Physics HL
Physics HL
5
Chapters
329
Notes
Theme A - Space, Time & Motion
Theme A - Space, Time & Motion
Theme B - The Particulate Nature Of Matter
Theme B - The Particulate Nature Of Matter
Theme C - Wave Behaviour
Theme C - Wave Behaviour
Theme D - Fields
Theme D - Fields
Theme E - Nuclear & Quantum Physics
Theme E - Nuclear & Quantum Physics
IB Resources
Theme C - Wave Behaviour
Physics HL
Physics HL

Theme C - Wave Behaviour

Mastering Displacement-Distance Graphs in Wave Mechanics

Word Count Emoji
627 words
Reading Time Emoji
4 mins read
Updated at Emoji
Last edited on 5th Nov 2024

Table of content

Displacement-distance graphs - the wave's signature

  • Imagine: You're at a concert. The music is blasting. You feel the vibe in the air. The wave's journey is what we're mapping!
  • Y-axis: Displacement (like a dancer's movement up and down)
  • X-axis: Distance along the wave (like the concert stage length)

Quick Facts:

  • Longitudinal Wave: Displacement and distance along the wave are like best friends, always side by side (parallel). 🚂
  • Transverse Wave: They're more like frenemies, at 90°. Think of a snake moving sideways. 🐍

Real-life example: Ever jumped on a trampoline? When you bounce, you make transverse waves! Your high jump represents a peak in the graph.

What can these graphs tell us?

Displacement-time graph

  • 🎯 Tells you amplitude (how high the wave goes) and wavelength (distance between two peaks).
  • 🚫 Doesn't directly spill beans about time period or frequency.

Transverse vs. longitudinal waves - battle of the waves

  • Transverse is like seeing a snake slithering side to side.
  • Longitudinal is like watching dancers move back and forth in a line dance.

Fun Bit: In longitudinal waves, where the particles are squished together, we get a compression (like a traffic jam). Where they’re spread out? That’s a rarefaction (like the open road on an early morning).

Kinematics connection

  • Real waves have a start and end in space and time. No infinite waves here! 📏
  • If a wave goes through n cycles, its time is nT, and its length is nλ (n times the wavelength).

For Dummies: If a wave had a party for 5 hours (nT) and each song played was 3 minutes long (λ), then the total party time would be the number of songs multiplied by their length!

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IB Resources
Theme C - Wave Behaviour
Physics HL
Physics HL

Theme C - Wave Behaviour

Mastering Displacement-Distance Graphs in Wave Mechanics

Word Count Emoji
627 words
Reading Time Emoji
4 mins read
Updated at Emoji
Last edited on 5th Nov 2024

Table of content

Displacement-distance graphs - the wave's signature

  • Imagine: You're at a concert. The music is blasting. You feel the vibe in the air. The wave's journey is what we're mapping!
  • Y-axis: Displacement (like a dancer's movement up and down)
  • X-axis: Distance along the wave (like the concert stage length)

Quick Facts:

  • Longitudinal Wave: Displacement and distance along the wave are like best friends, always side by side (parallel). 🚂
  • Transverse Wave: They're more like frenemies, at 90°. Think of a snake moving sideways. 🐍

Real-life example: Ever jumped on a trampoline? When you bounce, you make transverse waves! Your high jump represents a peak in the graph.

What can these graphs tell us?

Displacement-time graph

  • 🎯 Tells you amplitude (how high the wave goes) and wavelength (distance between two peaks).
  • 🚫 Doesn't directly spill beans about time period or frequency.

Transverse vs. longitudinal waves - battle of the waves

  • Transverse is like seeing a snake slithering side to side.
  • Longitudinal is like watching dancers move back and forth in a line dance.

Fun Bit: In longitudinal waves, where the particles are squished together, we get a compression (like a traffic jam). Where they’re spread out? That’s a rarefaction (like the open road on an early morning).

Kinematics connection

  • Real waves have a start and end in space and time. No infinite waves here! 📏
  • If a wave goes through n cycles, its time is nT, and its length is nλ (n times the wavelength).

For Dummies: If a wave had a party for 5 hours (nT) and each song played was 3 minutes long (λ), then the total party time would be the number of songs multiplied by their length!

Unlock the Full Content! File Is Locked Emoji

Dive deeper and gain exclusive access to premium files of Physics HL. Subscribe now and get closer to that 45 🌟

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