A nonlinear ultrasonic technique for evaluating material elastic nonlinearity has been developed. It measures the phase modulation of a high frequency (82MHz) surface acoustic wave interacting with a low frequency (1MHz) high amplitude stress inducing surface acoustic wave. A new breed of optical transducers has been developed and used for the generation and detection of the high frequency wave. The CHeap Optical Transducer (CHOT) is an ultrasonic transducer system, optically activated and read by a laser. We show that CHOTs offer advantages over alternative transducers. CHOTs and nonlinear ultrasonics have great potential for aerospace applications. Results measuring changes in ultrasonic velocity corresponding to different stress states of the sample are presented on fused silica and aluminium.