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Waves & Light
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Vibration | repeated back and forth or up and down motion |
Energy | the ability to do work |
Medium | material through which a wave travels |
Crest | high point of a wave |
Trough | low point of a wave |
Amplitude | maximum distance that the particles of the medium carrying the wave move away from their resting position |
Wavelength | distance between two corresponding points |
Frequency | number of complete waves that pass a given point in a certain amount of time |
Speed | how far a wave travels in a given amount of time |
Resting Position | where there is no amplitude and the wave is at rest |
Mechanical Waves | travel through gases, liquids or solids |
Damping | decrease in amplitude |
Electromagnetic Wave | transfers electrical and magnetic energy |
Electromagnetic Spectrum | the complete range of EM waves placed in order of increasing frequencies |
Visible Light | EM waves that you can see |
Opaque | reflects or absorbs all the light that sits there |
Primary Colors | colors that can be used to make any other colors; |
Primary Colors of Light | red, blue, green |
Angle of Incidence | the angle that a straight line,ray of light, etc., meeting a surface, makes with a normal to the surface at the point of meeting |
Law of Reflection | the angle of incidence equal the angle of reflection |
Plane Mirror | a flat sheet of glass that has a smooth, silver colored coating on one side |
Concave Mirror | a mirror with a surface that curves inward like the inside of a bowl |
Convex Mirror | a mirror with a surface that curves outward like an eye |
Refraction | the bending of waves as they enter a new medium at an angle |
Lens | a curved piece of glass or other transparent material that is used to refract light |
Concave Lens | a lens that is thinner in the middle than at the edges |
Convex Lens | a lens that is thicker in the middle than at the edges |
Wave | a disturbance that transfers energy from place to place |