Waves Flashcards
What is a wave?
Caused by a disturbance or vibration
What is a transverse wave?
Particles of the medium vibrate perpendicular to the direction in which the wave moves
In which way do the particles move?
The particles move up and down
What is a longitudinal wave?
Particles of the medium vibrate parallel to the direction in which the wave moves.
In which way do the particles move?
The particles move from left to right
What is it called when the particles move closer together and further away?
Closer is compression and further contraction
What are the different parts of the wave?
Amplitude - the maximum displacement from the rest position
Crest - the highest point of a wave
Trough - the lowest point of the wave
Wavelength - the distance between 2 consecutive points
What is wave frequency?
The number of complete waves that pass a point in one second
What is pitch?
The measurement of frequency. How high or low a note is. The greater the frequency, the greater the pitch
What does oscillate mean?
To vibrate
Why is there no sound in space?
Particles need something to vibrate against to make a sound in a fixed position
What happens when there is a shorter wave length and a bigger wavelength?
Shorter - higher frequency and higher amplitude
Bigger - low frequency and lower amplitude
What does it mean when there is a higher or lower amplitude?
Higher - moves further away from the rest position
Lower - moves closer away from the rest position
How do the particles move during frequency?
They move faster when the frequency is higher and slower when the frequency is lower.
