ONE-DIMENSIONAL DYNAMIC THERMAL-STRESSES GENERATED IN AN ELASTIC HALF-SPACE BY LASER-PULSES

An improved solution to the one-dimensional dynamic thermal stress pro blem for an elastic half-space analyzed previously by Danilowskaya [3] is given. In this problem the temperature and stress fields are produ ced by a particular heat supply generated by absorption of a laser pul se incident on the half-space. The betterment comprises: (i) eliminati ng some substantial and formal errors occurring in Danilowskaya [3], ( ii) providing a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the solution that is missing in Danilowskaya [3], and (iii) generalizing the soluti on to include an arbitrary step-like profile of the laser pulse. In pa rticular it is shown that for a rectangular pulse of duration t > 0 a nd for a given cross section x(0) > 0 of the half-space both the tempe rature and stress are continuous functions for every time t greater th an or equal to 0; while their time derivates suffer jumps on the t-axi s, the temperature rate jumps at the consecutive dimes t = 0 + 0 and t = t, and the stress rate exhibits discontinuities at t = t* and t = t + x(0)/c(1), where c(1) denotes the longitudinal wave velocity in a n unbounded isotropic and homogeneous elastic medium.