Waves Quarter 3 Week 4
Waves Quarter 3 Week 4
Waves Quarter 3 Week 4
Name: Score:
Section: Date:
Direction: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write your answer in your activity notebook.
The figure below represents a sea – wave that causes a small cork (Z) to rise up
and down through one complete oscillation every 4 seconds.
Refer to this figure for questions 6 – 7
Types of Waves
There are two types of waves: the transverse waves, and the longitudinal waves. These are mechanical
waves that require a medium for propagation. Water waves and rope waves are examples of transverse
waves. On the other hand, a light wave is an example of an electromagnetic wave, which does not require
any medium for propagation. Recall what you did when you generate waves in a rope. When you disturb
one end of the rope, how did the rope waves travel with respect to the direction of wave motion? Yes,
rope waves travel in a direction perpendicular to the direction of wave motion. This kind of wave is what
we call a transverse wave.
On the other hand, longitudinal waves are waves which travel in a direction parallel to the direction of
wave motion or parallel to the direction of vibration
One way to categorize waves is based on the direction of movement of the individual particles of
the medium relative to the direction that the waves travel.
A transverse wave is a wave in which particles of the medium move in a direction perpendicular
to the direction that the wave moves.
A longitudinal wave is a wave in which particles of the medium move in a direction parallel to
the direction that the wave moves.
Electromagnetic Spectrum
The electromagnetic spectrum describes all the kinds of light, including those the human eye
cannot see. In fact, most of the light in the universe is invisible to our eyes.
The light we can see, made up of the individual colors of the rainbow, represents only a very
small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Other types of light include radio waves, microwaves,
infrared radiation, ultraviolet rays, X-rays and gamma rays — all of which are imperceptible to human
eyes.
All light or electromagnetic radiation travels through space at 186,000 miles (300,000 kilometers)
per second — the speed of light. That’s about as far as a car will go over its lifetime, traveled by light in a
single second!
Electromagnetic Spectrum
Wavelength (meters)
Characteristics of Waves
Water waves are easily produced and observed. By touching one point on the surface you can see
the peaks of the waves form circles and move outwards from the source of the disturbance.
Some of the characteristics used to describe transverse wave motion are enumerated below:
● The high points are called crests while the low points are called troughs.
● The amplitude is the maximum displacement from the rest position. It is the height of the crest or
depth of a trough measured from the normal undisturbed position.
● The wavelength, λ, is the distance between two successive crests or two
successive troughs. It is also equal to the distance between any two identical
points on successive waves. For example, points A and B and points C and D.
Parts of a Wave
The frequency, f, is the number of crests or troughs that pass a point per second.
This is equivalent to the number of complete waves generated per second.
Frequency is measured in terms of hertz (Hz).
The period, T, is the time taken to generate one complete wave. It is also the time
taken for the crests, or any given point on the wave, to move a distance of one
wavelength.
T = 1/f
The speed, v, of the wave is the distance moved by a wave in one second. Since the
wave crest travels a distance of one wavelength in one period, the wave speed,
v = λ/T or ν = fλ
What to do:
1. Get a piece of rope about 2 m long. Fix one end of a rope by typing it around a post or a rod.
1. Get a slinky coil or plastic coil, which is usually played by children. Let a partner hold one end
of the coil.
2. Then, push and pull the other end. What do you observe? Yes, there are parts in the coil that are
compressed and there are parts in the coil that are far apart. This illustrates longitudinal waves.
B. Direction: Solve the following problems and write your answers in your notebook/ on a separate
sheet of paper.
2. A wave of wavelength 1.5 m travels down a rope at a speed of 6 m/s. What is the frequency of
the wave?
C. Direction: Study the electromagnetic spectrum and answer the questions below and write your
answers in your notebook/ on a separate sheet of paper.
1. Which of the following has the highest frequency? (ultraviolet, microwaves, x-ray, radio waves)
2. Which of the following has the longest wavelength? (gamma ray, visible light, ultraviolet, radio
waves)
3. Which of the following has the shortest wavelength? (gamma ray, visible light, ultraviolet, radio
waves)
4. Which of the following has the highest frequency? (visible light, microwaves, infrared, radio
waves)
5. The longer the wavelength the _________ the frequency. (lower, higher)