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physics > waves ✓ > Flashcards

waves ✓ Flashcards

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1
Q

what are the units for wavelength ?

A

metres m

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2
Q

what are the units for frequency ?

A

Hertz Hz

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3
Q

what are the units for wavespeed ?

A

metres per second m/s

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4
Q

what are the units for period ?

A

seconds s

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5
Q

what are the units for angle ?

A

degrees

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6
Q

what are the units for refractive index ?

A

there are no units

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7
Q

what two things do waves transfer ?

A

energy and sometimes information

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8
Q

what do waves not transfer

A

matter

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9
Q

what are the differences between longitudinal and transverse waves ?

A
  • the movement of the particles on a longitudinal waves are in the same direction as the wave (energy)
  • the movement of the particles in a transverse wave is perpendicular to the direction of the wave (energy)
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10
Q

what are some names of transverse waves ?

A

light, UV, gamma, microwave, radio and infer red

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11
Q

what uses longitudinal waves ?

A

sound

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12
Q

how can you make different types of waves ?

A
  • use a slinky and push the slinky forward to create a longitudinal waves
  • move the slinky from side to side to make a transverse wave
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13
Q

what is the wavelength of a wave ?

A

the distance from one peak to the next

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14
Q

what is frequency of a wave ?

A

how many complete wavers there are per second passing a certain point

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15
Q

what is amplitude of a wave ?

A

the height of the wave from rest to crest/peak of wave

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16
Q

what is speed of a wave ?

A

how fast the wave goes

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17
Q

what is period of a wave ?

A

the time it takes for one complete wave to pass a point

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18
Q

what is trough of a wave ?

A

the lower dip of the wave under the rest position

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19
Q

what is peak of a wave ?

A

the top of the wave above the rest position

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20
Q

what is an experiment to measure the speed of sound in air ?

A
  • stand facing towards a building
  • measure the distance between you and the building
  • hit some Claves together
  • start a stop watch at the same time as when you hit Claves together
  • stop the stop watch when you hear the echo of the Claves
  • use the equation speed = distance X time
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21
Q

what is the frequency range for humans ?

A

20 Hz - 20 000 Hz

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22
Q

on an oscilloscope what does a low frequency/low pitch look like ?

A

waves are further apart from each other

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23
Q

on an oscilloscope what does a high frequency/high pitch look like ?

A

waves are closer together

24
Q

on an oscilloscope what does a low amplitude/ quiet look like ?

A

small waves

25
Q

on an oscilloscope what does a big amplitude/loud look like ?

A

tall waves

26
Q

what is the Doppler effect ?

A
  • waves produced by a source moving towards or away have different wavelengths than if they were stationary
  • wavespeed is constant, if moving it catches up to the waves in front causes the wavefronts to bunch up in front of the moving source and spread out behind it
  • frequency when coming towards you will seem higher and its wavelength will seem shorter
  • frequency when moving away will seem lower and its wavelength will seem longer
27
Q

what is the equation for wavespeed ?

A

wavespeed = frequency x wavelength

28
Q

is visible light part of the electromagnetic spectrum ?

A

yes

29
Q

what do the colours in visible light correspond to ?

A

wavelength

30
Q

which colour shows the longest wavelength ?

A

red (infra red)

31
Q

which colour shows the shortest wavelength ?

A

blue (ultra violet)

32
Q

what are the 7 parts of the electromagnetic spectrum ? (from longest wavelength to shortest)

A 
Radio waves
Micro-waves
Infra-red 
Visible light 
Ultra-violet
X-rays
Gamma rays
33
Q

what is an acronym to learn the parts of the electromagnetic spectrum ?

A 
Raging
Martians
Invaded 
Venus 
Using
Xray 
Guns
34
Q

which part of the electromagnetic spectrum has the highest frequency ?

A

Radio waves

35
Q

which part of the electromagnetic spectrum has the lowest frequency ?

A

Gamma rays

36
Q

what are waves that have a higher frequency ?

A

more dangerous

37
Q

what speed do all parts of the electromagnetic spectrum travel at in at vacuum ?

A

the speed of light

38
Q

what are two uses of Radio waves ?

A
  • broadcasting and communication

- television

39
Q

what are two uses of Micro waves ?

A
  • cooking

- mobile phones

40
Q

what are two uses of Infra red waves ?

A
  • heater

- night vision

41
Q

what are two uses of Visible light waves ?

A
  • photography

- communication

42
Q

what are two uses of Ultra violet waves ?

A
  • tanning beds

- security markings

43
Q

what are two uses of X-ray waves ?

A
  • x-rays

- airport security

44
Q

what are two uses of Gamma waves ?

A
  • sterilising medical equipment

- radio therapy

45
Q

what are the dangers of being exposed to micro waves ?

A
  • internal heating of body tissues

- microwaves excite water molecules and cause them to gain kinetic energy

46
Q

what are the dangers of being exposed to infra red waves ?

A
  • causes skin burns
47
Q

what are the dangers of being exposed to ultra violet waves ?

A
  • damage to surface cells and blindness
  • can damage skin cells
  • can damage retina causing blindness
48
Q

what are the dangers of being exposed to gamma ray waves ?

A
  • causes cell mutation

- can cause cancer

49
Q

what can happen to all waves ?

A

they can be reflected, refracted and diffracted

50
Q

what is the law of reflection ?

A

angle of incidence = angle of reflection

51
Q

what is an experiment to investigate the refraction of light in a prism ?

A
  • shine light in triangular prism
  • different wavelengths of light refract by different amounts
  • white light disperses into different colours as it enters the prism
  • similar effect when light leaves the prism
  • get a rainbow effects from light as it leaves
52
Q

what is the equation for refractive index ?

A

refractive index = sin (incidence) ÷ sin (refractive)

53
Q

how do you measure the refractive index of glass ?

A
  • put a light box in front of the glass block
  • draw the normal
  • plot points of the light going into the block and out of the glass block
  • measure the angle of incidence
  • measure the angle of reflection
54
Q

how can the refractive index of a glass block experiment be improved ?

A
  • take readings at different angles
  • plot a graph of sin (i) against sin (r)
  • measuring the gradient of a linear line of best fit to determine the refractive index
55
Q

how is total internal reflection used to send information along optical fibres ?

A
  • optical fibres are made of plastic or glass
  • have a central core surrounded by cladding with a lower refractive index
  • core of the fibre is narrow
  • light signals passing through always hit the core cladding boundaries at angles higher than the critical angle
  • light is always totally internally reflected
56
Q

what is the significance of the critical angle (c) ?

A
  • it is the minimum angle at which total internal refraction occurs
  • any angle greater than the critical angle, total internal reflection occurs and the light ray obeys the normal rules for reflection
57
Q

what is the equation to show the relationship between the critical angle and refractive index ?

A

sin (c) = 1 ÷ n
c = critical angle
n = refractive index

physics (8 decks)

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