Acoustic transmission through compound subwavelength slit arrays

The angular dependence of the transmission of sound in air through four types of two-dimensional slit arrays formed of aluminium slats is explored, both experimentally and numerically. For a simple, subwavelength periodic slit array, it is well known that Fabry-Perot-like waveguide resonances, supported by the slit cavities, coupled to diffracted evanescent waves, result in enhanced acoustic transmission at frequencies determined by the length, width, and separation of each slit cavity. We demonstrate that altering the spacing or width of some of the slits to form a compound array (i.e., an array having a basis comprised of more than one slit) results in sharp dips in the transmission spectra, which may have a strong angular dependence. These features correspond to phase resonances, which have been studied extensively in the electromagnetic case. This geometry allows for additional near-field configurations compared to the simple array, whereby the field in adjacent cavities can be out of phase. Several types of compound slit arrays are investigated; one such structure is optimized to minimize the effect of boundary-layer loss mechanisms present in each slit cavity, thereby achieving a deep, sharp transmission minimum in a broad maximum.