Mechanical Waves Review

Flashcards focusing on the key vocabulary and definitions related to mechanical waves.

Mechanical Waves

Wave motion that requires a medium such as water or sound.

Transverse Waves

Waves in which the vibration of individual particles is perpendicular to the direction of wave propagation.

Longitudinal Waves

Waves in which the vibration of individual particles is parallel to the direction of wave propagation.

Wave Pulse

A single burst of energy – a one-time disturbance that travels through a medium.

Wavelength

The shortest distance between points of a wave where the wave pattern repeats itself.

Node

A point of no displacement resulting from destructive interference where a crest meets a trough.

Antinode

Positions along the medium that undergo maximum displacement, resulting from a crest meeting a crest.

Law of Superposition

When two or more waves exist in the same medium, each wave moves as though the other were absent.

Interference

The result of superposition, the interaction of multiple waves.

Diffraction

The bending of waves around barriers, becoming less obvious as gaps get larger.

Refraction

The bending of light or any wave as it passes from one medium to another, causing a change in direction.

Normal

An imaginary line that is perpendicular to the surface where a wave hits.