The Nature Of Sound

Summary

 Sound is a mechanical, longitudinal wave.

o As a mechanical wave, sound requires a medium.
 Sound cannot propagate through a vacuum.
 There is no sound in outer space.
o As a longitudinal wave, sound is a rapid variation in pressure that propagates.
 Regions of above normal pressure (regions under compression) are
called compressions or condensations.
 Regions of below normal pressure (regions under tension) are called rarefactions or
dilations.
 Sound is produced by small and rapid pressure changes.
o Vibrating objects produce periodic sound waves.
o Implosive or explosive pressure changes produces sound pulses.
o Vortex shedding is another source of periodic sound waves.
 The speed of sound depends upon the medium and its state.
o Sound usually travels fast in gases, faster in liquids, and fastest in solids.
o The speed of sound in air increases with temperature.
 There are several formulas for calculating the speed of sound in air as a function of
temperature.
o The speed of sound in air is largely independent of amplitude and frequency.
 The amplitude of a sound wave corresponds to its intensity or loudness.
o The intensity of a sound is…
 a measure of its power density
 usually measured on a logarithmic scale
 discussed in more detail in another section of this book
o The loudness of a sound is its intensity as perceived by the human ear.
o The volume knob on a television, radio, etc. should really be given a different name.
 The frequency of a sound wave corresponds to its pitch.
o The upper frequency limit for human hearing is around 18,000 to 20,000 Hz.
 Frequencies above the range of human hearing are ultrasonic.
o The lower frequency limit for human hearing is around 18 to 20 Hz.
 Frequencies below the range of human hearing are infrasonic.
o The frequency of a sound wave does not change as the sound wave propagates.
 Wavelength is inversely proportional to frequency (λ ∝ 1/f).
o Large objects generally produce long wavelength, low frequency sounds.
o Small objects generally produce short wavelength, high frequency sounds.
 The ability of an animal or electronic sensor to identify the location or direction of origin of a
sound is known as sound localization.
o Sound localization requires two or more…
 sense organs (ears or antennae) or
 electromechanical detectors (microphones)
devoted to hearing…
 in different locations (left and right sides of the head, for example) or
  with different orientations (facing to the left or to the right).
o All methods of sound localization rely on the difference in some characteristic as
perceived or measured by the two organs or detectors.
 interaural level difference — loudness, intensity, or amplitude
 interaural time differences — time of arrival
 interaural phase difference — phase differences
 A reflected sound wave is known as an echo.
o Echoes can be used to determine the distance to a reflecting surface.

2∆s = vsoundΔt

∆s = distance from the observer to the reflecting surface (note that this value is doubled since the sound has to
go out and come back),
vsound = speed of sound in the intervening medium, and
Δt = time between when the pulse was transmitted and when the echo was received.
Where…
o This method has applications in…
 animal echolocation
 sonar (an acronym for sound navigation and ranging)
 medical ultrasonography (The images generated are called sonograms.)