Chapter 1 new book Flashcards
wave
a periodic disturbance in a solid, liquid, or gas as energy is transmitted through a medium
medium
a physical environment in which phenomena occur
transverse wave
a wave in which the particles of the medium move perpendicularly to the direction the wave is traveling
longitudinal wave
a wave in which the particles of the medium vibrate parallel to the direction of wave motion
amplitude
the maximum distance that the particles of a wave’s medium vibrate from their rest position
wavelength
the distance from any point on a wave to an identical point on the next wave
frequency
the number of waves produced in a given amount of time
wave speed
the speed at which a wave travels through a medium
reflection
the bouncing back of a ray of light, sound, or heat when the ray hits surface that it does to go through
refraction
the bending of a wave as the wave passes between two substances in which the speed of the wave differs
diffration
a change in the direction of a wave when the wave finds an obstacle or an edge, such as an opening
interference
the combination of two or more waves that results in a single wave
standing wave
a pattern of vibration that simulates a wave that is standing still
resonance
a phenomenon that occurs when two objects naturally vibrate at the same frequency; the sound produced by one object to vibrate
