INTRODUCTION:

The Doppler effect (or the Doppler shift) is the

change in frequency or wavelength of a wave in
relation to an observer who is moving relative to the
wave source.] It is named after
the Austrian physicist Christian Doppler, who
described the phenomenon in 1842.
A common example of Doppler shift is the change
of pitch heard when a vehicle sounding a horn
approaches and recedes from an observer. Compared
to the emitted frequency, the received frequency is
higher during the approach, identical at the instant of
passing by, and lower during the recession.

Figure 1

The reason for the Doppler effect is that when the

source of the waves is moving towards the observer,
each successive wave crest is emitted from a position
closer to the observer than the previous
wave. Therefore, each wave takes slightly less time to
reach the observer than the previous wave. Hence, the
time between the arrival of successive wave crests at
the observer is reduced, causing an increase in the
frequency. While they are traveling, the distance
between successive wave fronts is reduced, so the
waves "bunch together". Conversely, if the source of
waves is moving away from the observer, each wave is
emitted from a position farther from the observer than
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 the previous wave, so the arrival time between
successive waves is increased, reducing the frequency.
The distance between successive wave fronts is then
increased, so the waves "spread out".
For waves that propagate in a medium, such
as sound waves, the velocity of the observer and of the
source are relative to the medium in which the waves
are transmitted.[1] The total Doppler effect may
therefore result from motion of the source, motion of
the observer, or motion of the medium. Each of these
effects is analyzed separately. For waves which do not
require a medium, such as light or gravity in general
relativity, only the relative difference in velocity
between the observer and the source needs to be
considered

HISTORY:
Doppler first proposed this effect in 1842 in his treatise
"Über das farbige Licht der Doppelsterne und einiger
anderer Gestirne des Himmels" (On the coloured light of
the binary stars and some other stars of the
heavens). The hypothesis was tested for sound waves
by Buys Ballot in 1845. He confirmed that the
sound's pitch was higher than the emitted frequency
when the sound source approached him, and lower
than the emitted frequency when the sound source
receded from him. Hippolyte Fizeau discovered
independently the same phenomenon
on electromagnetic waves in 1848 (in France, the effect
is sometimes called "effet Doppler-Fizeau" but that
name was not adopted by the rest of the world as
Fizeau's discovery was six years after Doppler's
proposal). In Britain, John Scott Russell made an
experimental study of the Doppler effect (1848).

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General Formula and types of sound waves:
In classical physics, where the speeds of source
and the receiver relative to the medium are lower than
the velocity of waves in the medium, the relationship
between observed frequency 𝑓 and emitted frequency
𝑐±𝑣
𝑓𝑜 is given by : 𝑓 = ( 𝑟 )𝑓𝑜
𝑐±𝑣𝑠

where
𝑐 is the velocity of waves in the medium;
𝑣𝑟 is the velocity of the receiver relative to the medium;
positive if the receiver is moving towards the source
(and negative in the other direction);
𝑣𝑠 is the velocity of the source relative to the medium;
positive if the source is moving away from the receiver
(and negative in the other direction).

The frequency is decreased if either is moving away

from the other. The above formula assumes that the
source is either directly approaching or receding from
the observer. If the source approaches the observer at
an angle (but still with a constant velocity), the
observed frequency that is first heard is higher than
the object's emitted frequency. Thereafter, there is a
monotonic decrease in the observed frequency as it
gets closer to the observer, through equality when it is
coming from a direction perpendicular to the relative
motion (and was emitted at the point of closest
approach; but when the wave is received, the source
and observer will no longer be at their closest), and a
continued monotonic decrease as it recedes from the
observer. When the observer is very close to the path
of the object, the transition from high to low frequency

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is very abrupt. When the observer is far from the path
of the object, the transition from high to low frequency
is gradual.

If the speeds 𝑣𝑠 and 𝑣𝑟 are small compared to the speed

of the wave, the relationship between observed
frequency 𝑓and emitted frequency𝑓𝑜 is approximately,

Observed frequency Change in frequency

∆𝑣 ∆𝑣
∆𝑓 = (1 + ) 𝑓0 ∆𝑓 = 𝑓0
𝑐 𝑐
Where
∆𝑓 = 𝑓 − 𝑓0

∆𝑣 = 𝑣𝑟 − 𝑣𝑠 is the velocity of the receiver relative to

the source: it is positive when the source and the
receiver are moving towards each other.

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Stationary sound:

Figure 2

Figure 3

Stationary sound source produces sound waves at a

constant frequency f, and the wave-fronts propagate
symmetrically away from the source at a constant
speed c. The distance between wave-fronts is the
wavelength. All observers will hear the same

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 frequency, which will be equal to the actual frequency
of the source where f = 𝑓𝑜

Moving sound waves:

Figure 4

Figure 5

The same sound source is radiating sound waves at a

constant frequency in the same medium.

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 However, now the sound source is moving with a speed
υ = 0.7 c(Mach 0.7). Since the source is moving, the
centre of each new wavefront is now slightly displaced
to the right. As a result, the wave-fronts begin to bunch
up on the right side (in front of) and spread further
apart on the left side (behind) of the source. An
observer in front of the source will hear a higher
frequency f = c +0/c - 0.7c fo = 3.33 f0 and an observer
behind the source will hear a lower frequency f = c -
0/c +0.7c f0 = 0.59 fo.

Breaking the sound barrier:

Figure 6

Figure 7

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Now the source is moving at the speed of sound in the
medium(vs=c). The wave fronts in front of the source are
now all bunched up at the same point.as a result,an observer
in front of the source will detect nothing until the source
𝑐+0
arrives where 𝑓 = ( ) 𝑓𝑜 =∞ and an observer behind the
𝑐−𝑐
𝑐−0
source will hear lower frequency 𝑓 = ( ) 𝑓𝑜 =0.5 𝑓0
𝑐+𝑐

Super Sonic:

Figure 8

The sound source has now surpassed the speed of sound in

the medium, and is traveling at 1.4 c. Since the source is
moving faster than the sound waves it creates, it actually
leads the advancing wavefront. The sound source will pass
by a stationary observer before the observer hears the
sound. As a result, an observer in front of the source will
detect f = c + 0/c – 1.4c f0 = -2.5 f0 and an observer behind
the source will hear a lower frequency f = c – 0/c + 1.4c f0 =
0.42 f0 .

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Cases for doppler effects:
Case 1: Moving source, stationary observer

Let us consider a source of sound waves with a constant

frequency and amplitude. The sound waves can be
represented as concentric circles where each circle
represents a crest or peak as the wavefronts radiate away
from the source. This is because the waves travel away from
the source in all directions and the distance between
consecutive crests or consecutive troughs in a wave is
constant (the wavelength as we learnt in Grade 10). In this
figure the crests are represented by by the black lines and
the troughs by the orange lines.

Figure 9

The sound source is the police car in the middle and is

stationary. For the Doppler effect to take place (manifest),
the source must be moving relative to the observer.
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Let's consider the following situation: The source
(represented by the black dot) emits one wave (the black
circles represent the crests of the sound wave) that moves
away from the source at the same rate in all directions. The
distance between the crests represents the wavelength (λλ)
of the sound. The closer together the crests, the higher the
frequency (or pitch) of the sound according to f=vλf=vλ,
where vv (speed of sound) is constant.

Figure 10

As this crest moves away, the source also moves and then
emits more crests. Now the two circles are not concentric
any more, but on the one side they are closer together and
on the other side they are further apart. This is shown in the
next diagram.

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 Figure 11

If the source continues moving at the same speed in the

same direction, then the distance between crests on the right
of the source is constant. The distance between crests on the
left is also constant. The distance between successive crests
on the left is constant but larger than the distance between
successive crests on the right

Figure 12

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 When a car approaches you, the sound waves that reach you
have a shorter wavelength and a higher frequency. You hear
a sound with a higher pitch. When the car moves away from
you, the sound waves that reach you have a longer
wavelength and lower frequency. You hear a sound with a
lower pitch.

Figure 13

EXAMPLE

The siren of an ambulance emits sound with a frequency

of 700700 HzHz. You are standing on the pavement. If the
ambulance drives past you at a speed of 2020 m⋅s−1m·s−1,
what frequency will you hear, when

1. the ambulance is approaching you

2. the ambulance is driving away from you

Take the speed of sound in air to be 340 m⋅s−1

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 Figure 14

SOL:
1.Analyse the question

The question explicitly asks what frequency you will hear

when the source is moving at a certain speed. This tells you
immediately that the question is related to the Doppler
effect. The values given in the question are all in S.I. units so
no conversions are required.

2.Determine how to approach the problem based on

what is given

We know that we are looking for the observed frequency

with a moving source. The change in frequency can be
calculated using:

𝑓𝑙 = (𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑙 /𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑠 )𝑓0

To correctly apply this we need to confirm that it is

valid and determine what signs we need to use for the
various speeds. You (the listener) are not moving but
we have to consider two different cases, when the
ambulance is moving towards you (a) and away from
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 you (b). We have been told that if the source is moving
towards the observer then we will use subtraction in
the denominator and if it is moving away, addition.
This means:

𝑓𝑠 =700 Hz
v=340 m·s−1
𝑉𝐿 = 0 because you, the observer, are not
moving
𝑉𝑆 =−20 m·s−1 for (a) and
VS =+20 m·s−1 for (b)
Determine 𝒇𝒍 when ambulance is approaching
𝑓𝑙 = (𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑙 /𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑠 )𝑓0
fl = 743,75Hz
Determine 𝒇𝒍 when ambulance has passed
𝑓𝑙 = (𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑙 /𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑠 )𝑓0
=(340+0/340+20)(700)=661,11Hz
Quote the final answer

When the ambulance is approaching you, you hear a

frequency of 743,75 Hz and when it is going away you hear a
frequency of 661,11 Hz

Case 2: Moving observer, stationary source :

Just as we did before, let us consider a source (a police car)

of sound waves with a constant frequency and amplitude.
There are two observers, one on the left that will move away

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from the source and one on the right that will move towards
the source. We have three diagrams:

1. shows the overall situation with the siren starting at

time t1 ;
2. shows the situation at time t 2 when the observers are
moving; and
3. shows the situation at t 3 after the observers have been
moving for a time interval, Δt=t 3 −t 2
The crests and troughs are numbered so you can see how
they move further away and so that we can track which ones
an observer has measured.

Figure 15

The observers can hear the sound waves emitted by the

police car and they start to move (we ignore the time it takes
them to accelerate).

Figure 16

The frequency of the wave that an observer measures is the

number of complete waves cycles per unit time. By
numbering the crests and troughs we can see which

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complete wave cycles have been measured by each of the
observers in time, ΔtΔt. To find the frequency we divide the
number of wave cycles by ΔtΔt.
In the time interval that passed, the observer moving
towards the police car observed the crests and troughs
numbered 1 through 5 (the portion of the wave is
highlighted below). The observer moving away encountered
a smaller portion of the wavefront, crest 3 and trough 4. The
time interval for each of them is the same. To the observers
this will mean that the frequency they measured is different.

Figure 17

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The motion of the observer will alter the frequency of the
measured sound from a stationary source:

 An observer moving towards the source

measures a higher frequency.
 An observer moving away from the source
measures a lower frequency.
It is important to note that we have only looked at the
cases where the source and observer are moving
directly towards or away from each other and these are
the only cases we will consider.

The formula that provides the relationship between the

frequency emitted by the source and the frequency
𝑐±𝑣
measured by the listener is: 𝑓 = (𝑐±𝑣𝑟)𝑓𝑜
𝑠

 where fl is the frequency perceived by the

observer (listener),
 𝑓𝑠 is the frequency of the source,
 V is the speed of the waves,
 vl the speed of the listener and
 vs the speed of the source.

Source moves towards listener

vs : negative

Source moves away from listener

vs : positive

Listener moves towards source

vl : positive

Listener moves away from source

vl : negative

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Note: The signs show whether or not the relative
motion of the source and observer is towards each
other or away from each other:

We only deal with one of the source or observer

moving in this chapter. To understand the sign choice
you can think about the pictures of the motion. For the
listener/observer we are using the numerator in the
equation. A fraction gets larger when the numerator
gets larger so if we expect the frequency to increase we
expect addition in the numerator 𝒇𝒍 =(v+vl /v) 𝑓𝑠 . If the
numerator gets smaller the fraction gets smaller so if
we expect the frequency to decrease then it is
subtraction in the numerator 𝒇𝒍 =(v−vl /v)𝑓𝑠

For the denominator the reverse is true because of the

fact that we divide by the denominator. The larger the
denominator the smaller the fraction and vice versa. So
if we expect the motion of the source to increase the
frequency we expect subtraction in the denominator
(𝒇𝒍 =(v/v−vs ) 𝑓𝑠 ) and if we expect the frequency to
decrease we expect addition in the denominator
(𝒇𝒍 =(v/v+vs ) 𝑓𝑠 ).

Figure 18

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EXAMPLE 2: MOVING OBSERVER

What is the frequency heard by a person driving

at 1515 m⋅s−1m·s−1 toward a factory whistle that is blowing
at a frequency of 800 Hz. Assume that the speed of sound in
air is 340340 m⋅s−1.
Analyse the question

The question explicitly asks what frequency you will hear

when the observer is moving at a certain speed. This tells
you immediately that the question is related to the Doppler
shift. The values given in the question are all in S.I. units so
no conversions are required.

Determine how to approach the problem based on what

is given

We can use:

𝑓𝑙 = (𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑙 /𝑣 ± 𝑣𝑠 )𝑓0
with:

V=340m⋅s−1
𝑣𝑙 =+15m⋅s−1
𝑣𝑠 =0m⋅s−1
𝑓𝑠 = 800Hz
𝑓𝑙 =?
The listener is moving towards the source, so 𝑣𝑙 is positive
and the source is stationary so 𝑣𝑠 =0

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 Calculate the frequency
𝑣𝑙
𝑓𝑙 = (𝑣 ± ± 𝑣𝑠 ) 𝑓0
𝑣
= (340 + 15340 + 0)(800)=835,29Hz

Write the final answer

The driver hears a frequency of 835,29Hz

Applications of Doppler’s Effect:

Sirens

Sirens on passing emergency vehicles.

Figure 19

The siren on a passing emergency vehicle will start out

higher than its stationary pitch, slide down as it passes, and
continue lower than its stationary pitch as it recedes from
the observer. Astronomer John Dobson explained the effect
thus:

The reason the siren slides is because it doesn't hit you.

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 In other words, if the siren approached the observer
directly, the pitch would remain constant, at a higher than
stationary pitch, until the vehicle hit him, and then
immediately jump to a new lower pitch. Because the vehicle
passes by the observer, the radial velocity does not remain
constant, but instead varies as a function of the angle
between his line of sight and the siren's velocity:
vradial = 𝑣𝑠 . cos 𝜃

where 𝜃 is the angle between the object's forward

velocity and the line of sight from the object to the
observer.

Astronomy:

Figure 20

The Doppler effect for electromagnetic waves such as light is of

great use in astronomy and results in either a so-
called redshift or blueshift. It has been used to measure the speed
at which stars and galaxies are approaching or receding from us;
that is, their radial velocities. This may be used to detect if an
apparently single star is, in reality, a close binary, to measure the

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rotational speed of stars and galaxies, or to detect exoplanets.
This redshift and blueshift happens on a very small scale, if an
object is moving toward earth, there would not be a noticeable
difference in visible light
Note that redshift is also used to measure the expansion of space,
but that this is not truly a Doppler effect.Rather, redshifting due to
the expansion of space is known as cosmological redshift, which
can be derived purely from the Robertson-Walker metric under
the formalism of General Relativity. Having said this, it also
happens that there are detectable Doppler effects on cosmological
scales, which, if incorrectly interpreted as cosmological in origin,
lead to the observation of redshift-space distortions.
The use of the Doppler effect for light in astronomy depends on
our knowledge that the spectra of stars are not homogeneous.
They exhibit absorption lines at well defined frequencies that are
correlated with the energies required to excite electrons in
various elements from one level to another. The Doppler effect is
recognizable in the fact that the absorption lines are not always at
the frequencies that are obtained from the spectrum of a
stationary light source. Since blue light has a higher frequency
than red light, the spectral lines of an approaching astronomical
light source exhibit a blueshift and those of a receding
astronomical light source exhibit a redshift.
Among the nearby stars, the largest radial velocities with respect
to the Sun are +308 km/s (BD-15°4041, also known as LHS 52,
81.7 light-years away) and −260 km/s (Woolley 9722, also known
as Wolf 1106 and LHS 64, 78.2 light-years away). Positive radial
velocity means the star is receding from the Sun, negative that it is
approaching.

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Medical:

Figure 21

An echocardiogram can, within certain limits, produce an

accurate assessment of the direction of blood flow and the
velocity of blood and cardiac tissue at any arbitrary point using
the Doppler effect. One of the limitations is that
the ultrasound beam should be as parallel to the blood flow as
possible. Velocity measurements allow assessment of cardiac
valve areas and function, abnormal communications between the
left and right side of the heart, leaking of blood through the valves
(valvular regurgitation), and calculation of the cardiac
output. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound using gas-filled
microbubble contrast media can be used to improve velocity or
other flow-related medical measurements.[13][14]
Although "Doppler" has become synonymous with "velocity
measurement" in medical imaging, in many cases it is not the
frequency shift (Doppler shift) of the received signal that is
measured, but the phase shift (when the received signal arrives).[p
4]

Velocity measurements of blood flow are also used in other fields

of medical ultrasonography, such as obstetric
ultrasonography and neurology. Velocity measurement of blood
flow in arteries and veins based on Doppler effect is an effective
tool for diagnosis of vascular problems like stenosis.[15]

These are the few examples of dopplers effects

Page 23 of 27
CONCLUSION:

Page 24 of 27
PHOTO GALLERY:

Page 25 of 27
BIBILIOGRAPHY:
 Ncert textbook-11th and 12th
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doppler_effect
 https://www.siyavula.com/read/science/grade-
12/doppler-effect/06-doppler-effect-02
 http://www.phys.uconn.edu/~gibson/Notes/Section6
_3/Sec6_3.htm
 https://kupdf.net/download/physics-project-on-
doppler39s-effect_59dbb2a508bbc56e55544739_pdf
 https://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/doppler-
effect
 https://www.scribd.com/document/176793839/Phy
sics-Project-on-Doppler-s-Effect
 https://www.school-for-
champions.com/science/waves_doppler_effect_wavel
ength_derivations.htm#.XEsThNszZYI


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 TABLE OF CONTENT

 INTRODUCTION

 GENERAL FORMULA AND

TYPES OF SOUND WAVES

 CASES FOR DOPPLER EFFECTS

 APPLICATION

 CONCLUSION

 PHOTO GALLERY

 BIBILIOGRAPHY

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