A residual-stress profile along the thickness of an aluminum alloy sheet is determined by laser-ultrasonic technique. Surface acoustic waves are generated by a Nd:YAG pulse laser and detected by a Heterodyne interferometer on a lateral free surface of the sheet. The distribution of residual stress is determined by measuring the relative variation of the wave-velocities at different location of the sample along its thickness. This technique is validated by three different residual stress profiles obtained experimentally.
