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Waves

Terms in this set (31)

wave
a repeated disturbance involving the transfer of energy from place to place
vibration
a repeated back and forth or up and down motion
medium
a material through which waves can travel (solid, liquid, gas)
propagation
any way in which waves travel
mechanical wave
waves that require the particles of the medium to vibrate in order for energy to be transferred (travel only through matter)
electromagnetic wave
a wave that contains electric and magnetic parts that vibrate up and down perpendicular to the direction of travel
transverse wave
a wave that vibrates the medium at right angles, or perpendicular, to the direction in which the wave travels
compressional (longitudinal)
a wave that vibrates the medium in the same direction, parallel, in which the wave travels
crest
highest point on a transverse wave
trough
lowest point on a transverse wave
compression
coils squeezed together in a compressional wave
rarefaction
coils spread apart in a compressional wave
frequency
number of wavelengths that pass by a given point in a certain amount of time
amplitude
half the distance between a crest and a trough (transverse wave); density of the material in compressions and rarefactions (compressional); maximum distance the medium vibrates from the rest position
wavelength
the distance between (1) point on a wave and its nearest point moving with the same speed and direction; the distance between two corresponding parts of a wave
absorption
occurs when certain frequencies of light are not transferred through or reflected by a medium
transparent
an object that allows nearly all light that strikes it to pass through
opaque
an object that allows no light to pass through, instead it is reflected or absorbed
translucent
an object that allows some light to pass through; objects are visible through this object but not clear
refraction
the change in direction of a wave when it changes speed as it travels from (1) medium to another
reflection
the bouncing back of a wave when it meets the surface/boundary that does not absorb the entire wave's energy
interference
the interaction between waves that meet producing a wave of greater or lower amplitude
transmission
occurs when waves pass through a given point or medium
energy
the ability to do work
surface wave
combination of transverse and longitudinal waves that travel along a surface that separates to mediums
hertz
unit used to measure frequency; the number of waves per second
wave speed
how far the wave travels in a given amount of time; speed = wavelength X frequency
standing wave
a wave that appears to stand in one place, even though it is two waves interfering as they pass through each other
nodes
destructive interference in a standing wave producing points with zero amplitude
antinodes
points of maximum amplitude on a standing wave; always occur halfway between two nodes
resonance
an increase in the amplitude of a vibration that occurs when external vibrations match an object's natural frequency
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