Do the bulk solitary strain waves decay?

Non-linearly elastic materials may provide generation of strain solitons, even under short-run and reversible (elastic) loading. Theoretical and experimental studies have been performed to prove the existence of long bulk strain solitary waves produced by a laser-induced shock wave in non-linearly elastic isotropic wave guides. Propagation of the bulk solitary density waves is studied in lengthy (over 0.5 m long) elastic wave guides, which have strong dispersion and are made of polymers with remarkable decay of any of the linear or shock waves at short distances. New experiments in lengthy bars confirm that the bulk solitons do not reveal any considerable decay and shape transformation, while linear or shock waves disappear at much shorter distance completely. Decrement values are estimated first for elastic non-linear strain waves decay in polymeric bars.