waves and wave property

• the particles that make up a wave oscillate about a fixed point , in doing so they pass on energy to the next particle
• transverse waves

  • oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer
  • eg. water wave
• longitudinal waves

  • oscillations are parallel to the direction of energy transfer
  • eg. sound wave
• amplitude - maximum displacement from its undisturbed position (m)
• period - time taken for one complete oscillation in seconds
• amplitude indicated the amount of energy a wave is carrying , the more energy, the higher the amplitude
• as waves are transmitted from one medium to another , their speed , therefore their wavelength changes , the frequency does not change
• doubling the speed doubles the wavelength
• frequency - number of waves passing by a fixed point per second (hz)