NDE: SURFING THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM

Advances in Nondestructive Evaluation demand an arsenal of techniques. This was as true twenty years ago as it is today. As materials and their associated technologies progress, so must the strategy for evaluating the quality of the product. Nondestructive Evaluation is a constant struggle to extract, from classical and quantum physics, the quintessential elements that will optimally address an inspection requirement, apart from purely academic interest. It must work to be useful and thereby advance the field. The electromagnetic spectrum, from Roentgen to Maxwell/Hertz, lies at the foundation of both classical and quantum physics. Not only has NDE plucked pearls form every nook of the spectrum ranging from X‐rays to T‐rays but also has managed to utilize virtually every known coupling of the spectrum to the classical mechanics of heat and sound. I will “surf” the spectrum to provide a sampling of what NDE has extracted past and present as well as try to couple to its future.