HONORS PHYSICS CH.

TWELVE VOCABULARY

A WAVE is energy that is transmitted through a medium (matter) or space (absence of matter) without a transfer of matter. They may occur as a PULSE (single disturbance) or a PERIODIC WAVE (a series of regular disturbances. If needs a medium to be transmitted, it is called a MECHANICAL WAVE ex: water, sound If does NOT require a medium to be transmitted, it is called an ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE only example is LIGHT (radio waves, microwaves, infrared (heat), visible, UV, Xrays, gamma) TRANSVERSE WAVES are waves whose particles vibrate PERPENDICULAR to the propagation of the waves LONGITUDINAL WAVES are waves whose particles vibrate PARALLEL to the propagation of the waves

Crest highest point on a wave Trough lowest point on a wave Wavelength (l) the distance between identical points on consecutive waves Amplitude the displacement from the original undisturbed surface
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the energy of a wave is directly related to the square of its amplitude (Energy Amp2)

Compression area in a longitudinal wave where the particles of the medium are closest together Rarefaction area in a longitudinal wave where the particles of the medium are furthest apart

Characteristics of Waves

PERIOD (T) time to make one wave

FREQUENCY (f) number of waves per time - unit is 1/sec or HERTZ (Hz) (frequency and period are reciprocals) T = 1/f or f = 1/T

DAMPING reduction in the energy of the wave as it moves further away from the source of the disturbance

IMPEDANCE property of a medium through which the wave moves ratio of the applied wave producing force to the displacement velocity the higher the impedance, the slower the wave moves through that medium