waves Flashcards
wave
a disturbance that transfers energy from one place to another and is made up of periodic motion
transverse wave
wave whose motion is perpendicular to the direction of vibration of particles
longitudinal wave
wave whose motion is parallel to the direction of vibration of particles
crest
highest point of a transverse wave
trough
lowest point of a transverse wave
amplitude
maximum displacement of a point on a wave from its rest position
wavelength
the shortest distance between any two points in phase
period
time taken to produce one complete wave
frequency
number of complete waves produced per second
wave speed
average distance travelled by a wave per second
wavefront
an imaginary line that joins all adjacent points on a wave that are in phase