This article on acoustic cavitation is a revision of a tutorial lectur
e presented at the Acoustical Society of America meeting in Austin, Te
xas, on 28 November 1994. The general approach adopted here differs fr
om a review article in stressing the overarching themes that come unde
r the category of acoustic cavitation, rather than being an encycloped
ic 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 usef
ul context. (C) 1997 Acoustical Society of America.