Waves Vocab Flashcards
Longitudinal
A type of wave where particles move from side to side parallel to direction of travel eg. sound
Vibration
Rapid linear motion about the equilibrium (to and fro)
Mechanical
A type of wave which carries energy and travels through a secondary object produced by disturbance of energy and going to and fro to the medium
Transverse
A type of wave which moves up and down perpendicular to direction of travel eg. water
Electromagnetic
A type of wave which is radiated and is caused by the acceleration of an electric charge
Velocity
The speed of something in a given direction
Wavelength
The distance between either the adjacent crests or the troughs of a transverse wave
‘λ’
Frequency
The number of waves per second - symbol ‘f’
Reflection
When a wave bounces back off an object
Refraction
Where a wave enters a more or less dense medium to the one it is in
Image
An optically formed duplicate or counterpart of an object often caused by a mirror or a lense
Diffraction
The circular bending of waves when they pass through a small gap
Spectrum
A band of (rainbow) colours produced by separation of the components of light by the different degrees of refraction according to the wavelength
Speed
The rate something is moving at
V=fλ
Ripple tank
An apparatus used to demonstrate the wave motion in water and a waves properties (eg. diffraction, interference)
Amplitude
The maximum displacement from the mean position of a transverse wave (loudness) - symbol ‘a’
Height of wave from centre
Hertz
The unit of frequency - 1Hz = 1wave/s
Compression
A place in a longitudinal wave where the density is at it’s maximum
Rarefaction
A place in a longitudinal wave where the density is at it’s minimum (where it’s most spread out)
Wavefront
A surface containing points affected in the same way by a wave at a given time
Period
(T) in seconds, time taken for each complete cycle of the wave motion
Oscillation
Moves backwards and forwards about it’s equilibrium position
Refractive index
How optically dense something is
n=sin i (bigger)/sin r
n=Vv/Vm
Waves
Transfer energy from one place to another (doesn’t transfer matter); every point of wave vibrates/oscillates backwards and forwards about it’s average (mean) position
