Unit 1 - Waves Flashcards
Describe transverse waves.
The vibrations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer.
What is the amplitude?
The size of the vibration, measured from rest point or equilibrium to the maximum displacement of the wave/particle.
What type of waves are electromagnetic waves?
Transverse waves.
What type of waves are sound and ultrasound waves?
Longitudinal waves.
What have all electromagnetic waves got in common?
They are all transverse waves.
They travel at the same speed in a vacuum.
They can all be reflected, refracted, diffracted.
What is diffraction?
The spreading of a wave through a gap.
What property of an electromagnetic wave increases from radio to gamma waves?
Frequency.
Amount of energy transferred.
Give one use for an infrared wave.
To remote control communicating with the TV.
Give one use for microwaves.
Communicating with satellites in space. Microwaves can travel through the earth’s atmosphere.
The focus is on waves for communication, not for heating food, although this is also true.
What are the conditions for the maximum diffraction of a wave through a gap?
The gap size must be the same as the size of the wavelength.
If the gap size is much bigger than the wavelength little diffraction will occur.
Give a situation when a light wave moves from air to glass but no refraction occurs.
When the wave travels along the normal line.
Describe the image formed in a plane mirror.
Virtual, as it is found behind the mirror.
What is the reflection of a sound wave called?
An echo.
What does the amplitude of a sound wave tell you?
The loudness of the sound.
The frequency tells y the pitch of the sound.
Describe a longitudinal wave.
Particles vibrate parallel to the direction of energy transfer. The wave has areas of compression and rarefaction.
