U2996

U2996 is the designation for a high‑performance ultrasonic surface wave probe developed in 2024 by the Advanced Materials Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan. The probe features a piezoelectric transducer array capable of generating and detecting surface acoustic waves (SAWs) in the 10–200 MHz frequency range. Its compact form factor measures 45 mm in diameter and 20 mm in height, making it suitable for deployment in confined spaces such as tunnel walls, bridge decks, and industrial pipeline sections.

The U2996 probe operates by exciting the surface of a material with a broadband pulse and measuring the time of flight and dispersion of the resulting SAWs. These data are analyzed to determine mechanical properties, including elastic modulus, damping characteristics, and the presence of microstructural defects. The user interface includes an integrated microcontroller that streams data to a host PC via USB or wireless link, and firmware supports real‑time signal processing and diagnostic checks.

Field trials of the U2996 probe on concrete and steel structures demonstrated a detection depth of up to 15 cm for cracks and an accuracy of ±2 % for elastic modulus measurements. The probe has been incorporated into a new suite of structural health monitoring tools for civil engineering projects and has received a patent for its multi‑frequency tuning capability.