  It is demonstrated theoretically that the absorptivity of bulk shear sagittal
waves by an ultra-thin layer of viscous fluid between two different elastic
media has a strong maximum (in some cases as good as 100%) at an optimal layer
thickness. This thickness is usually much smaller than the penetration depths
and lengths of transverse and longitudinal waves in the fluid. The angular
dependencies of the absorptivity are demonstrated to have significant and
unusual structure near critical angles of incidence. The effect of
non-Newtonian properties and non-uniformities of the fluid layer on the
absorptivity is also investigated. In particular, it is shown that the
absorption in a thin layer of viscous fluid is much more sensitive to non-zero
relaxation time(s) in the fluid layer than the absorption at an isolated
solid-fluid interface.
