General wave properties

2.3 Transfer of thermal energy

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General wave properties

  1. General waves

    1. A wave is an oscillation travelling through space and matter that transfers energy
    2. A wavefront is the locus of points with the same phase
    3. v = fλ wherein v denotes the speed, the rate at which the wave propagates through space; f denotes the frequency, the number of cycles per second; and λ denotes the wavelength, the length of one cycle
    4. Waves can be longitudinal, in the case of sound, or transverse, in the case of light

  2. Water waves

    1. Water waves can be produced using a ripple tank
    2. Reflection at a plane surface can be shown by placing the plane on the surface and sending waves towards it
    3. Refraction due to a change of speed can be shown by placing a block below the water, since the speed of the wave depends on the depth of the water
    4. Diffraction produced by wide and narrow gaps can be shown by sending waves through a slit on the surface of the water