Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

Chapter 11: Sound

Sound
 A form energy
 Produced by a vibration
 Travels as a longitudinal wave
Longitudinal:
The oscillations are parallel
to the direction of energy
transfer.

How to draw sound wave?

Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

What causes sound?

All sounds are caused by vibrations.

How the sound travels?

The sound wave is transported from one location to another by means of

particle-to-particle interaction.

The sound wave transferred from particle to particle through matter,

known as medium.

How we hear the sound?

When a source is vibrating, the vibrations are transferred to the

surrounding air particles, which then vibrate.

The vibration of the air particles is transmitted into our ears, which then
vibrate.

The vibration in our ears enables us to recognize it as a sound.

Speed of sound

 Sound requires a medium to propagate

 The speed of sound is different in different media
 The speed of sound in solid > liquid > gas
 Particles are much closer in solid > liquid > gas, so the sound propagates
faster.
 Speed of sound in vacuum is zero
𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒
 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 = 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒
Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

Properties of sound

a. Amplitude and loudness

 Amplitude affects the
loudness (volume).
 Louder sounds have more
energy.

“The higher the amplitude, the louder the sound”

Sound waves on an oscilloscope

b. Frequency and pitch

 Frequency affects the pitch.
 Higher frequency the higher
the pitch.
 The number of complete waves
per second is measured in
Hertz.
𝑁𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑠𝑐𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠
 𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 = 𝑇𝑖𝑚𝑒

“The shorter the wavelength, the higher pitched the sound”

“The higher the frequency, the higher pitched the sound”

Sound waves on an oscilloscope

Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

How we hear?

“Outer ear collects sound.

Middle ear amplifies sound.

Inner ear converts sound.”

Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

The structure of ear

Parts Function

Eardrum Vibrates when sound waves reach it.

Middle ear bones Carry the vibrations from the ear drum to the cochlea.

Cochlea Contains cells, which are sensitive to sound vibrations.

Change sound vibrations into nerve impulses.

Auditory Nerve Carries nerve impulses from the cochlea to the brain.

Semi-circular 3 tubes containing a liquid, which moves when your head

canals moves. Messages are sent to the brain to control your
balance.
 Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

Cause of damage Symptoms Treatment

The ear can get blocked by Cause temporary deafness, The doctor can wash it
wax because the ear drum out and cure the
cannot vibrate deafness.

Accidents or a loud bang Pain in the ear, hearing This may repair itself
can damage the ear drum loss, bleeding (the ear drum is the
only part of the ear
that can repair itself).

The middle ear can get Causes a lot of pain and you The doctor can
infected may get a runny ear. prescribe antibiotics,
which can treat the
infection.

As people get older the This stops the vibrations Old people can get
tiny bones in the ear can from becoming bigger, and hearing aids.
fuse (join) together causes hearing loss.

Sometimes when people The messages are not sent No cure for this.
get older the nerve cells in to the brain. This causes
the cochlea do not work hearing loss.
well.

The cochlea can be Cause impaired hearing or The cochlea cannot be

affected by loud noise. tinnitus (ringing noise in repaired, so there is no
the ears) cure for this.
Prepared by Catherine Chan (2017)

Uses of sound
a. Acoustics – the study of sound.
Soft materials dampen sound; hard materials reflect it (echoes and
reverberations).
b. SONAR – Sound Navigation and Ranging (echolocation).
c. Ultrasound imaging
d. Kidney stones & gallstones.

Echoes
 An echo is a reflection of sound.
 Sound can be reflected off large, hard surfaces.
 The listener hears the sound after it has been made.
 Shouting down a well or into a cave are typical examples of echoes.
 Echoes are also used by ships/submarines (sonar) and for baby scans
(ultrasound).