Waves

Waves

A disturbance that transfers energy from one place to another. They travel by disturbing a material then the material returns to its original place. Waves transfer energy not matter.

Amplitude

A measure of how far particles in the medium move away from their rest position. It can be the height of a crest or the displacement at a peak. Higher amplitude = more energy. It's basically how tall a wave is.

Electromagnetic waves

Are disturbances in electric and magnetic waves and are considered transverse waves. These types of waves can travel without a medium.

Frequency

How many cycles occur in an amount of time, which is usually one second (such as waves per second).

Wavefronts

Instead of the waves moving in a straight line, the waves travel in shapes such as circles or spheres (which is called a wavefront). As the wavefront moves farther from the source, it becomes larger and the energy is spread over a greater area, which causes there to be less energy available at any one point in the wavefront.

Transverse waves

Particles move perpendicular to the direction the waves travel (up and down).

Wavelength

The distance over which a wave's shape repeats. It is measured by the distance from one point on a wave to another identical point on the next wave. It can be measured from one crest or peak to the next or one trough to the next or between any identical points.

Crest

The highest point of a wave.

Trough

The lowest point of a wave.

Medium

The material a wave travels through.

Wave speed

The speed the wave travels, which depends on the properties of the medium.

Wave period

The time in one cycle. You measure the period by finding the time that passes when one full pattern of a wave passes a given point. In other words, the time between two crests is the period.

Mechanical waves

They require a medium (can be more than one). These types of waves can't travel without a medium.

Hertz

Unit of measurement for frequency. One hertz is equal to one cycle per sec.

Longitudinal waves

Wave where the particles move back and forth in the same direction that the waves travels. They move parallel to the direction the wave travels.