3 Waves Flashcards

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1
Q

What is a wave?

A

A way of transferring energy from place to place

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2
Q

What is a transverse wave?

A

One that vibrates at right angles to the direction it is moving

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3
Q

What is an example of a transverse wave?

A

The EM spectrum

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4
Q

What is a longitudinal wave?

A

One which the vibrations are along the direction the wave is moving

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5
Q

What is an example of a longitudinal wave?

A

Sound waves

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6
Q

What is the amplitude of a wave?

A

The maximum movement of particles from resting

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7
Q

What is the wavelength of a wave?

A

Distance from crest to crest on a wave

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8
Q

What is the frequency of a wave?

A

The number of waves produced each second by a source

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9
Q

What is frequency measured in?

A

Hz

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10
Q

What is the time period of a wave?

A

The time it takes for a source to produce one wave

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11
Q

What is the frequency formula?

A

frequency = 1 / time (s)

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12
Q

What is the wavespeed formula?

A

wavespeed = frequency x wavelength

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13
Q

What is the angle of incidence equal to?

A

The angle of reflection

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14
Q

What is refraction?

A

The change in speed as light waves leave the water, causing the light waves to change direction

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15
Q

Why does refraction happen?

A

Because light waves travel faster in water than in air

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16
Q

What is the Doppler effect?

A

When a car is not moving, the sound waves we receive arrive as a series of evenly spaced wavefronts.

17
Q

What happens to the sound waves as the car is moving?

A

The wavefronts are no longer evenly spaced, the wavefronts are more compressed as it moves to person A, and more spaced out as it moves away from person B

18
Q

What is in the EM spectrum? (in order)

A

Radio waves
Microwaves
Infrared radiation
Visible light
Ultra violet
X-rays
Gamma rays

19
Q

Do the frequencies increase or decrease down the group?

A

They increase

20
Q

Does the typical wavelength increase or decrease down the group?

A

Decrease

21
Q

How are radio waves emitted and how do they arrive?

A

They are emitted by a transmitter, and as they arrive they are detected and the information they carry is received

22
Q

What are microwaves used for?

A

Cooking food and communication

23
Q

Why does the food become hot in a microwave?

A

Because the water molecules in the food absorb the microwaves and become very hot

24
Q

What can UV radiation cause?

A

Skin cancer, blindness, burning

25
Q

What can gamma rays cause?

A

Cell mutations, leading to cancer

26
Q

What is the law of reflection?

A

Angle of incidence = angle of reflection

27
Q

What is the formula for refraction?

A

sini/sinr

28
Q

Explain the practical of investigating the refractive index of glass?

A
  1. Shine a ray of light into one of the sides of the glass block, so that the ray shows on opposite sides of the block. Mark the directions with crosses
  2. Draw around the glass block, then remove it
  3. Using the crosses, draw the direction of both rays
  4. Draw in the direction of the ray that travelled inside the glass block
  5. Draw a normal, where the ray enters the box
  6. Measure the angles of incidence and refraction
  7. Use the equation sini/sinr to find the refractive index of the glass block
29
Q

What is total internal reflection?

A

When the critical angle is the smallest possible angle of incidence at which light rays are totally internally reflected

30
Q

When does total internal reflection happen?

A

When a ray is travelling from a more to less dense medium (eg glass to air)

31
Q

What is an optical fibre?

A

A thin piece of fibre composed of two different types of glass, one with high and one with low refractive index

32
Q

Do sound waves travel faster in warm or cold air?

A

Warm