PHY 2020 Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: Transverse Wave, Longitudinal Wave, Standing Wave
Document Summary
A vibration is a wiggle in time. In all cases, the motions are independent of mass: a heavy person and a light person swing to and from on swings of the same length. Who has the longer period: they have the same period; mass doesn"t matter. Formula sheet: period= 1/ frequency, frequency=1/period. Wave speed= frequency * wavelength: wont change with air. You pick up an empty briefcase and let is swing to and fro at its natural frequency. If the case were filled with books, would the natural frequency be lower then, higher than or the same as before. The frequency is the same because mass is not dependent on frequency. As the frequencies decrease, the wavelengths get larger: wave speed= frequency * wavelength. Transverse wave: a wave in which the medium vibrates perpendicularly to the direction in which the wave speed travels.
