Properties of waves

Cards (9)

  • what is a wave’s amplitude?
    maximum displacement of a point on a wave from its undisturbed position
  • what is a wavelength?
    • distance from a point on a wave to the same position on the adjacent wave
    • most commonly peak to peak or trough to trough
  • what is the frequency of a wave?
    number of waves that pass a given point each second
  • unit used for frequency
    Hertz, Hz
  • what is meant by a frequency of 200Hz?
    200 waves pass a given point each second
  • what is wave speed?
    speed at which the wave moves or at which energy is transferred through a medium
  • what does a wave transfer?
    energy
  • equation used to calculate wave speed
    wave speed = frequency x wavelength
    speed (m/s), frequency (Hz), wavelength (m)
  • The speed of a wave depends upon its frequency and wavelength. The higher the frequency, the shorter the wavelength and vice versa.