Ultrasonic techniques in the- biopolymer research

The diversity and versatility of biopolymers demand a handfulof methods fortheir characterization. Mechanical and Visco-elastic properties comprise a set of properties that can determine the suitability of a certain biopolymer to an intended application, or modifications to obtain desired co-biopolymers, in case of synthetic biopolymers. These fundamental properties are alsoinvestigated to infer changes that indicate abnormalities in biological biopolymers with different degrees of complexities. 1. Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM) SAM probes the samples with a high frequency reflected and transmitted ultrasonic waves that are collected confocally to generate high resolution images. The analysis of the micrographs and the accompanied signals provides a wealth of quantitative information.. 2. Non-linear ultrasonic analysis The interaction of ultrasound waves with materials is essentially non-linear. As such, linear elasticity can be thought of as an assumed simplification. At sufficiently high amplitudes, the non-linearity is obvious and manifested by progressive distortions of the signal, resulting in an instantaneously amplitude-dependent wave propagation velocity and in the generation of secondary and higher harmonics of the fundamental frequency