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mcat physics > Waves and sounds > Flashcards

Waves and sounds Flashcards

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1
Q

waves in hearing

A

longitudinal (make long distance calls)

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2
Q

Waves in light

A

transverse waves

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3
Q

sound waves

A

need a medium to travel through since it is a change in pressure from high to low

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4
Q

light waves

A

do not need a medium since they transfer energy through alternating electric and magnetic fields

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5
Q

mechanical waves

A

obey the laws of classical mechanics and require a medium

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6
Q

electromagnetic waves

A

do not need a medium to travel through

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7
Q

wavelength

A

is the distance from any point in the wave to the point where the wave begins to repeat itself

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8
Q

frequency

A

is the number of wavelengths that pass a fixed point in one second

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9
Q

period

A

is the time it takes the wave to travel the distance of one wavelength and is the reciprocal of frequency

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10
Q

frequency does not change when

A

you move from one medium to another and neither does the period

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11
Q

what changes when a wave travels through another medium

A

the velocity changes

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12
Q

what happens to a sound wave when temperature increases in a gas

A

sounds waves will move more quickly

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13
Q

Why do sound waves travel faster in water than air

A

water has a much higher bulk modulus

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14
Q

amplitude of a wave

A

can be measured as the distance between the x-axis and either the top of a crest or the bottom of a trough

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15
Q

what happens to amplitude when a wave moves from one medium to another

A

amplitude changes

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16
Q

pitch

A

a measure of how high or low a note sounds, correlates with frequency

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17
Q

intensity

A

is the power level of a sound wave.

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18
Q

in decibels if you increase by 100 you add

A

10

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19
Q

when a wave reflects off a medium that is more dense

A

it is inverted

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20
Q

when a wave reflects off a medium less dense it is

A

it is reflected upright

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21
Q

audible frequency for humans

A

20 to 20,000Hz

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22
Q

waves above the frequency for humans

A

ultrasonic

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23
Q

for an ultrasound machine the greater the difference in density

A

the greater the intensity of reflected sound

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24
Q

point created by maximum destructive interference is called

A

node

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25
Q

two vertical lines experience maximum constructive interference

A

antinode

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26
Q

attenuation

A

the decrease in the intensity of a wave propagating through a medium

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27
Q

when a wave attenuates what decreases

A

its intensity

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28
Q

doppler effect

A

is the change in the observed frequency when a wave source or observe moves towards or away from each other

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29
Q

when the source or the observer is moving toward each other

A

the observed frequency is higher

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30
Q

as distance decreases so does the

A

time interval between wave fronts

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31
Q

what does the wavelength for light do when the source and observer are approaching each other

A

creates a blue shift

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32
Q

when objects are moving in the same direction at the same speed

A

there is no doppler effect

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33
Q

shock waves

A

is a conical wave front produced when the velocity of the sound source exceeds the velocity of the sound wave

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34
Q

pressures differences in a shock wave are

A

so different that it causes the observer to perceive it as a boom

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35
Q

amplitude of a standing wave is

A

constant

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36
Q

Intensity and amplitude related

A

I= A^2

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37
Q

30 db to 10 db is a

A

100 fold decrease

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38
Q

light acts like both

A

a wave and a particle

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39
Q

emission of light occurs when

A

the light emitted transitions from higher to lower energy states

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40
Q

light emitted by electrons is in the form of

A

photons

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41
Q

the dominant frequency of emitted light is

A

directly proportional to the temperature

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42
Q

black is the absorption of

A

all light

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43
Q

white is the reflection of

A

all visible light

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44
Q

when light is polarized

A

its electric and magnetic fields are oriented in a particular rather than a random way

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45
Q

if light oscillates parallel to the y-axis

A

it is said to be vertically polarized

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46
Q

if light oscillates parallel to the x-axis

A

it is said to be horizontally polarized

47
Q

magnetic fields oscillate in planes perpendicular to the

A

planes in which electric fields oscillate

48
Q

source of light is

A

a vibrating charge

49
Q

light is said to be circularly polarized when it consists of electric fields of

A

constant magnitude that change direction in a rotary manner

50
Q

reflection is

A

light bouncing off the boundary between media

51
Q

Refraction

A

is light bending as it passes into a new medium

52
Q

Dispersion

A

is a type of refraction is the splitting of light according to frequency

53
Q

Diffraction is

A

the spreading of light when it encounters an edge

54
Q

The angle at which a wave strikes an interface is called

A

the angle of incidence

55
Q

the angle at which a wave is reflected is called

A

the angle of reflection

56
Q

the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection when light

A

reflects off a flat surface

57
Q

what do all waves do

A

refract

58
Q

the greater index of refraction results in

A

the more slowly light moves through the medium

59
Q

indice of refraction for water

A

1.3

60
Q

indice of refraction for glass

A

1.5

61
Q

when light approaches a medium with a higher index of refraction at an angle other than 90 degrees

A

one part of the wave front changes speed before the other and the light ray remains perpendicular to the wave fronts

62
Q

when light enters a new medium what remains the same and what changes

A

the frequency remains the same while the wavelength and velocity change

63
Q

refraction does not change the

A

phase of the wave at the interface between two media

64
Q

if the medium’s index of refraction is higher

A

the wavelength becomes shorter

65
Q

if the index of refraction is lower

A

the wavelength becomes longer

66
Q

when light is coming from a higher index of refraction the angle of incidence can be so great to cause

A

total internal reflection

67
Q

if the angle of incidence is large enough

A

all photons will be reflected at the angle of reflection and none will refract. angle called critical angle

68
Q

critical angle equation

A

theta critical= sin inverse (n2/n1)

69
Q

dispersion

A

is the separation of light into different frequencies due to their different indices of refraction in a medium

70
Q

chromatic dispersion

A

has light refracted at its different frequencies resulting in different velocities and wavelengths

71
Q

diffraction is

A

the spreading of light that occurs when a wave bends around the edges of an object or opening

72
Q

longer wavelengths will do what compared to shorter wavelengths

A

defract more

73
Q

the fact that a wave can be reflected supports both

A

the particle theory of light and the wave theory

74
Q

the difference between lens and mirrors with interaction with light

A

light reflects when it encounters a mirror and refracts when it encounters a lens

75
Q

thin lens

A

is a lens whose maximal thickness is small relative to the radius of curvature, object distance, and image distance

76
Q

focal point

A

the point at which parallel light rays converge or appear to converge after reflecting off of the mirror or passing through the lens

77
Q

real focal point

A

where light rays actually converge

78
Q

virtual focal point

A

is a point at which light only appears to converge

79
Q

focal point for a concave mirror

A

lies in front of the mirror

80
Q

focal point for a convex mirror

A

is located behind the mirror

81
Q

focal length

A

is the distance between a mirror and its focal point. It is equal to half the radius of curvature f=R/2

82
Q

power of a lens is determined by

A

P=1/f

83
Q

lens have two

A

focal points

84
Q

what is the power of a lens measured in

A

diopters (m^-1) must convert into meters to calculate

85
Q

converging mirror

A

reflects light rays such that they converge at a point in front of the mirror. The point at which reflected rays converge is the focal point

86
Q

Converging lens

A

light converges behind where the light source is

87
Q

converging mirror

A

concave

88
Q

converging lens

A

convex

89
Q

what makes a spherical mirror reflect light at one point

A

if the radius of curvature is large and the angles of incidence are relatively small

90
Q

how does a diverging mirror reflect light

A

reflects light rays such that the observer perceives them as converging at a point on the opposite side of the mirror from the observer

91
Q

diverging lens

A

refracts light rays such that they appear to converge at a point on the same side of the lens as the light source, opposite the side of the observer

92
Q

diverging mirror is a

A

convex mirror

93
Q

diverging lens is a

A

concave lens

94
Q

if the center of a lens is thicker than its ends

A

it will converge light regardless of its shape or which direction light moves through the lens

95
Q

real, inverted image

A

on the same side of the mirror or lens as the observer and positive

96
Q

virtual, upright

A

on the opposite side of the mirror or lens from the observer and negative

97
Q

positive and negative are dictated by

A

positive on the same as the observer and negative on the opposite side of the observer

98
Q

diverging lens and mirrors always produce

A

virtual upright images

99
Q

what is unique about convergers

A

they can make both real,inverted images and virtual upright images

100
Q

when the object is located beyond the focal point

A

convergers will always produce a real inverted image located on the side of the observer

101
Q

if the object is placed within the focal length the image formed will be (convergers)

A

virtual and upright

102
Q

real image is always located

A

on the same side as the observer

103
Q

focal distance for a converging mirror and lens

A

positive

104
Q

focal distance for a diverging mirror and lens

A

negative

105
Q

object distances are given a positive sign when

A

objects are where they belong. objects belong on the same side as the observer for mirrors and on the opposite side from an observer for lenses

106
Q

magnification

A

-di/do

107
Q

diverging lens and mirrors always form images that are

A

smaller in size than the objects they represent

108
Q

plane mirrors

A

the image formed by a plane mirror is the same distance from the mirror as the object

109
Q

chromatic abberation

A

arise when light of higher frequencies focuses closer to a lens than does light of lower frequencies

110
Q

chromatic abberations only occur when

A

different frequencies of light pass through a lens simultaneously

111
Q

spherical abberations

A

when rays farther from the center of a lens focus at different points than do rays closer to the center of the lens

112
Q

the lateral magnification of a two lens system is the product of

A

the lateral magnifications of each lens M=m1*m2

113
Q

Two lenses in contact with each other have an effective power equal to the sum of their individual powers

A

Peff=P1+P2

114
Q

increase bending of light would increase

A

the lens power

mcat physics (5 decks)

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