Nonlinear coda wave analysis of hysteretic elastic behavior in strongly scattering media

Strongly scattering elastic media, such as consolidated granular materials, respond to ultrasonic pulse excitations with a long response signal with peculiar properties. The portion of the signal at late times, termed coda, is due to multiple scattering. It contains information about the elastic properties of the material, a d it has been proven to be very sensitive to small variations in the modulus. Here we propose a technique based on a nonlinear analysis of the coda of a signal, which might be applied to quantify the nonlinear elastic response in consolidated granular media exhibiting a hysteretic elastic behavior. The method proposed allows for an intrinsic definition of the reference signal which is normally needed for applying coda-based methods.