Topic 4 Oscillations and Waves

4.4 Wave Characteristics

4.4.1

Describe a wave pulse and a continuous progressive (travelling) wave.

4.4.2

State that progressive (travelling) waves transfer energy.

4.4.3

Waves are a special form of motion

No net motion of the medium
e.g. singer breaking glass; light from the sun
Mechanical waves require a medium for their propagation unlike EM waves
which can travel in a vacuum

Describe and give examples of transverse and longitudinal waves.

Transverse waves
Longitudinal waves

It takes a certain amount of time for this disturbance to move through the
medium
Therefore the speed of a pulse, v, is proportional to

4.4.4

A wave is always associated with some form of disturbance

Oscillations vs. wave motion

Describe waves in two dimensions, including the concepts of wave fronts

and of rays.

Huygens (17th century) devised a theory to explain many wave properties

Two waves in phase...
A ray is

Spherical wave

Plane wave

Rays

Wave fronts

4.4.5

Describe the terms crest, trough, compression and rarefaction.

4.4.6

Define the terms displacement, amplitude, period, frequency, period,

wavelength, wave speed and intensity.

4.4.7

crest
trough
compression
rarefaction

cycle of oscillation
frequency (f)
period (T)
amplitude
phase difference ()
wavelength ()
wave speed

Draw and explain displacement-time graphs and displacement-position

graphs for transverse and longitudinal waves.

A wave pulse produced on either the end of a string (transverse) or in a coiled

spring (longitudinal) can be represented symbolically by the same graph.

Displacement-position
y

Position

Graphs of the displacement at time intervals of one-quarter period.

t=0

t=T

t=T

t=T

t=T

4.4.8

Derive and apply the relationship between wave speed, wavelength and
frequency.
1. A wave pulse on a string moves a distance of 10 m in 0.05 s. a) What is the
velocity of the pulse? b) What is the frequency of a periodic wave on the
same string if its wavelength is 0.8 m?
2. A typical sound wave associated with human speech has a frequency of 500
Hz, while a frequency of 5x1014 Hz corresponds to yellow light. In air, sound
travels at 344 m s-1 and light at c=3x108 m s-1. Find the wavelengths of each.

4.4.9

State that all electromagnetic waves travel with the same speed in free
space, and recall the orders of magnitude of the wavelengths of the principal
radiations in the electromagnetic spectrum.

Option G: ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES

G.1 The Nature of EM Waves and Light Sources
Nature and properties of EM waves
G.1.1 Outline the nature of electromagnetic (EM) waves.

Maxwell, 1873
An oscillating electric charge
Plane polarized

G.1.2 Describe the different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

EM waves distinguished by , f or the method of production:

Name

<10-13
10-8 10-13
10-7 10-8
4x10-7
7x10-7
10-7 10-3
10-3 10-1
>10-1

Production
nuclear transitions, particle/antiparticle collisions, radioactive decay
atomic transitions, X-ray tubes, radioactive decay
atomic transitions, radioactive decay
atomic transitions, gas discharge
atomic transitions, gas discharge
atomic transitions, molecular transitions
hot objects
electrical oscillations (e-); <10 TV; 10-500 radar; 10-1000 radio

An EM wave is produced when

Radio, IR and rays have been detected from