Anderson localization of vibration on a framed cylindrical shell

Analysis of the measured response of a near-periodic framed shell to a poin t force reveals that the higher-order azimuthal modes (n>10) on the shell a re significantly localized. A quantitative analysis of the data yielding th e spatial attenuation rates, the measured group speeds, and the total measu red damping factors for various azimuthal orders is presented. The two prin cipal mechanisms which could account for the spatial attenuation rates, dam ping and Anderson localization, are investigated.]Predictions based on thes e,underlying phenomena are obtained and compared with the measurements. The spatial attenuation rates resulting from damping are typically a factor of 2.3 times too small to account for the measurements, while the spatial loc alization due to irregularity and the data are in reasonable agreement. Thi s evidence, along with the strongly fluctuating nature of the response, ind icates that Anderson localization is the dominant mechanism at work in this system. [S0001-4966(99)00209-X].