Waves

a) Units
3.1 Units: Unit Symbol/Abbreviation Unit of Angle Distance Speed Time
th

Description One 360 of a complete turn A specific length Number of metres travelled per second A specific time period

degree hertz Hz metre M metre/second m/s second S

Frequency Number of occurrences per second

b) Properties of waves
3.2 Types of Waves: In longitudinal waves, particles oscillate parallel to the direction of the wave. o One end of a spring can be pushed toward the other in such a way that a longitudinal wave passes through the entire spring. Here, a compression travels the length of the spring, with the coils around it stretched out, called rarefactions. o Light travels in longitudinal waves. In transverse waves, particles oscillate parallel to the direction of the wave. o When a rope is whipped, a transverse wave travels through the rope. o Water ripples are also transverse, as even though the travel horizontally, the water particles oscillate vertically. Amplitude, Frequency, Wavelength and Period: The amplitude is the maximum distance the particles are displaced from their neutral position when a wave passes. o This is measured in metres, as it is distance. The frequency is the number of waves passing a point every second, where each wave is one repetition of particles being displaced one way and then the other. o This is measured in Hertz. The wavelength is the distance between any point on one wave and the equivalent point on the next. o This is measured in metres. The period of a wave is how long it takes for one wave to pass a certain point. o This is measured in seconds, as it is time. Contents of Waves: Waves dont transfer matter from one place to another; some of the energy in them is converted to kinetic energy and causes particles to oscillate only. This energy moves the wave forward, using the particles as a medium. Waves only transfer energy and information. Relationship between Speed, Frequency and Wavelength of a wave:

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wave speed = frequency wavelength v=f 3.6 = Greek letter lambda symbol for wavelength Relationship between Frequency and Time Period: frequency = 1 l time period

1 f = 1/t t 3.7 Frequency and Time Period with Sound and Electromagnetic Waves: Time period seconds Frequency Hz (number of times per second)

c) The electromagnetic spectrum

3.8 3.9 Electromagnetic Spectrum: Visible light is part of a continuous electromagnetic spectrum which decreases in wavelength and increases in frequency. All electromagnetic waves travel at the same speed - 300000000 m/s in a vacuum. Order of Wave Types in the Electromagnetic Spectrum and Colours in the Visible Spectrum:

O n t h e l e ft e n d

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Indigo

Violet

o f the illustration above, the wavelength starts off as being very long, and gets shorter toward the right. This must mean frequency increases, as all these waves travel at exactly the same speed. The visible spectrum is a sub-spectrum of the electromagnetic spectrum, comprised of seven main colours, although there is an infinite number of colours in-between. In both these spectrums, the bands gradually fade into one another rather than switching suddenly at a certain frequency.

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Uses of Electromagnetic Radiations:

Wave Type Uses Radio Broadcasting/Communications Microwaves Cooking/Satellite Transmissions Infrared Heaters/Night Vision Equipment Visible light Optical Fibres/Photography Ultraviolet Fluorescent Lamps X-Rays Observing Internal Structure of Objects and Materials/Medical Applications Gamma Rays Sterilising Food and Medical Equipment 3.11 Negative Effects of the Electromagnetic Spectrum on Humans:

Wave Type Detrimental Effects Microwaves Internal Heating of Body Tissue Infrared Skin Burns Ultraviolet Damage to Surface Cells and Blindness Gamma Rays Cancer/Mutation

d) Light and sound

3.12 Light Waves: Light waves are transverse waves which can be reflected and refracted. Reflection is the change in direction of a wave at an interface between two different mediums so that the wave returns into the medium from which it originated. Refraction is the change in direction of a wave because of a change in its speed, due to differences of refractive indexes of two mediums - as one side of the light touches the medium first, the other side goes faster or slower, forcing a turn. Relationship between Angle of Incidence and Angle of Reflection angle of incidence = angle of reflection i=r

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construct ray diagrams to illustrate the formation of a virtual image in a plane mirror

3.15 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

describe experiments investigating refraction of light, using rectangular blocks, semicircular blocks and triangular prisms Set up a ray box and shine light into a regular glass block. Measure the angle of incidence and angle of refraction. Repeat step two with the light entering the same spot on the glass, but at different angles. Repeat experiment with semi-circular blocks and triangular prisms. Notice that the angle of the light ray before the entry and after the exit are parallel.

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Relationship between Refractive Index, Angle of Incidence and Angle of Refraction: speed of light in vacuum refractive index = speed of light in vacuum speed of light in medium sin i n = sin i sin r

3.17 1. 2. 3. 4.

Determining the Refractive Index of Glass: Set up a ray box and shine light into a regular glass block Measure the angle of incidence and angle of refraction With this information, use the formula to work out the refractive index of glass Repeat the experiment from different angles and average the refractive indexes calculated from each experiment for a more accurate overall refractive index

5. Notice that the refractive index is the same or very similar from all angles that the light refracts through the glass. 3.18 Total Internal Reflection: The inside surface of any transparent material can act like a perfect mirror, depending on the angle at which the light strikes it. Total internal reflection is where all of the light is reflected back into the medium. The concept of total internal reflection is put to use in different ways. For example: o Optical fibres, where light put in one end is total internally reflected until it comes out the other. o Periscopes, which are instruments for looking over obstacles, use prisms to reflect light twice from the light source into the eyepiece. o Binoculars, where the lens systems produce an upside-down image. Prisms help revert this back to normal. Critical Angle: At a mediums critical angle, the ray splits, with the refracted ray at 90 to the normal, and the rest of the light reflected back into the medium. If light approaches the edge of a transparent medium at an angle greater than the mediums critical angle, total internal reflection occurs. Relationship between Critical Angle and Refractive Index: 1 refractive index = sine of critical angle sine of critical angle n= Derivation of this formula: 1 sin i sin 90 = = = sin c sin r sin c Sound Waves n= Sound waves are longitudinal waves that travel at roughly 330 m/s through air. Sound doesnt exist in a vacuum as sound needs the particles to travel through. Noise is unwanted sound. Noise can be damaging and very annoying, and even is a form of pollution (noise pollution). Sound waves can be reflected and refracted: o Sound waves follow the laws of reflection; the angle of incidence to the material equals the angle of reflection of the echo that bounced off the material. o When sound waves are reflected, an echo might be heard, but the human ear cant distinguish between two sound bursts if they are less than about 0.1 seconds apart. For that reason, in order to hear an echo, the reflecting object must be more than 16 metres away from the hearer. An example of the use of reflection in sound waves is a ship using sonar. The sound emitted by the ship can be considered as travelling a constant speed through the water. Therefore, after some of the sound echoes off the seabed and reaches the ship, the time difference between when it was emitted and detected can help determine the distance of the seabed from the ship. 1 sin c

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Bats and dolphins use echolocation too, and can create a visual map by telling how long the sound took to come back. o Sound waves travel faster through denser materials, as more particles vibrate. This means that sound waves can be refracted when they enter a medium of different density. When a sound wave impacts an object, part of the energy from the wave is transferred to the object. In this case, the sound has been absorbed by the material. o High frequency sound waves are absorbed more readily than lower frequencies. Audible Sound Frequency Characteristics of sound waves: o The longer the amplitude, the louder the sound. o The higher the frequency, the higher pitched the sound would be. Humans can hear sound within frequencies of 20 Hz 20 000 Hz. As people get older, the range of frequencies that they are able to hear starts narrowing. Measuring Speed of Sound in Air To measure sound accurately, you could use two connected microphones that are able to display the time difference between the sounds reaching each microphone. o The microphones have to be kept at a specific distance; since time is being measured, distance is needed to determine speed. When a sharp, loud sound is detected by one of the microphones, the stopwatch is activated, and then stopped when the other microphone picks up the same sound.

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