Numerical and experimental study of Near-Field Acoustic Radiation Modes of a baffled spherical cap

In this paper, the Acoustic Radiation Modes (ARMs) of spherical structures are studied using the Pressure-Velocity (PV) method. This method yields the active and reactive modes, which refer to the radiated and non-radiated sound power components respectively, without restrictions on the observation distance. The accuracy of the method is verified through the analysis of Near Field ARMs (NFARMs) of a sphere in spherical coordinates compared to the analytical solution. Differences are analyzed between the NFARMs and the Far Field ARMs (FFARMs) of a baffled spherical cap, as well as between the active and reactive parts of the sound power radiated when varying the frequency and the observation distance to the source. It was found that the radiation efficiency of the active ARMs is independent of the observation distance, while that of reactive ARMs decreases sharply when retreating from the source. Experiments were performed using the acoustic reciprocity principle to measure the NFARMs and FFARMs of a 3D-printed spherical cap radiating in a hemi-anechoic room. Experimental results provided a reliable validation of the numerical results.