masse volumique et à la compressibilité effectives du milieu d'être toutes deux négatives. Comment concevoir alors un tel matériau qualifié de métamatériau acoustique ? Qu'elles sont ses principales propriétés ? Cette thèse expérimentale a pour objectif la conception et la caractérisation d'un métamatériau pour les ondes de Lamb (ondes de plaque) de fréquences comprises entre 1MHz et 10MHz.L'approche mise en place repose sur le théorème d'Helmholtz qui permet de voir la propagation d'une onde élastique d'énergie finie comme le résultat d'un processus de couplage entre deux états de vibration de la matière, l'un de cisaillement sans changement de volume (vibration de symétrie dipolaire), l'autre se faisant avec changement de volume sans cisaillement (vibration monopolaire). Ainsi, la modification des paramètres effectifs décrivant la propagation pourrait passer par un contrôle local de ces deux états élémentaires de vibration, au moyen par exemple de résonateurs locaux homogénéisables.Le modèle de matériau choisi dans le cadre de cette thèse est une hétérostructure formée par un wafer de silicium sur lequel sont gravés, en tant que cellules mécaniques élémentaires, des paire de trous et des piliers isolés de silicium. La démarche expérimentale a consisté à étudier la diffusion élastique des ondes de Lamb sur ces deux types de cellules élémentaires à l'aide d'un montage tout optique. La génération des ondes fut assurée par la focalisation le long d'une ligne d'un faisceau laser Nd:YAG picoseconde permettant d'obtenir une source blanche acoustique. La détection fut réalisée à l'aide d'un interféromètre de Michelson doté d'un bras opto-mécanique permettant une cartographie point par point du champ de déformation de l'onde avec une sensibilité d'environ 1pm (pour une largeur de bande de 1MHz) sur une surface de 25x25mm2 avec une résolution spatiale et temporelle d'environ 1microns et 0.2nanosecondes.Cette étude aura permis de mettre en évidence la présence d'une ondelette réémise par la paire de trous ou le pilier autour de leurs fréquences de résonance et de décrire la diffusion cohérente résonante comme le résultat de l'interférence entre l'onde incidente et l'ondelette réémise. Dans le cas de la paire de trous, ces résultats ont permis d'interpréter et de comprendre le domaine de fréquences interdites d'un cristal phononique, ainsi que de décrire la dynamique de formation des modes d'une cavité phononique planaire. Dans le cas du pilier, il fut possible d'envisager la fabrication d'un système possédant les propriétés attendues pour un métamatériau acoustique.Cette thèse s'inscrit dans le projet de recherche de l'équipe Acoustique pour les Nanosciences de l'Institut des Nanosciences de Paris consacré à la structuration artificielle de la matière aux échelles micro et nanométriques pour le contrôle de la propagation des ondes élastiques. Les applications potentielles couvrent des domaines allant de la santé (imagerie haute résolution) à la défense (cape d'invisibilité) en passant par les télécommunications ou encore le bâtiment (isolation phonique).De par son caractère stratégique pour la Défense, ce travail a bénéficié du soutien de la DGA et de l'ANR sous la forme du projet ANR-ASTRID "METACTIF". Il a été effectué en collaboration avec une équipe de l'Université Lille 1, spécialisée dans la simulation numérique. Les échantillons ont été fabriqués dans le cadre d'une collaboration avec la salle blanche MIMENTO de l'Institut Femto-St de Besançon. / According with the elastic wave equation, the expression of the speed allows the motion of waves with an effective density and an effective compressibility both negative. How can we imagine and create a material of this kind, called metamaterial? What would be its properties?This experimental thesis involved to produce and to characterize a metamaterial for elastic Lamb waves (sismic waves) in the frequency range [1MHz-10MHz].On the basis of the Helmholtz theorem, the wave motion of Lamb waves is due to a coupling process between two vibrations states of the matter; one dipolar vibration (pure bending mode) coupling with one monopolar vibration (pure compressional mode). As a result, the modification of the macroscopic parameters governing the wave motion could be realised by the control of these only two vibrations states, thanks to homogeneous local resonators.Isolated silicon pillars and pairs of holes in silicon plate as potentially "good" candidate to fulfill this requirement. Structures were elaborated with deep reactive-ion etching technique (DRIE) using Bosch process in a silicon wafer.We had an experimental approach consisting in measuring the eigenfrequencies of the structures to select the one which allows fulfilling the homogenization criteria at the best and then mapping the scattered field associated to a Lamb wave interacting with the structures while vibrating onto the preselected eigenmode.To conduct this study, we used an all-optical experimental device. Generation of Lamb waves were managed to use an Nd:YAG laser focused along a line on the surface to get a white elastic source. The detection was realized with a power-operated Michelson interferometer, allowing to measure the displacement field with a resolution of around 1pm (on frequencies range of 1MHz).This study had allowed to evidence a scattering process described by the interference between the incident field and a reemitted wave emitted by the resonator. For the pairs of hole structures, these results enabled to understand the description of the bandgap of a phononic crystal in terms of bragg reflexion and to describe the dynamic of formation of phononic cavity modes. Concerning the pillars, these results enabled to make a device, using the Huygens-Fresnel principal, with the properties of a metamaterial.This PhD work follows on from the research projet of the team Acoustique pour les Nanoscience of the Nanosciences Institut of Paris (INSP).This work is jointly supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche and Direction Générale de l’Armement under grant ANR METACTIF. The simulations were realised in collaboration with a team at the Université Lille 1. The samples have been elaborated in MIMENTO facilities at Femto-ST institute in Besançon.

The mechanical properties of thin-film Li-ion battery electrodes are controlled by the micro structure of the constituent materials. In this work, a non-contact and non-destructive measurement of the mechanical properties of electrode films is performed by measurement of zero group velocity (ZGV) resonances. The ZGV Lamb wave modes of a solid bi-layer consisting of a thin metallic layer and a thin compliant coating layer are shown to be dependent on the Young's moduli, thicknesses, densities and Poisson ratios of the layers. Theoretical models are used to quantify the sensitivity of the ZGV resonances to changes in mechanical properties. Experimental ZGV resonances are excited using a pulsed infrared laser and detected using a laser interferometer. Commercial-grade battery films with different coating materials, densities and thicknesses are measured. Young's moduli of the battery electrode layers are estimated using the combination of a theoretical model and experimental results. The effect of the calendering process on the battery materials is also investigated. Results suggest that the Young's modulus of the electrode coating increases drastically after the battery films are calendered. This technique can be used to quantitatively study the mechanical properties of Li-ion battery electrodes to improve overall battery performance.

No description available.

The thesis deals with one major question: is it possible, using one piezoelectric sensor/vibrator, to detect a hard inclusion in a silicone rubber phantom? The question was approached with an open mind and the task was subdivided into three clearly identifiable parts: characterization of the piezoelectric sensor/vibrator (paper I), creating a model of the visco-elastic properties of a tissue-like material (phantom) in contact with the sensor/vibrator (paper II), and to detect the presence of a hard inclusion in the phantom (paper III). All vibrations of the sensor/vibrator and phantom was modeled using a finite element method (FEM). To minimize the computational time and to maximize the FEM model's ability to correctly reproduce the vibrations, a two-dimensional model system consisting of a cylindrical piezoelectric sensor/vibrator, emitting radial elastic waves in to a cylindrical disk-shaped phantom, was chosen. The piezoelectric sensor/vibrator was characterized using a parameter tuning procedure using harmonic overtones. The procedure enables tuning of the electro-elastic parameters of the sensor/vibrator so that the measured and calculated impedance frequency responses match. Silicone rubber was chosen as a phantom to mimic soft tissue. The properties of the phantom was modeled using a fractional derivative visco-elastic model. The hyperelastic effect at the first radial resonance of the sensor vibrator was corrected for by a compensating function. The high frequency complex visco-elastic modulus of the silicone rubber was determined using the transitions of standing Lamb waves in the phantom. The presence of a ring-shaped inclusion in the phantom, of polyamide, was detected using the change of the transitional Lamb wave patterns in the phantom. The tuning of the PZT5A1 sensor/vibrator parameters yielded a match between the calculated and the measured impedance spectra better than 0.54%. The average, complex, elastic modulus of three silicone rubber, Silgel 612, samples were: (0.97 + 0.009i) GPa  at 100 kHz and (0.97 + 0.005i) GPa at 250 kHz. The presence of a polyamide inclusion, PA6GPE, was detected in the phantom using multiple frequency footprints. / Denna avhandling berör frågan: är det möjligt, med en piezoelektrisk sensor/vibrator, att detektera ett hårt objekt inneslutet i en fantom av silikongummi? Frågan närmades utan begränsningar och uppgiften delades upp i tre tydliga delar: karaktäriseringen av den piezoelektriska sensorn/vibratorn (paper I), skapa en modell av det viskoelastiska uppförandet hos ett vävnadsliknande material (fantom) som står i kontakt med sensorn-/vibratorn (paper II) och att detektera förekomsten av ett hårt objekt inneslutet i fantomen (paper III). En finit element modell (FEM) skapades för att beräkna vibrationerna hos sensorn/vibratorn och fantomen. För att minimera beräkningstiden och maximera modellens förmåga att återge vibrationer på ett korrekt sätt, så skapades ett tvådimensionellt modellsystem bestående av en cylindrisk piezoelektrisk sensor/vibrator i kontakt med en cylindrisk fantom av silikongummi. Sensorn/vibratorn skickar radiella elastiska vågor in i fantomen. Den piezoelektriska sensorn/vibratorn karakteriserades med hjälp av en procedur som anpassar parametervärden med hjälp av övertoner. Proceduren möjliggör en justering av parametervärdena så att uppmätta och beräknade impedansspektra överensstämmer. En 'fractional derivative' modell av de viskoelastiska egenskaperna hos silikongummit skapades. De hyperelastiska egenskaperna vid första radiella resonansen blev kompenserade med hjälp av en sigmoidformad funktion. Den komplexa viskoelastiska modulen bestämdes för höga frekvenser med hjälp av transitioner hos stående Lambvågor i fantomen. Närvaron av ett hårt ringformat objekt i fantomen detekterades med hjälp av förändringar i mönstret hos de stående Lambvågorna. Justeringen av de piezoelektriska parametrarna hos elementet PZT5A1 gav som mest en skillnad på 0.54% mellan uppmätta och beräknade impedansspektra. Medelvärdet hos tre prov av silikongummit Silgel 612 av den komplexa elastiska modulen uppmättes till (0.97 + 0.009i) GPa  vid 100 kHz och (0.97 + 0.005i) GPa vid 250 kHz. Närvaron av ett hårt objekt, gjort av polyaramid (PA6GPE), detekterades i fantomen med hjälp av multifrekvensiella fotavtryck.

Orientador: Vicente Lopes Junior / Banca: Ricardo Tokio Higuti / Banca: Marcus Antônio Viana Duarte / Resumo: A crescente utilização de materiais compósitos nos projetos de engenharia tem trazido vários avanços, viabilizando e aperfeiçoando estruturas com características superiores que as encontradas nas ligas metálicas que são largamente utilizadas durante muitos anos e que atualmente estão sendo substituídas de forma parcial ou integral em aplicações onde se espera alto desempenho. A aplicação deste tipo de material tem sido significativa em vários segmentos de engenharia, como na área de transportes (aeronáutica, aeroespacial, naval, ferroviário, automobilística, etc.), construção civil, artigos esportivos, entre outras. Uma grande vantagem dos materiais compósitos é a possibilidade de compor, através da grande variedade de matrizes e reforços, um número ilimitado de combinações destes elementos, tornando cada combinação uma peça com características única, sendo capaz de atender necessidades específicas de cada projeto. Neste trabalho é proposto um método de detecção e localização de danos em compósitos que compõe a estrutura de uma fuselagem de avião, podendo ser utilizado independentemente da temperatura atuante no avião. O método é baseado nas ondas de Lamb e se caracteriza por ser um método não-destrutivo, NDE (do inglês Nondestructive Evaluation). Os testes experimentais foram realizados para diferentes condições de danos em uma faixa de temperatura que variou de -45°C a 105°C. Para a aplicação do sinal de atuação e para a aquisição dos sinais foram utilizados transdutores piezelétricos (PZT), que são indicados para este tipo aplicação por possuírem grande eficiência em altas frequências e por ser versátil, servindo tanto como atuador quanto sensor. Para auxiliar a detecção e localização automática dos danos na estrutura foi utilizada a técnica de Redes Neurais Artificiais que possuem ótima robustez e capacidade de generalização para isolar o efeito da temperatura na... / Abstract: The increasing use of composite materials has brought many beneficial advances for engineering design, improving structure features when comparing with traditional metallic alloys. Although these alloys has been used for centuries, in many applications composite materials are substituting them partially or completely. The use of this kind of materials has produced a great impact in several areas of engineering, as transportation (aeronautics, aerospace, naval, railroad, automobile, etc.), civil construction, sport equipments, etc. An important advantage of composite materials is the possibility of compose an unlimited number of combinations of this elements thought the wide variety of matrix and reinforcements. Each combination becomes a piece with unique characteristics, able to attend specific requirements in a project. In this study, a carbon fiber plate, material used as component of the fuselage in aircrafts, is used in the experimental tests for developing a damage identification and locating method that is able to be used during the flight. The method is based on Lamb waves and it is a non-destructive evaluation (NDE). The tests were done in different conditions for a temperature range from de -45oC to 105oC. The sensing and actuation were based on piezoelectric materials (PZT), which are a versatile smart material indicated to this work since it can be utilized either as actuator or as sensor and because is very efficient at high frequencies. The process automation is realized through the application of Artificial Neural Network, since this technique has optimum robustness and capability of generalization, which are important characteristics to achieve the objective / Mestre

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An assay for catheptic activity of lamb gastric tissue extract has been proposed which involves the use of a pH 3.5 hemoglobin substrate following activation of zymogens at pH 2.0, 25C for 30 min.; and inactivation at pH 8.0, 40C for 30 min thereby eliminating the effects of pepsin and rennin. Cathepsin was isolated and purified by ammonium sulfate fractionation, acetone precipitation and gel viii filtration. The purified cathepsin represented approximately 50 fold increase in specific activity over the original extract and a recovery of 15% of the original activity. Degree of purity was monitored by isoelectric focusing in polyacrylamide gels. Some characteristics of the cathepsin were determined. The purified cathepsin hydrolyzed urea-denatured hemoglobin readily at pH 3.5, but it had no activity on substrates specific for cathepsins A, B or c. a-N-benzoyloxycarbonyl- L-gutamyl-L-tyrosine, a-N-benzoyl-L-argininamide hydrochloride and a-N-acetyl-L-tyrosinamide. Approximate isoelectric point was pH 5.6. The purified enzyme was similar to cathepsin D. Parmesan, Romano, and Cheddar cheese manufactured with lamb pregastric esterase and gastric extracts added to the curd or milk were superior in flavor when both were employed, and either extract alone made better cheese than the uninoculated control.

In this thesis, the author proposes and presents a novel simulation technique for the analysis of multilayered Flexural Plate Wave (FPW) devices based on the convergence of the Finite Element method (FEM) with classical Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) analysis techniques and related procedures. Excellent agreement has been obtained between the author's approach and other more conventional modelling techniques. Utilisation of the FEM allows the performance characteristics of a FPW structure to be critically investigated and refined before undertaking the costly task of fabrication. Based on a series of guidelines developed by the author, it is believed the proposed technique can also be applied to other acoustic wave devices. The modelling process developed is quite unique as it is independent of the problem geometry as verified by both two and three dimensional simulations. A critical review of FEM simulation parameters is presented and their effect on the frequency domain response of a FPW transducer given. The technique is also capable of simultaneously modelling various second-order effects, such as triple transit, diffraction and electromagnetic feedthrough, which often requires the application of several different analysis methodologies. To verify the results obtained by the author's novel approach, several commonly used numerical techniques are discussed and their limitations investigated. The author initially considers the Transmission Matrix method, where it is shown that an inherent numerical instability prevents solution convergence when applied to large frequency-thickness products and complex material properties which are characteristic of liquids. In addition the Stiffness Matrix method is investigated, which is shown to be unconditionally stable. Based on this technique, particle displacement profiles and mass sensitivity are presented for multilayered FPW structures and compared against simpler single layer devices commonly quoted in literature. Significant differences are found in mass sensitivity between single layer and multilayered structures. Frequency response characteristics of a FPW device are then explored via a spectral domain Green's function, which serves as a further verification technique of the author's novel analysi s procedure. Modifications to the spectral domain Green's function are discussed and implemented due to the change in solution geometry from SAW to FPW structures. Using the developed techniques, an analysis is undertaken on the applicability of FPW devices for sensing applications in liquid media. Additions are made to both the Stiffness Matrix method and FEM to allow these techniques to accurately incorporate the influence of a liquid layer. The FEM based approach is then applied to obtain the frequency domain characteristics of a liquid loaded FPW structure, where promising results have been obtained. Displacement profiles are considered in liquid media, where it is shown that a tightly coupled Scholte wave exists that is deemed responsible for most reported liquid sensing results. The author concludes the theoretical analysis with an in-depth analysis of a FPW device when applied to density, viscosity and mass sensing applications in liquid media. It is shown that a single FPW device is potentially capable of discriminating between density and viscosity effects, which is typically a task that requires a complex and costly sensor array.