The dynamical stresses produced in a thick plate by the action of surface forces

The first discussion of the propagation of elastic waves in a thick plate was given by Lamb [1] for the two-dimensional problem of a harmonic wave travelling in a direction parallel to the medial plane of the plate. Lamb derived equations relating the thickness of the plate to the phase velocities of two types of wave, one symmetric with respect to the medial plane and the other antisymmetric. The symmetric modes of propagation introduced by Lamb have been studied by Holden [2] and the antisymmetric modes have been studied by Osborne and Hart [3]. More recently Pursey [4] has shown how the amplitude of the disturbance is related to a given distribution of stress, varying harmonically with time, applied to the free surfaces of the plate; two types of source are considered by Pursey, one producing a two-dimensional field of the Lamb type, and the other having circular symmetry about an axis normal to the surface of the plate.