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Physics > Waves > Flashcards

Waves Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the 2 types of waves?

A

Transverse
Longitudinal

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2
Q

What is a wave?

A

Transfer of energy from one place to the other

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3
Q

What happens in a transverse waves?

A

Oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer

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4
Q

What happens in a longitudinal wave?

A

Oscillations are parallel to the direction of energy transfer

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5
Q

What do all waves have?

A

Frequency, amplitude, wavelength, period

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6
Q

Describe frequency

A

The number of waves passing a fixed point per second, measured in hertz

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7
Q

Describe amplitude.

A

The maximum displacement that any particle achieves from its undisturbed position in metres

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8
Q

Describe wavelength

A

The distance from one point on a wave to the equivalent point on the next wave in metres

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9
Q

Describe period

A

The time taken for one to complete oscillation in seconds

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10
Q

What is the speed of a wave?

A

The speed at which the energy is transferred

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11
Q

What do you do when constructing a ray diagram?

A

Rays must be drawn using a ruler
Single arrow
All relevant angles labelled

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12
Q

What does the direction of refraction depend on?

A

The angle at which the wave hits the boundary, the materials involved

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13
Q

What causes refraction?

A

The difference in the wave speed in the different media

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14
Q

What do sound waves have?

A

Frequency, amplitude and wavelength

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15
Q

What is the normal range of human hearing?

A

20Hz to 20,000Hz

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16
Q

What happens when sound waves reach the ear?

A

The ear drum vibrates

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17
Q

What frequency are ultrasonic waves?

A

greater than 20,000Hz, so they cannot be heard by human ears

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18
Q

What happens when an ultrasonic wave meets a boundary between two different media?

A

It is partially reflected

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19
Q

What is ultrasonic waves used for?

A

Pre-natal scanning, detection of kidney stones and tumours, and producing images of damaged ligaments and muscles

20
Q

What are echo sounds used for?

A

Detecting objects in deep water and measuring the depth of water

21
Q

What are the 2 types of seismic waves?

A

P-waves (primary)
S-waves (secondary)

22
Q

What are P-waves?

A

Longitudinal waves
Travel at the speed of sound (double S-waves)
Travel at different speeds through solids and liquids

23
Q

What are S-waves?

A

Transverse waves
Not able to travel through liquids

24
Q

What happens during an earthquake?

A

Seismic waves travel outwards from the earthquake and are capable of travelling all the way through the Earth
Seismic waves travel in a curved path through the earth, due to the earth increasing in density with depth
Detectors placed around the earth measure when and where the different waves arrive

25
Q

What happens in the S-wave shadow zone?

A

S-waves are not able to travel through the liquid outer core of the earth
This results in a large shadow zone on the opposite side of the earth to where the earthquake originated

26
Q

What happens in the P-wave shadow zone?

A

P-waves are able to travel through the liquid outer core
They are refracted at the boundary between the semi-solid mantle and the liquid outer core
They are refracted again at the boundary between the liquid outer core and solid inner core

27
Q

What are electromagnetic waves?

A

Transverse waves

28
Q

What do electromagnetic waves travel through?

A

In air or a vacuum at the speed of light

29
Q

How does the wavelength of an electromagnetic wave affect it?

A

Affects how it is absorbed, transmitted, reflected or refracted by different substances, changes his uses

30
Q

What are radio waves caused by?

A

Oscillations in electrical circuits

31
Q

What are the hazards of Electro magnetic waves?

A

Ultraviolet waves can cause the skin to age prematuarly and increase risk of skin cancer
X-rays and Gamma rays cause ionising radiation that can damage skin cells

32
Q

What does a lens form?

A

An image by refracting light

33
Q

What are the 2 main types of lens?

A

Concave
Convex

34
Q

How is a convex lense structured?

A

Wider in the middle than at the edges

35
Q

How is a concave lense structured?

A

Wider at the edges than it is in the middle

36
Q

What do you do when drawing a ray diagram?

A

Principle axis
Use the correct lense symbol
Mark the principle foci on either side of the lens by drawing a dot on the principle axis and labelling it
Mark the position of the object as an arrow standing on the principle axis
Draw the light rays

37
Q

What is magnification?

A

The ratio of image height to object height

38
Q

What is visible light?

A

Describes electromagnetic waves that can be detected by the human eye

39
Q

What is specular reflection?

A

Reflection by a smooth surface in a single direction

40
Q

What is diffuse reflection?

A

Reflection from a rough surface, where the light is scattered

41
Q

What do all bodies emit and absorb?

A

Infrared radiation

42
Q

What does the rate at which an object emits radiation depend on?

A

The nature of the surface and on its temperature

43
Q

What does the temperature of an object depend on?

A

The rate at which it emits radiation
The wavelength of the radiation it emits

44
Q

What is the temperature of an object related to?

A

the balance between radiation absorbed and radiation emitted

45
Q

What does the temperature of the earth depend on?

A

How much energy it recieves from the sun
How much energy is reflected back into space
How much energy it emits into space

Physics (8 decks)

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