The authors compare numerical simulations of bubble dynamics in water with experiments performed at the Medizinisches Laserzentrum Luebeck. Spatial and temporal features of the laser beam were modeled. Plasma growth was predicted using a moving breakdown model. The authors compare the measured and calculated positions of the shock front and the bubble wall as a function of time after optical breakdown in water. Nd:YAG laser pulses of 30-ps 1-mJ and 6-ns 10-mJ were simulated. The authors have extended previous work in which picosecond deposition was modeled as temporally instantaneous and spatially uniform.

This book explores the interplay of bubble dynamics and shock waves, covering shock wave emission by laser generated bubbles, pulsating bubbles near boundaries, interaction of shock waves with bubble clouds, applications in shock wave lithotripsy, and more.

In numerical calculations of idealized bubble dynamics test problems, Los Alamos computational tools perform well. A realistic equation of state must be used and geometrical features must be carefully modeled to simulate experiments accurately. In this work, we compare numerical simulations taking these features into account with experiments performed at the Medizinisches Laserzentrum Lubeck. We compare the measured and calculated positions of the shock front and of the bubble wall as a function of time in the laser optical breakdown of water produced by 30-ps 1-mJ Nd:YAG laser pulses.

The 24th International Symposium on Shock Waves (ISSW24) was held at the Beijing Friendship Hotel during July 11-16, 2004, in Beijing. It was a great pleasure for the Local Organizing Committee to organize the ISSW in China for the first time, because forty-seven years have passed since the First Shock Tube Symposium was held in 1957 at Albuquerque. The ISSW24 had to be postponed for one year because of the SARS outbreak in Beijing shortly before the Symposium was scheduled to be held in 2003, but it has achieved success due to the continuous support and kind understanding from all the delegates. It is very heart-warming to have had such an experience and I am very happy to have served as chairman for the Symposium. I would like to thank all for the contributions and help that they have given us over the past three years, without which we would not have had the Symposium. A total of 460 abstracts were submitted to the ISSW24. Each of the abstracts was evaluated by three members of the Scientific Review Committee and the decision on acceptance wasmade based on the reviewers' reports. 195oral papers,including 9plenary lectures, wereaccepted to be presented in three parallel sessions, and 135poster papers in three dedicated poster sessions. Topics discussed in these papers cover all aspects ofshock wave research.

Overview of the status of the broad range of laser applications.

This book offers a systematic introduction to the engineering principles and techniques of cavitation in biomedicine on the basis of its physics and mechanism. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, it covers areas of interest ranging from physics and engineering to the biological and medical sciences. Individual chapters introduce the fundamentals of cavitation, describe its characterization, control and imaging techniques, and present cavitation-enhanced thermal and mechanical effects and their applications. Intended as both a reference work for graduate students, and as a guide for scientists and engineers who work with cavitation in biomedicine, it provides a broad and solid foundation of knowledge. The aim is to bridge the different disciplines involved, and to promote cross-discipline research, thus encouraging innovations in the scientific research and engineering applications alike. Dr. Mingxi Wan is a professor at Department of Biomedical Engineering, Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China; Dr. Yi Feng works at Department of Biomedical Engineering, Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China; Dr. Gail ter Haar is a professor at The Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton, Surry, UK.