One-Way Vibration Absorber

A vibration absorber consisting of a one-dimensional waveguide with a reflectionless termination extracts vibrational energy from a structure that is to be damped. An optimum energy dissipation occurs for the so-called power adjustment, i.e, the same level of resistance and the opposite reactance of structure and absorber. The dimensioning of these impedance parameters on the base of the classic second order “two-way” wave equation provides analytical solutions for a few simple waveguide shapes; solutions for all other waveguides are only accessible via numerical finite-element computation. However, the competing first order “one-way” wave equation allows for an analytical conception of both the known broadband vibration absorber and the “Acoustic Black Hole” absorber. For example, for an exponential waveguide, the two-way calculation shows no resistance (and hence no real wave propagation) below a cut-off frequency, while the one-way wave equation predicts absorption in the whole frequency range.