Physics·Properties of waves · NSSCO 4.1
General wave properties
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Waves are everywhere — the light you read by, the sound of a voice, the ripples on a pond. In this gentle first look we learn what a wave really is (energy travelling, not matter), tell transverse waves apart from longitudinal ones, meet the describing words wavelength, amplitude, frequency and period, put the wave equation v = f λ to work in calculations, and watch water waves reflect, refract and diffract in a ripple tank.
What you'll learn in this lesson
By the end you should be able to (NSSCO Physics 4.1):
- Describe wave motion as an oscillation that transfers energy from place to place without any net movement of the medium
- Give the meaning of pulse, oscillation, wavelength (λ), amplitude, frequency (f), period (T) and wavefront
- Distinguish transverse from longitudinal waves by the direction of vibration and give examples of each
- Recall and use the equations v = f λ and f = 1/T in calculations
- State typical values for the speed of sound and light, and explain why sound travels faster in solids than in gases
- Use wavefronts to describe reflection, refraction and diffraction of water waves in a ripple tank
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