Waves

A Sim IVC

Introduction

Mechanical Waves

The disturbance in the water moves

from one place to another.
Yet the water is not carried with it
This is the essence of wave motion.
The world is full of waves
o Sound
o Strings
o Seismic
o Radio
o X-rays

Mechanical Wave

Mechanical waves are waves that

disturb and propagate through a
medium.
The ripple in the water due to the
pebble and a sound wave are the
same in this respect.
Electromagnetic waves are a special
class of waves that do not require a
medium, they are energy.
In fact a wave is simply the
movement of energy!

Propagation of a Disturbance

The propagation of the disturbance

represents the transfer of energy.
Waves are therefore a means of
energy transfer.
Mechanical waves transfer energy via
the movement of matter!
All mechanical waves require:
Some source of disturbance
A medium that can be disturbed
Some physical mechanism through which
particles of the medium can influence
one another

Propagation of a disturbance

Since the medium decides the nature

of the energy transfer we expect that
different media will transport energy
in different ways.
ROPE EXAMPLE:
Consider the resulting wave.

Propagation of a disturbance

Consider a single point and its

motion as the disturbance passes.

As the pulse travels, each rope

segment that is disturbed moves in a
direction perpendicular to the direction
of propagation!

Propagation of a disturbance

Note that no motion occurred in the x

direction!
This type of wave is called a transverse
wave.
We will discuss another type of wave
called a longitudinal wave when we talk
about pressure waves.
We can get the basic concept for a
Longitudinal wave from the following
diagram.

Propagation of a disturbance

Lets return to our rope example and consider

the mathematical description of the system.
What is different between the two snap
shots?

They are the same picture just at a different

point in space!

Propagation of a disturbance

If we assume that the shape of the rope

is given by some function of positions
and time, x and t.
And that there is no loss of energy, i.e.,
the shape of the rope does not change.
We can relate the two pictures in a
simple way.
Then we can represent the displacement
for all positions and times, measured in
a stationary frame with origin O, as

Propagation of a disturbance

What happens if the disturbance is

moving from the right to the left? How
does the equation change?
The function y(x,t) is often called the
wave function.
The meaning of the wave function:
Consider a point P on the string, identified
by a particular value of its x coordinate.
As the pulse passes through P, the y
coordinate of this point increases, reaches a
max, and then returns to zero

Propagation of a disturbance

The wave function y(x,t)

represents the y coordinate of any
point P located at position x at
any time t.
Consider what happened if we hold the
time t fixed.
We get a snap shot, then the wave
function can be thought of as the
actual geometric shape of the pulse at
that instant of time!
Another name for this is a waveform.

Example

A pulse moving to the right along the

x axis is represented by the wave
function given below where x and y
are measure in cm and t is in seconds.
What is the value (amplitude) of the
wave function at t = 0 and x = 0?
What does this represent?
How fast is the wave going?
Now lets plot the wave function for
various x and t values.

Example continued

For all x and t = 0.

Example continued

For all x and t = 1.0s.

Example continued

For all x and t = 2.0sec.

The wave model

A wave can be a single pulse but more often than

not we mean a series of crests and troughs that
move in a sinusoidal way.
This is also called simple harmonic motion.
SHOW DEMO: Illustration 16.1:
Representations of Simple Harmonic Motion
In an idealized wave motion in an idealized
medium, each particle of the medium undergoes
a simple harmonic motion around its equilibrium
position.
SHOW ANEMATION:

The wave model

The frequency of sinusoidal waves is the same as

the frequency of simple harmonic motion of a
Many
particle of the medium.
Single
points

point

Each point on the wave can be treated as a simple

harmonic oscillator and we can therefore use the
mathematics of an SHO to describe the motion of a
wave at all points and all times!

The wave model

Important information and

relationships for the wave model.
What is one period.
How is it related to the frequency.

The wave has a definite speed.

The wave has a definite amplitude.
Each particle on the wave has a
definite position.

The traveling wave

Consider the application of the SHO model to a single snap
shot.
For each period T a single point on the wave moves through
radians and one wavelength .
From the diagram it is clear that x can be represented as
some fraction of the wavelength.
We know from SHO that the position of the particle in y space
is related to the angular frequency.

The traveling wave

Now consider the movement of the

wave in time.
Recall that f(x)=f(x-vt).
The disturbance moves.
It moves x = vt.
Then the disturbance is:

The time required for the disturbance to

move one wavelength is the period T.
Then:

The traveling wave

Important definitions:
The shifting property of the wave
function.
Angular wave number
Angular frequency
Phase
constant

Representations of speed

Phase

Example A traveling Sinusoidal wave

A sinusoidal wave traveling in the
positive x direction has an amplitude of
15.0 cm, a wavelength of 40.0 cm, and
a frequency of 8.00 Hz. The vertical
displacement of the medium at t = 0
and x = 0 is also 15.0 cm, as shown.
(a) Find the angular wave number,
period, angular frequency, and speed
(b)of Determine the phase
the wave.
constant , and write a
general expression for the
wave function.

Example A traveling Sinusoidal wave

A sinusoidal wave traveling in the
positive x direction has an amplitude of
15.0 cm, a wavelength of 40.0 cm, and
a frequency of 8.00 Hz. The vertical
displacement of the medium at t = 0
and
x = 0 is also
15.0
cm, constant
as shown., and
(b) Determine
the
phase
write a general expression for the wave
function.
At x = 0 and t = 0, y = 15.0 cm then the general
equation for sinusoidal motion suggests that.

General Linear Wave Equation

So far we have worked only with the

solution or wave function but not the
equation that governs motion.
We can use this expression to describe
the motion of any point on the string.
The point P moves only vertically, an
so its x coordinate remains constant.
Thus, the transverse velocity of the
point P and its transverse
acceleration must be given by the
derivatives of the function y(x,t).

General Linear Wave Equation

So we have:

The maximum velocity and

acceleration are then:

General Linear Wave Equation

Important
points to recognize:

The maximum velocity and acceleration do

not happen simultaneously.
The transverse velocity reaches its maximum
value () when the displacement y = 0.
The transverse acceleration reaches its
maximum magnitude () when y = A.
This all follows from Simple Harmonic
Motion.
Discuss the mass spring system
New Question: How is the time dependence
of the y displacement related to the position
dependence?

General Linear Wave Equation

General Linear Wave Equation

New Question: How is the time

dependence of the y displacement
related to the position dependence?

General Linear Wave Equation

Since we took the first and second

derivative with respect to time it could
be useful to do the same for position.

Compare with the related time

dependence:

General Linear Wave Equation

We can now compare these results to

find common terms..and

Propagating in the x
direction

Curvature and Acceleration

The curvature is clearly

downward!!
The curvature is clearly
upward!!

Introduction

At a point where the string has an

upward curvature:
The acceleration of that point is
positive.
At a point where the string has a
downward curvature:
The acceleration of that point is
<
negative
0

Example: solutions to the linear wave Equation

Is the following function a solution to

the wave equation we just derived?

Yes and the form is:

What is the speed of the wave??
3.0 m/s

Speeds in a wave

We
have already determined the speed of
a single particle in the y direction as:
We have not however discussed the speed
of the wave in the x direction.
In order to due this we need a new
definition, the phase: . Measured in
radians
Note this is very different from the phase
constant: this is not the only symbol
used for this term. Measured in radians
The phase constant allows us to shift the
wave in space.

Speed of a wave

The most general sinusoidal solution

to the wave equation is: .
Since is a constant y(x,t) is still a
solution to the wave equation.
Assume that we start the wave in
such a way that and ask what is the
speed of the wave in the x direction.
i.e., we need to find:
We can do this using our earlier
computations

Speed of a wave

the results:
Using

And taking the ratio, we get:

We can also obtain this result by

selecting points on the wave such that
the phase is zero.
Thus: so that

The wave equation on a string

Wave speed depends only on the

properties of the medium through
which the wave travels.
A rope is a media so we can
determine the speed of a transverse
wave on a stretched string.
Consider a segment of string at the
peak of its motion

The wave equation on a string

1. The

peak segment
(not a real
segment) of string
moves to the left
with speed v.
2. As it travels
through the arc, we
can model the
segment as a
particle in uniform
circular motion.
3. This segment has a
centripetal
acceleration of
4. This centripetal
acceleration is
supplied by the

Waves on a string

We
know from Newtons laws that the radial
force must be
And this must be equal to
The mass of the string can be found by using
the mass per unit length multiplied by the
length of the segment. where
And.. pluging this into our earlier equation
gives.

Example: The speed of a pulse on a Cord

A uniform cord has a mass of 0.300

kg and a total length of 6.00 m.
Tension is maintained in the cord by
suspending an object of mass 2.00 kg
from one end. Find the speed of a
pulse on this cord. Assume that the
tension is not affected by the mass of
the cord.
See Diagram on the next slide

Example: The speed of a pulse on a Cord

Find the speed of a

pulse on this cord.

Interface and refletion

Interfaces and Transmission

Interfaces and transmission

End Lecture 1
Start In Class Computer Exercise

Rate of Energy Transfer

Consider
a sinusoidal wave traveling on a

string.
The source of energy is some external agent
at the left end of the string, which does work
in producing the oscillations.
Consider now a specific element of the string
with a mass
Each such element moves vertically with
simple harmonic motion.
So lets model our specific element in this way

Rate of Energy Transfer

The kinetic energy associated with a
particle for SHO is
Thus for our specific element we
have:
Now lets write this in terms of the
linear mass density.
Then we can write:

Rate of Energy Transfer

Now imagine an infinitesimal element of
the rope so that we have a differential bit
of energy. i.e., the length goes to zero.
Now we can use our previous expression
for the transverse velocity to obtain:

Since we are after the total kinetic energy

in the string we will need to integrate
over all x

Rate of Energy Transfer

Thus we need only look at a single

snap shot in time (waveform). t = 0
seems a good choice.

This can now be integrated over one

wavelength to obtain the total kinetic
energy.

Rate of Energy Transfer

The kinetic energy is not the only energy in

the system, there is also potential energy.
We will not do the calculation, but it is very
similar, the result is:
Then the total energy in the system must be:
As the wave moves along the string this
amount of energy passes by a given point on
the string during one period of the
oscillation.
So what is the rate of energy transfer

Rate of energy transfer

The power or rate of energy transfer
associated with the wave is:

The rate of energy transfer in any wave is

proportional to the square of the angular
frequency and to the square of the
amplitude.
Note the answer in your book is different
and related by.

Example: Power Supplied to a Vibrating String

A
string with linear mess density is under
a tension of 80.0 N. How much power
must be supplied to the string to generate
sinusoidal waves at a frequency of 60.0
Hz and an amplitude of 6.00 cm?

Because the frequency is 60.0 Hz, the

angular frequency of the sinusoidal waves
on the string has the value

Example: Power Supplied to a Vibrating String

Using these values and our new

equation for power we have:

Interference
In our investigation thus far we have see
that waves are very different from particles.
Another important difference between
waves and particles is that we can explore
the possibility of two or more waves
combining at one point in the same medium.
Particles can be combined too form
extended objects, but the particles must be
at different locations.
In contrast, tow waves can both be present
at the same location!!. Lets explore.

Interference
Interference is at the heart of Quantum
mechanicsas it is possible to create
discrete waves!
Waves at different frequencies can
combine to create variation and new types
of waveforms.
In order for interference to occur we must
be talking two waves.i.e., not a single
wave.
A new idea is needed. The Principle of
Superposition.

Interference
Waves that obey the principle of superposition are
called linear waves.
For mechanical waves this generally means that
the amplitudes are much smaller than their
wavelengths.
A consequence of the superposition principle is
that:
Two traveling waves can pass through each
other without being destroyed or even
altered!
This is very different from the picture of two
particles hitting one another.
But two pebbles dropped in the water with
different location will cause patterns that can pass
through one another!

Interference (Rope demo)

Consider the figure: COMPUTER DEMO
Star
t

Star
t

Begin to
interfere

Begin to
interfere

Max
interferen
ce

Max
interferen
ce

End
Constructive
Interference

End
Destructive
Interference

Interference
We will encounter the principle of superposition in
many situations, both in acoustics, optics, and to
some degree quantum mechanics.
Now that we have developed an intuitive
understanding of the principle of superposition we
need to develop a mathematical understanding.
Consider two traveling sinusoidal waves of the
following form:

Note that these are really the same wave shifted

in space

Interference
The superposition of waves is then
Use the following trigonometric expression.
Setting
We get:

This is the wave function that results from

the superposition of the waves

Interference
This result has several important features.
The result is a sinusoid and has the same
frequency and wavelength as the individual
waves.
The amplitude is different and is determined
by the phase constant of the second wave.
Note that if the phase constant is 0 then we
have a maximum amplitude of 2A.
Here the waves are said to be everywhere in
phase and therefore interfere constructively.

Interference
In
general constructive interference will occur
when:
That is constructive interference occurs when
the phase constant is even multiples of (n
= 0,2,4..)
For destructive interference:
Or odd multiples of . n = (1,3,5..)
Can you derive the most general case for two
interfering waves?? Challenge question!
Lets look at a couple of examples to get the
basic ideas down.

Interference

Interference of sound waves

Consider the sound from a loud speaker
sent into a tube at a point P, as shown in
the figure:
Consider
the sound from a
loud speaker sent into a
tube at a point P, as shown
in the figure.
The sound waves are split
in two and traveling a path
length r1 or r2 to the ear.
Let the lower path r1 be
fixed and the upper path r2

When the difference in path lengths is

be variable. (like a
either zero or some multiple of the
trombone).
wavelength..

Interference of sound waves

When the difference in path lengths is

either zero or some multiple of the
wavelength..
Given by the following
condition
where n = 1,2,3,..
the two wave reaching
the ear at any instant
are in phase and
interfere constructively.
If however, then the
waves will interfere
destructively and no
sound
will
be heard.
Thus
two
waves
generated by the same
source can interfere! We will use this idea

Interference

Interference

The two waves must be 180 degrees out

of phase at the point P.
Said another way where .
What is in terms of r1 and r2?

Interference

Interference

Standing Waves

In this example sound waves leave

the speakers in the forward direction
and interfere constructively and
destructively at various points along
a tube.
We can analyze this situation by
considering two identical wave
functions traveling in different
directions through air.

Standing Waves
The
resulting function represents what is

called a standing wave.

This is exactly a standing wave:

This equation does not contain
Therefore, it is not an expression for a
single traveling wave.

Standing Waves

Every element of the medium (string)

oscillates in simple harmonic motion with
the same angular frequency.

The amplitude of the SHO is determined

by the leading term.
We can use the fact that there are minima
and maxima to develop and expression for
the positions of these points.

Standing Waves

Minima can be found as:

We find minima when:
Or in terms of wave length we have:
These point of zero amplitude are called
nodes.
The maxima are found as:
We find maxima when:
Or in terms of wave length we have:
These points are called antinodes.

Standing Waves

Wave patterns of the elements of the

medium produced at various times by two
transverse traveling waves moving in
opposite directions are shown

Standing Waves

Snap shots, and actual motion

Example

Two waves traveling in opposite directions

produce a standing wave. The individual
wave functions are
Where x and y are measured in cm (a) Find
the amplitude of the SHM of the element of
the medium located at x = 2.3 cm.

(b) Find the positions of the nodes and

antinodes if one end of the string is at x =0.

Example continued
We can use our relationship between the
wave number and the wavelength to
obtain the answer.

The location of the nodes is give by:

The location of the antinodes is give by:

Standing wave with boundaries

Consider a string of length L
As shown in the figure.
Waves excited on the string will undergo reflection at
both boundaries (ends).
Because the ends of the string are fixed, the must
necessarily have zero displacement and are therefore
by definition nodes.
This boundary condition results in the string having a
number of discrete natural patterns of oscillation
called normal modes.
That is only certain frequencies are allowedthis is
called quantization.
Quantization is a common occurrence when waves are
subject to boundary conditions and is central to
quantum mechanics!!

Standing wave with boundaries

Because this class of waves

This model occurs in many aspects of
physics.
How do we set up this model?
Consider a first mode, or single
antinode as shown:

Standing wave with boundaries

The simplest possible model is one
In which there is only one antinode.
That is we can only fit this wavelength
into the box.
In this case it is really a wavelength
that we have put in the box so that the
actual wave length can be written as:
Some texts refer to the section between
each boundary as a loop. There can be
more than one mode or loop.

Standing wave with boundaries

The following are some of the modes

From these simple modes it is clear

that all modes can be found from:
Since

we also have

Natural Standing waves

What are the natural frequencies?
Not all strings are created equal!
Using our previous result for the
wavelengths and our equation for
frequency we have
Then for a given string with a certain liner
mass density and tension on the line we
can find the first excited frequency as.
This is the
fundamental!

Natural Standing waves

All other modes are integer multiples of
f1.
The family of frequencies or normal
modes that are integer multiples of f1 is
call a harmonic series.
The second harmonic is given by
The nth harmonic is given by
In musical instruments a given string
when plucked will resonate at its
fundamental and some collection of
harmonics.

Example
Middle C on a piano has a fundamental
frequency of 262 Hz, and the first A
above middle C has fundamental
frequency of 440 Hz. (A) Calculate the
frequencies of the net two harmonics of
the string C.

IF the A and C string have the same

linear mass density and length determine
the ratio of tensions in the two strings.

Example

Example
One end of a horizontal string is
attached to a vibrating blade, and
the other end passes over a pulley
as in the figure. A sphere of mass
2.00 kg hangs on the end of the
string. The string is vibrating in its
second harmonic. A container of
water is raised under the sphere so
that the sphere is completely
submerged. In this configuration,
the string vibrates in its fifth
harmonic as shown in the second
figure. What is the radius of the
sphere?

Example
When the sphere is immersed in the
water there is a buoyant force that
acts upward on the sphere reducing
the tension in the string. We must
find the resulting tension using the
given values and then calculate the
frequencies.

Example
Now use the frequency equation to
find a relation between the tensions

Solve for the tension T2.

Example
Now solve for the radius of the
sphere

Resonance

Consider the following setup.

We have seen that a system such as a taut

string is capable of oscillating in one or
more normal modes.
If a periodic force is applied to such a
system, the amplitude of the resulting
motion is greatest when the frequency
of the applied force is equal to one of
the natural frequencies of the system.

Resonance
If a periodic force is applied to such a
system, the amplitude of the
resulting motion is greatest when the
frequency of the applied force is
equal to one of the natural
frequencies of the system.
This phenomenon is known as resonance.
Discuss the Speed Bump Example.
Driven oscillations and resonance
frequencies.

Longitudinal Waves and Air

The displacement from equilibrium is

The variation in the pressure of the gas is give by
Where the maximum pressure is given by
It is clear that the pressure is 90 degrees out of
phase with the displacement

Wave intensity
Energy moves in the direction of
propagation.
But this energy spreads out in 3D
not 1D so we need another tool to
understand how much energy is
delivered to a point in space.
For this we define the intensity.
The time average rate at which
energy is transported by the wave
per unit area. (W/m2)
The area is shown in the figure and
changes as the wave moves away
from the source.
We can build the following simple
relationship for intensity between
two points in space.

Next time
Standing waves in tubes and musical
instruments.
Beats
The Doppler effect.
Shock waves.

Standing Waves
The resulting function represents what is
called a standing wave.

Doppler Effect
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Doppler Effect
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Doppler Effect
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Doppler Effect
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Doppler Effect
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Doppler Effect
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