click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Wave Unit
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Wave | A disturbance that transfers energy from place to place |
Medium | Material through which a wave travels |
Energy | The ability to do work |
Mechanical Wave | A disturbance in matter that carries energy from one place to another |
Surface Wave | A wave that occurs at the surface between 2 mediums |
Electromagnetic Waves | Transverse waves consisting of changing electric fields and changing magnetic fields |
Transverse Waves | Waves that move the medium at right angles to the direction in which the waves travel. |
Longitudinal Waves | A wave in which the particles move parallel to the path of the wave |
Crest | Highest point of a wave |
Trough | Lowest point of a wave |
Compression | The part of a longitudinal wave where the particles of the medium are close together. |
Rarefaction | A part in a longitudinal wave where the particles are spread apart |
Wavelength | Horizontal distance between the crests or between the troughs of 2 adjacent waves |
Amplitude | Heigh of a wave |
Frequency | The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time. |
Electromagnetic Spectrum | All of the frequencies or wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation |
Radio Waves | Electromagnetic waves with the longest wavelengths and lowest frequencies |
Infrared Rays | Electromagnetic waves with shorter wavelengths and higher frequencies than microwaves |
Visible Light | Electromagnetic waves that you can see |
Ultraviolet Rays (UV) | Electromagnetic waves with wavelengths shorter than visible light, but longer than x-rays |
X-Rays | Electromagnetic radiation having a very short wavelength |
Gamma Rays | High-energy electromagnetic waves emitted from a nucleus as it changes from an excited state to a ground energy state |
Reflection | The bouncing back of a wave when it hits a surface through which it cannot pass |
Refraction | Bending of Light |
Diffraction | The bending of a wave as it moves around an obstacle or passes through a narrow opening |
Interference | The combination of 2 or more waves that results in a single wave |
Constructive Interference | The interference that occurs when 2 waves combine to make a wave with a larger amplitude |
Destructive Interference | The interference that occurs when 2 waves combine to make a waves with a smaller amplitude |