Electroacoustic transducer for deep submersion

An axial electroacoustic transducer, for deep submergence and which operates in a longitudinal wave mode, is of the sandwich type comprising:

• a member having an active front radiating face;
• a counter-mass disposed rearwardly of said member;
• and
• an active part, provided with front and rear electrical connections (8, 13) and which is formed by means of a plurality of coaxially stacked piezoelectric wafers, arranged between said member and said rear counter-mass,
• said active part and said rear counter-mass are enclosed in a cylindrical housing one base of which is formed by said active radiating face while the other base of which comprises an inertia loading mass (6) and the side of which is formed by decoupling means operatively associated with said active radiating face (1) and said inertia loading mass, such that the decoupling properties are maintained even for high pressure operations whereby the electroacoustic transducer thus obtained is able to operate over a wide frequency band,
• said decoupling means also forming an acoustic filter formed by means of axially stacked annular members, at least three in number, alternately of a compliant type and of an inertial type within the operating frequency range,
• whereby the resultant properties include high compliance, in the axial direction of the decoupling means, and high resistance, in both the radial and tangential directions, to compression of the decoupling means.