Miguel Vila

Waves

All waves carry energy as vibrations

Waves do not move matter
Waves transfer energy from one place to another
Some waves need a medium to travel

Mechanical waves:
o Need a medium
o Particles vibrate about a rest position
o E.g. sound

Electromagnetic waves:
o Do not need a medium
o An accelerating electric charge produces self-propagating electric &
magnetic fields
o E.g. light

Waves can travel in 3 dimensions:

o 1 dimension stretching a spring
o 2 dimensions ripple in water
o 3 dimensions light from a star

Longitudinal waves:
o Move parallel to medium
o Compressions: Compressed regions
o Rarefactions: Elongated regions

Transverse waves:
o

o
o

edium oscillates perpendicular to propagation

Crest: Top of the wave
Trough: Bottom of the wave

Medium: Material the wave travels through

Displacement (x): Distance of the point in medium from its rest position

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Amplitude (a): Maximum distance of point in medium moves from rest

position
Period (T): Time for one wave to pass a point
Frequency (f): How many oscillations pass a point in one second
Wavelength (): Distance of the wave (distance between two same
points on wave)
The wave equation applies to all waves

v =f
o

v : Velocity ( ms1 )

f : Frequency ( Hz )

: Wavelength ( m )

Electromagnetic waves travel at the speed of light

c=3.00 10 8 ms1

Sound is a vibration of particles in a medium as a longitudinal wave

The nature of the medium effects the speed of the sound wave
Sound waves travel faster in solid liquid gas

The frequency of the wave relates to the pitch of the sound (directly
proportional)
The amplitude of the wave relates to the volume of the sound (directly
proportional)

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Principle of superposition: If two or more waves of the same type pass

through the same medium at the same time, the displacement of any
point is the algebraic sum of the individual displacements
When waves run into each other they can add and subtract and then
continue on their way unchanged

Constructive
and

interference:

When waves add together

the resultant wave has an
increased amplitude

Destructive interference: When waves subtract from each other and

the resultant wave has a decreased amplitude

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Waveband

Electromagnetic waves are produced by accelerating electric charges

An accelerating electric charge produces changing electric & magnetic
fields
Oscillating electric & magnetic fields self-propagate
Electromagnetic waves do not require a medium
Waves across the electromagnetic spectrum differ in frequency &
wavelength
The speed of electromagnetic waves is the speed of light (regardless of
frequency)

Different wavelengths are detected by different methods and have

different uses

Method of detection

Radio waves

Range of typical
wavelengths
1000m - 50cm

Microwaves

50cm - 100m

Similar ^^, but shorter aerials oscillations

faster, wavelength shorter

Length of wire (antenna) receive/induce

electrical signal, by causing electrons in wire to
oscillate

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Infrared

100m - 720nm

Heat sensing cells in animals, photographic film

Visible Light

720nm - 380nm

Eyes, photographic film

Ultraviolet

400nm - 10nm

Photographic film

X-rays

10nm - 0.01nm

Photographic film, scintillator, Geiger-Muller tube

Gamma rays

< 0.01nm

Geiger-Muller tube, photographic film,

scintillation screen/plate, gamma ray camera
using photomultiplier tubes to record light from
scintillator

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjOGNVH3D4Y

Law of Reflection: The angle of the incident wave must equal the angle
of the reflected wave and the incident wave, the reflected wave and the
normal lie on the same plane

Waves reflect by bouncing off a surface

The wave bounces off at the same angle it hits the surface
The angle is measured with respect to the normal
The normal is a line perpendicular to the surface

Refraction: Bending of a wave as it changes velocity upon entering a

medium with different optical density

The velocity of a wave depends on the medium it is travelling through

When a wave changes medium it changes velocity because of this it also
bends

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Less dense to more dense wave slows down and refracts towards normal
(left image)
More dense to less dense wave speeds up and refracts away from normal
(right image)

Refractiv
index:

Measure of a
medium's
optical

density (no
units)
Rati

o of
speed of
light in vacuum to speed in

that medium
Refractive index determines the speed of a wave in that medium
Snells law:
o Relationship between angle of incidence (i) and angle of refraction
(r)
o Ratio of sines equal to ratio of velocities
o Ratio is constant determined by reciprocal ratio of refractive
indexes

sin i v 1 n 2 1
= = =
sin r v 2 n 1 2

**

sin i : Sine of angle of incidence (o)

sin r : Sine of angle of refraction (o)

ms
v 1 : Velocity of wave in medium 1 (1)

ms
v 2 : Velocity of wave in medium 2 (1)

n1 : Refractive index of medium 1

n2 : Refractive index of medium 2

1 : Wavelength of wave in medium 1 (m)

2 : Wavelength of wave in medium 2 (m)

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Critical angle: When

r =

90o the

is known as the critical angle

i greater than the critical angle will result in reflection within medium
Total internal reflection: Reflection within the medium
No light enters the less dense medium, it is totally internally reflected
Obeys law of reflection
When going from more dense to less dense medium

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FM station transmits on frequency of 104.9 MHz. Wavelength?

Tsunami has a period of 50.0s and a wavelength of 10.0km.

Speed?

Compare the sound waves

Miguel Vila

Determine the resultant waves of these wave superpositions.

What are some uses for the different types of EMR?

Miguel Vila

Light travelling through air enters glass (n = 1.5).

Speed in glass?

Light travels from air

to glass.

calculate

i=30