Waves Interference‌

This lab uses the Waves Interference simulation from PhET Interactive Simulations at
University of Colorado Boulder, under the CC-BY 4.0 license.
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/wave-interference/latest/wave-interference_en.html

Learning Goals: Students will be able to:

1. Make waves with water, sound, and light and see how they are related.
2. Discuss wave properties using common vocabulary.
3. Explain how changing the frequency and amplitude affects the characteristics of the
wave.
4. Design an experiment to measure the speed of the wave.

Develop your understanding: Open the Waves screen, then explore to make water waves and
ways to observe and measure the waves.

Explain your understanding of water waves:

1. Use your own words and captured images from the simulation to show you can measure:
a. Wavelength of longest wave possible
I turned the frequency to the lowest and I also change the amplitude to the lowest
that can be observed, and I used the ruler to measure and turns out to be 4.3m and
same to length that I change the amplitude to the lowest

b. Wavelength of shortest wave possible

I turned the frequency and amplitude to max. and make to shortest length which is
1.4m

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 c. Height of tallest wave possible

2. Describe your experiments to make waves of different wavelengths and heights including
which views and tools were needed and why. Support your explanation with images from
the simulation.

The tools I need is the graph and the wave level detector and the frequency and
amplitude button.

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3. Use your own words and captured images from the simulation to show you can or cannot
measure:
a. Period of longest wave possible
Frequency to the lowest makes the longest wave. 7.72 second’s

b. Period of shortest wave possible

Highest frequency has the shortest wave possible as 6.10 second’s

c. Period of tallest wave possible

4. Describe your experiments to measure period including which views and tools were
needed and why. Support your explanation with images from the simulation.
The tools I use is also the graph to measure the height of the wave and the timer to collect
the time.

5. Use your own words and captured images from the simulation to show you can or cannot
measure:
a. Speed of longest wave possible

b. Speed of shortest wave possible

c. Speed of tallest wave possible

6. Describe your experiments to measure speed including which views and tools were
needed and why. Support your explanation with images from the simulation.

7. Summarize your understanding of wave characteristics and behaviors by comparing the

longest, shortest, and tallest waves. Use these vocabulary words: Frequency, Amplitude,
Wave Speed, and Wavelength.

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Develop your understanding of sound and light waves: Use the buttons to make
sound and light waves of varying wavelengths.

8. Compare the representations of water, sound, and light waves. Describe the similarities and
differences with images from the simulation to support your ideas.

9. Experiment to measure the wavelength, height, period, and speed of sound waves. How do your
ideas from measuring water waves compare? Describe the similarities and differences with
images from the simulation to support your ideas.

10. Experiment to measure the wavelength, height, period, and speed of light waves. How do your
ideas from measuring water and sound waves compare? Describe the similarities and differences
with images from the simulation to support your ideas.

11. Summarize key ideas that you want to remember about the relationships between water, sound
and light waves.

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 Part 2
Learning Goals: Students will be able to:
A. Create an interference pattern with two sources, and determine the ways to change the pattern.
B. Find points of constructive and destructive interference by eye and by using the detectors.
C. Put up a barrier to see how the waves move through one or two slits. What sort of pattern do the
slits create? How can you change this pattern?

Develop your understanding: Open the Interference screen, then explore to make water waves with
varying patterns.

Explain your understanding:

1. Consider these three patterns of water waves:

A B C
a. Describe the similarities and differences of the three patterns of water waves.

The similarities are the three are all waves but the difference is that A and B is mixed up
waves and they all the different pattens

b. Experiment to make similar patterns, then explain how you can use the simulation to
make each.

I used the interference mode so there can be two waves coming out at the same time.

1 frequency amplitude: max 2 frequency: in the middle amplitude : max 3 frequency

amplitude

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 c. Why do the directions say, “similar patterns”?

2. Experiment to make waves of different interference patterns with water, sound, and light.
Use your own words and captured images from the simulation to show you can meet
learning goal A: “Create an interference pattern with two sources, and determine the ways to
change the pattern.”

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 3. Use the Water Level tool to understand what is happening in the
water tank:

a. Measure the dark and light areas of waves made with only one faucet. Insert a screen
image to help explain your answer.

b. Make waves using both faucets and measure the dark, light and fuzzy spots. Insert a
screen image to help explain your answer.

c. What do you think constructive and destructive interference means based on your
measurements?

d. Verify your understanding using your text or online references. (cite references)

4. Consider the light pattern on the right:

a. Describe where the points of constructive and destructive
interference are in the image on the right.

b. Create a similar wave pattern and use the detectors to find points of
constructive and destructive interference.

c. Explain how you made the waves and used the detector. Insert an
image of the entire screen for evidence.

5. These three patterns were made with sound waves by varying only one thing.

.
A B C
a. What do you think was varied?
b. Test your idea by making similar patterns.
c. Is there more than one way to make these three patterns by varying only one thing? Test
your ideas and provide evidence for support.
d. Try to make similar patterns with light. Describe your observations and ideas.

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Part 3
Learning Goals: Students will be able to:
A. Compare light wave patterns made by light passing through slits to passing through
holes.
B. Explain how the aperture geometry relates to the diffraction pattern.
C. Predict how changing the wavelength or aperture size affects the diffraction pattern.

Develop your understanding: Open the Diffraction screen, then explore to see what happens to light
waves when they pass through different shaped holes.

Explain your understanding:

1. Open the full simulation Waves Interference so that you can experiment with both the
Slits and Diffraction screens.
a. Use your ideas from Part 2 about what happens to waves passing through slits to
help make sense of why light passing through a round hole makes a pattern.
Explain what you think is happening including images for support.

b. Compare patterns of varying slit size to patterns of varying hole size. Include
images for support.

c. Compare patterns of varying frequency through slits to patterns of varying

wavelength through holes. Include images for support.

2. Experiment with other shapes of apertures (holes) to find trends that help to meet these
goals:
B. Explain how the aperture geometry relates to the diffraction pattern.
C. Predict how changing the wavelength or aperture size affects the diffraction pattern.

Write a summary of your understanding and include images for support.

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