waves

Wave

A disturbance that carries energy from place to place without carrying matter.

Wave Pulse

A single unrepeated disturbance.

Wave Train

A succession of periodic disturbances.

Mechanical Waves

Waves that must have a medium to move.

Electromagnetic Waves

Waves that do not require a medium to move.

Amplitude

How far the medium moves from its rest position.

Crest

The highest point of a transverse wave.

Trough

The lowest point of a transverse wave.

Compression

Where the particles in a longitudinal wave are close together.

Rarefaction

Where the particles in a longitudinal wave are spread apart.

Frequency

How many waves pass a point in one second, measured in hertz (Hz).

Wavelength

The distance between one point on a wave and the same point on the next wave.

Wave Speed

Depends on the medium and is calculated as wave speed = wavelength x frequency.

Elastic Modulus

The ratio of force applied to an object that measures the object's resistance to deformation.

Resonance

Occurs when an object vibrates at its natural frequency due to impulses from a vibrating source.

Interference

When two or more waves meet while passing through the same medium.

Standing Waves

Waves that appear to be stationary, formed by the interference of moving waves.

Nodes

Points in a standing wave where particles of the medium are not displaced from their equilibrium position.

Antinodes

Points where particles of the medium experience maximum displacement.

Inverse Square Law

The intensity of a wave is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source.

Diffraction

The bending of waves around an object.

Fundamental Frequency

The lowest possible frequency of a wave.

Harmonic Frequencies

Frequencies that are integral multiples of the fundamental frequency.