Thermosonic Chladni figures for defect-selective imaging.

Thermosonic patterns produced by resonant vibrations of simulated and realistic defects are experimentally observed and compared with conventional vibration Chladni figures. The patterns are interpreted on the basis of hysteretic damping model that accounts for in-plane polarization component of vibrations. The analysis and simulation results show that thermosonic Chladni figures are the patterns of dissipation of vibration energy determined by a square of the in-plane strain developed in the resonant vibrations.