Waves Video Notes

Definition

  • a disturbance that comes from energy through matter

  • Carries energy from one place to another through a medium

    • Medium: the matter that waves travel through

2 Types of Waves

  • Mechanical Waves:
    • require a medium
    • cannot travel in a vacuum
  • Electromagnetic Waves:
    • donā€™t require a medium
    • can travel in a vacuum

Characteristics of All Waves:

  • Amplitude
    • measure of the amount of energy carried by a wave
    • from x-axis to the top of the wave
  • Wavelength
    • meters or centimeter
    • crest of one wave to another
    • period: crest of one wave to another
  • Frequency
    • Hertz (Hz)
    • the number of crests that pass a point per second

Seismic Waves:

  • Transverse Waves:
    • right angle to the wave
    • shakes sideways
  • Longitudinal Waves:
    • the same direction that the wave is traveling
    • Rarefaction and Compression makes the wave moves forward
    • Rarefaction: particles separate
    • Compression: when the particles move together

Waves speed: V=frequency times the wavelength

  • Remember that the lambda is used to represent wavelength

4 Ways Waves Interact with Mediums:

  • Reflection: wave bouncing back after an object does not absorb the wave
    • Echos: Sound waves bounce off an object
    • original wave- in
    • wave bouncing back=reflected wave
  • Refraction: speeding up or slowing down of light
  • Diffraction: Bending of waves around an obstacle or am aperture
  • Interference: the crests of two waves meet
    • Constructive: when the resulting wave is bigger
    • Destructive: when the waves cancel each other