Sonic effervescence: A tutorial on acoustic cavitation

This article on acoustic cavitation is a revision of a tutorial lecture presented at the Acoustical Society of America meeting in Austin, Texas, on 28 November 1994. The general approach adopted here differs from a review article in stressing the overarching themes that come under the category of acoustic cavitation, rather than being an encyclopedic reference on the topic. When possible, specific order-of-magnitude estimates have been given so that the reader can better understand the particular phenomena being described. The basic physics is discussed, and applications are reviewed with the goal of putting them in a useful context.