WAVES

Is a disturbance propagated in space

and time
 Classification of waves
• Pulses
• Continuous/progressive waves
• Stationary waves
• Transverse waves
• Longitudinal waves
• Electromagnetic waves
• A wave can be represented by a waveform
• A waveform can provide:
- Amplitude, a: distance from equilibrium to crest or trough
- Period, T: time taken for one full cycle (crest and trough or
crest to crest, or trough to trough) on a waveform with time as
the x axis
- Wavelength, λ: distance inclusive of one crest and one trough
(or crest to crest, or trough to trough) on a waveform where
displacement is on the x axis
- Frequency, f : number occurring per second
- F= 1/T
• V=s/t speed = distance /time

V = λ/T = λ *(1/T) f=1/T

V= f λ wave equation
 Waves
• Two special phase relationships between waves
are
• a)Wave forms in phase
• b) Waveforms that are out of phase
• Wavefronts are equidistant lines (straight or curved) each of which
joins crests on different waves that are travelling together in phase.
• Waveforms can be represented in a more simple form by using
wavefronts
• The linear distance between adjacent wavefronts represents the
wavelength (λ) of the waves
• Rays are lines drawn perpendicular through the wavefronts …
indicates the direction of the wave
• Parallel waves require plane or straight wavefronts to represent
them (with parallel rays)
• Circular wavefronts represent waves that radiate from a point
sources to produce concentric circles…these have divergent rays
 Waves can be:
• Reflected
-λ λ1> 2

- f remains constant
- v1 > v 2
- n = λ1 /λ2 =v1 / v2 = sin i / sin r

• Refracted - occurs when a wave passes from one medium to another in

which it has a different speed and wavelength and the angle of incidence at the
boundary between the media is NOT zero
- Generally for any type of wave (water, light, sound etc.)
- Wavelength is greater in less dense medium
- Speed is greater in less dense medium
- Refraction occurs towards the normal in the denser medium and away from the normal
in the less dense medium
- For the denser medium:
n = wavelength / speed of waves in the less dense medium
wavelength /speed of waves in denser medium
 Water waves
• Deeper water (less dense medium) to shallower
water (denser medium) the speed decreases and
the wavelength also decreases
• Diffracted – diffraction is the spreading of
waves as they pass through the edge of an
obstacle or as they pass through a aperture or
opening (such as a slit or a gap) the width (a)
of which is comparable with or less than the
wavelength, λ of the waves
Interference – produced when 2 or more coherent waves of the
same type meet, the waves undergo superposition and produce
an observable pattern called the interference pattern.

• The principle of superposition states that when 2 or more

waves meet at the same point in space at the same time
the resultant displacement at that point is the vector
sum of the individual displacements that each of the
waves would produce by itself, at that point in space and
at that point in time.
• Coherent sources of waves are waves that have the same
λ, f and v, which operate in phase at the same frequency
to produce waves that have a constant phase difference
between them at any point where they meet.
• For interference, if there is a resultant wave, it has the
same f, λ and v as the interfering coherent waves.
• Constructive interference occurs where waves meet in phase
(the amplitude of the resultant wave is the sum of the
amplitudes of the two interfering waves…maximum intensity)
• Destructive interference occurs where waves meet out of
phase (the amplitude of the resultant wave is the difference
between the amplitudes of the two interfering waves…
minimum intensity)
 Interference patterns
• When two coherent sources overlap and interference pattern is created
such as when a source is divided using a double slit (Young’s double slit)
• A fringe pattern is produced on a screen (alternating bright –
constructive interference and dark – destructive interference bands or
fringes)
• x = (λD)/d
D- linear distance between the double slits and the screen
d- the slit separation (linear distance between the separation of the two
slits)
λ – the wavelength of the light waves
x- the fringe separation (linear distance between the centres of the
adjacent bright fringes or dark fringes
 Sound waves
• Produced and propagated by the vibrations (i.e. oscillations)
of the particles of a material medium…eg. A loud speaker
core, tuning forks prongs, drum skins, guitar strings, air in
trumpets, trombones, flutes, pipes, etc.
• They are longitudinal, mechanical waves
• Propagated in the medium in which they travel by a series of
compressions and rarefractions
• Can be regarded as displacement waves and as pressure
waves
 Properties of sound waves
• Cannot travel in a vacuum…requires a medium to travel
• Travels fastest in solids and slowest in gases
• Obeys the laws of reflection…an echo
• Hard surfaces better reflect it, soft surfaces better absorb it
• Concave surfaces bring waves to a focus, convex spreads them out
• If echo time is too short, overlap occurs with original sound …drawn out
sound (Reverberation)
• Obeys the laws of refraction : sound waves bend towards cooler regions
(denser) and away from warmer regions
• Can be diffracted – since usually larger wavelengths…easily diffracted
• Can show interference effects
• Wave equation v = fλ can be applied
• Speed in a given medium for sound waves depends on the temperature
of that medium
• Speed can be determined using reciprocal firing or echo method
• Sound waves can be subjected to situations of
critical angle and total internal reflection
Refractive index, n= wavelength or speed of a wave in less dense medium
wavelength or speed of a wave in a more dense medium
•
ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES
Name given to a range of waves having different wavelengths, frequencies
and energies but some common properties
• All are propagated by varying electric and magnetic fields which oscillate
at right angles to one another and also to the direction of propagation of
the wave
• All travel with the same constant speed in air or a vacuum…the speed of
light…3.0x108 ms-1
• All are unaffected by external electric and magnetic fields
• All are transverse waves
• All can undergo reflection, refraction, diffraction and interference
• All travel in straight lines in a vacuum or air or other medium
• All can be plane polarized
• All are progressive waves but can produce stationary waves under suitable
circumstances
• The intensity of each varies inversely as the square of the linear distance
from a point source
 Electromagnetic spectrum is divided into the following range
with specific range of 300nm (violet light) to 750nm (red light)

Light has a wave-particle nature:

Wave nature supported by the young double slit experiment that light can be
Diffracted and interference can occur and
The Photoelectric effect ( instantaneous emission of electrons from the surfaces of
certain material when exposed to E.M. radiation above a certain frequency
 Wave-particle duality
According to the particle theory:
• Light travels faster in a denser medium
• It does not undergo diffraction and interference
• Explains the photoelectric effect (instantaneous emission
of electrons from a solid liquid or gas when it absorbs
energy from light)
Wave theory:
• Light travels faster in a less dense medium (Foucault)
• It undergoes diffraction and interference (young’s double
slit experiment)
 Light, which is a form of energy that has a
particle and wave nature
travels in straight lines
• Its travel is represented by a ray
• A ray is a straight line a with an arrow showing the
direction of travel

A ray
A group of rays represent a beam of light

A beam
There are three main types of beams of light:
• Parallel beams
• Convergent beams
• Divergent beams
Use your dictionary to write down the meanings
of
1) Parallel ______________________________
2) Convergent ___________________________
3) Divergent ____________________________
• A torch light creates a divergent beam, attempt to draw a beam of light
from the torch light to show a divergent beam using the diagram below.
Example:
Is it?

or or

• Headlights on a car creates parallel beams, attempt to draw a beam of

light to show a parallel beam using the diagram below

• A magnifying glass creates convergent beams, attempt to draw a beam

of light to show a convergent beam using the diagram below
 Properties
• Rectilinear propagation – it travels in straight
lines observed in shadow formation (eg.
Eclipse) and image formation (pin hole camera)
• Reflection of light – formation of images eg. In
mirrors
• Refraction of light – observed when rectangular
and triangular prisms, and lenses are used
• Dispersion of light – rainbow formation
Shadows, are formed when an opaque object is
placed in front of the path of light. They can be
formed using
• Using a point source – which is a small light source such as a
torch light

• Or an extended source – which is a large light source such as

the sun
 Solar eclipse
• When the moon passes between the sun and
the Earth
• The moon fully or partially covers the view of
the sun from the Earth
• The partially covered view is the area of the
penumbra
• The fully covered view is the area of the
umbra.
 Total Solar Eclipse:
• The observer is inside the
Moon's umbra.
• The Moon completely covers
the Sun.
Partial Solar Eclipse:
• The observer is inside the
Moon's penumbra.
• Only see part of the Sun
covered by the Moon.
Annular Eclipse:
• The Moon is at or near
TO DO: Label on the diagram where you would be
apogee, and so is too small to
if you were seeing an Annular eclipse
cover the Sun.
• The Moon's umbra does not
touch the Earth, so observer's
in the shadow path see the
Sun as a ring ("annulus")
 Lunar Eclipse
A lunar eclipse occurs • TO DO: Draw a diagram
when the moon passes of the Sun, Earth and
behind the Earth and is Moon in a lunar eclipse
blocked by Earth (the position
Earth acts as the
opaque object)
 Luminous versus non-luminous
• If you are given the definition that luminous
objects produce it own light and non-luminous
objects reflect light, make a list of at least five
objects that are luminous and non-luminous
objects
Luminous objects Non luminous objects
 And you are given the definition that:
• Transparent objects allow all light to pas through it
• Translucent objects allow some light to pass through
it
• Opaque objects do not allow any light to pass
through it
• Complete the table below with at least five items you
see daily

Transparent objects Translucent Opaque

Glass Frosted glass A wall
 Reflection of Light
Light incident on a surface may
•Absorbed – material is opaque, dark, dull or
rough
•Transmitted/refracted – surface is transparent
or translucent
•Reflection – surface is bright, smooth shiny. The
“bouncing” of light off of a surface occurs. The
light does not pass through the surface (called a
medium)
 Reflection
• One law of reflection is that the incident ray,
the reflected ray and the normal all lie in the
same plane
 Reflection
• Another law of reflection is that the angle of
incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.
For example if the incident ray “hits” the
mirror at 45°, then the reflected ray bounces
off the mirror at a 45° angle. (° - this is the
degree symbol)
 Reflection
An image formed in a (plane) mirror is
• not real (it is called Virtual)
• It is the same distance it is from the front of
the mirror as the back of the mirror
• It is upright
 Curved mirrors
• Convex mirrors – parallel incident • Concave mirrors – parallel
rays are spread out after
reflection…divergent . So this can incident rays are to more
be used for making rear view than one focus after
mirrors since it gives a wide field reflection…converge
of view (Principle of reversibility)
• The diagram presented below in Figure 4 illustrates the
reflection patterns obtained from both concave and
convex mirrors. The concave mirror on the left has a
reflecting surface that curves inwards that resembles a
portion of the interior of a sphere. When light rays that
are parallel to the principal, or optical axis, reflect
from the surface of a concave mirror, in this case, the
rays leading from the soldier's hat and feet, they
converge on the focal point in front of the mirror. The
distance from the reflecting surface to the focal point
is termed the mirror's focal length. The size of the
image depends upon the distance of the object from
the mirror and it's position with respect to the mirror's
surface. In this case, the soldier is placed at the center
of curvature and the reflected image is upside down
and in front of the mirror's center of curvature.
• The convex mirror on the right-hand side of Figure 4,
however, has a reflecting surface that curves outward,
which resembles a portion of the exterior of a sphere.
Light rays parallel to the optical or principal axis are
reflected from the surface in a manner that diverges
from a focal point that is behind the mirror. Images
formed with convex mirrors are always right side up
and reduced in size. These images are also termed
virtual images because when they occur reflected rays
appear to diverge from a focal point behind the mirror.
Parabolic mirror
Images in a plane mirror

dev.physicslab.org
 Characteristics of an image
• Virtual image – cannot be produced on a screen
• Real image – can be produced on a screen
• Image distance (v) is equal to object distance (u)
• Image has the same size as the object
(magnification= 1)
• Image is erect/laterally inverted with respect to
the object
• Optical centre of the lens: a point on the axis of a lens that is so located that any ray
of light passing through it in passing through the lens suffers no net deviation and
that may be within, without, or on either surface of the lens
• Principal Axis – line which passes through the optical centre of the lens
• First Principal Focus (F1) : It is that point on the principal axis of the lens, the rays
starting from which (convex lens) or appear to converge at which (concave lens)
become parallel to principal axis after refraction from the lens.
• Focal plane : Line perpendicular to the principal axis that passes through the Principal
Focus
• Thicker lenses bend light more, and are therefore described as more powerful. 
Powerful lenses have short focal lengths.  The power of a lens is measured
in dioptres(D) and is given by the formula:

Power =          1               

      focal length (m)
• The lens formula is:
1 = 1 + 1
f u v
[f - focal length; u - object distance; v - image distance]
• The magnification 
M= v
u
Since v is in metres, and u is in metres, M has no units.
 Ray Diagrams
We can determine where an image lies in relation to the objects by using a ray diagram.  We can do this by using two simple rules:
• Draw a ray from the top of the image parallel to the principal axis.  This ray bends at the lens axis and goes through the principal focus.
• Draw a ray from the top of the lens through the centre of the lens.
• Where the two rays meet, that is where the image is found.  In this example, we have placed the object between F and 2F.  The
diagrams show how we do a ray diagram step-by-step:
•  
• Step 1.  Draw the ray parallel to the principal axis.

•  

• Step 2. Draw the refracted ray so that it passes through the principal focus.

 
• Step 3. Draw a ray from the top of the object through the middle of the lens.  This ray
is undeviated.
 

• Step 4. Where the rays meet, that is where the image is.

It is a good idea to draw your ray diagrams on graph paper as the following ray diagrams are. 
Be careful with your drawing; a small change in the angle of the undeviated ray can lead to
quite a big change in the final position of the image.  And PLEASE... Be a good chap and use a
sharp pencil.  The image is inverted (upside down), real, and magnified (bigger).
http://www.antonine-education.com/Pages/Physics_5_Options/Astrophysics/AST_01/Astrophysics_page_1.htm
 Refraction of Light
•Refraction – can occur when light incident on the
boundary between two different optically transmitting
media; the “bending” of light as it passes through a surface
from one medium to another
•The wavelength and speed changes
•When light leaves a less dense media such as air and
enters a more dense media such as water, the light will
bend towards the normal. Speed and wavelength
decreases
•When light leaves a more dense media such as water and
enters a less dense media such as air the light will bend
away from the normal. Speed and wavelength increases
 Dotted line – Imaginary called the normal

Air – less dense than water

r Water

The ray of light bends towards the normal

i – called the angle of incidence

r – called the angle of refraction

This happens for example when a straw is put into a glass of

water, it looks bent
 Snell’s law
Laws of refraction
1) The incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal at the point of
incidence all lie in the same plane
2) When a ray is travelling from one optically transparent medium to
another the sine of the angle of incidence and the sine of the angle of
refraction are in constant ratio. This is called Snell’s law
n = sinϴ1 or n1sinϴ1 = n2 sinϴ1
sin ϴ2
Also n = speed/wavelength of light in less dense medium
speed/wavelength of light in denser medium

When a light is travelling from a denser to less dense medium ‘Principle

of Reversibility” can be applied and the locations of i and r are exchanged.
• Rectangular block • Triangular prism
 Critical Angle
The critical angle, c is that angle of incidence in the denser medium
that produces an angle if refraction of 90° in the less dense medium
n = _1_
sinc
If the angle of incidence in the denser medium is greater than
increased beyond the critical angle
• Then total internal reflection occurs
• Happens when:
i) rays/waves are travelling from a more dense to a less dense medium
ii) The angle of incidence in the denser medium is greater than the
critical angle
 Some examples when critical angle is surpassed

Rays enter Isosceles triangular prism Rays enter Isosceles triangular prism Rays enter Isosceles triangular prism
Incident 90 ° on one of the equal sides Incident 90 °on base Incident 45°on one of the equal sides

Pictures: http://www.physicstutorials.org/home/optics/refraction-of-light/critical-angle-and-total-reflection