Measuring Waves

By: Mr. Bitondo

How do we measure waves?

Frequency
Amplitude
Wavelength

Frequency
Frequency is beats per second,
the amount of times the wave
passes through the medium.

Higher Frequency= higher

pitch or more power

Hertz
Hertz- Is the standard
measurement for
FREQUENCY

It is measured cycles per

second

Amplitude
Amplitude is the height of
the wave from the medium.

How tall is the mountain!

Greater the amplitude the
louder the volume.

Wavelength
Wavelength is the distance
between the tops of the
waves or crests.

How far apart are the

mountain peaks?

Crest
Crest - The highest point
of a wave

Trough
Trough The lowest point
on a wave

Resting Position
The location when the
wave is at rest! Real
tough definition!!!

Period
Period The time it takes
a complete cycle or wave
oscillation (movement
back and forth) to occur.

Compression and Rarefaction

A compression is a point
on a medium through
which a longitudinal wave
is traveling that has the
maximum density
(tightest).

Rarefaction - A region
where the coils are
spread apart, thus
maximizing the distance
between coils.

Lab Break!

Diffraction
Diffraction A change in
the direction of a wave
when the wave finds an
obstacle or an edge, such
as an opening

Interference
Interference The
combination of two or
more waves of the same
frequency that results in a
single wave

Reflection
Reflection The bouncing
back of a ray of light,
sound or heat when a ray
hits a surface and does
not go through

Refraction
Refraction The bending
of a wavefront as the
wavefront passes
between two substances
in which the speed of the
wave differs

Doppler Effect
Doppler Effect An
observed change in
frequency of a wave when
the source or observer is
moving

Virtual Lab
http://www.glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/s
cience/virtual_labs/E05/E05.html

Resources
https://sites.google.com/a/mystma.org/ms-lefeb
vre/unit-4---waves-sound-light

https://phet.colorado.edu/en/.../3023
https://phet.colorado.edu/