Lecture 7

Waves
How can we see an object?

Luminous Objects
Non- Luminous Objects
 Oscillatory motion is important
because oscillations can generate
waves, which are of fundamental
importance in physics. Many of the
terms and equations we studied in the
chapter on oscillations apply equally
well to wave motion

An ocean wave is probably the first picture that comes to mind when you hear the word “wave.”
 Wave Motion and Its Classification
• Wave motion is defined to be the disturbance created by the oscillation of
the particles about their equilibrium position.
• Usually it is referred to as the transfer of energy from one point to another
in a medium.

• There are three basic types of waves:

1. Mechanical waves
2. Electromagnetic waves
3. Matter waves.
 Mechanical waves

Water waves Sound Waves

Mechanical waves They can exist only within

a material medium, such
transfer energy and
as water, air, and rock.
momentum, without
transferring mass. Seismic Wave
Electromagnetic waves

These waves require no material

medium to exist. Light waves from
stars, for example, travel through
the vacuum of space to reach us. All
electromagnetic waves travel
through a vacuum at the same speed
c = 299792 458 m/s.

Examples: light waves, radio waves,

and X-rays. Electromagnetic
waves are always transverse.
 Matter waves
Although these waves are commonly used in
modern technology, they are probably very Why can’t we see the walking human's wavelength?
unfamiliar to you. These waves are associated
with electrons, protons, and other
fundamental particles, and even atoms and
molecules. Because we commonly think of
these particles as constituting matter, such
waves are called matter waves.

There is a wave associated with moving

particles called a matter wave, or de Broglie
wave.

This equation postulates that all moving object

with a mass will have a wavelength which is
called de Broglie wavelength
• Classification of waves in terms of propagation-

1. Travelling or progressive wave

2. Stationary or standing wave

• Classification of waves in terms of the direction of vibration of

particles-

1. Transverse wave

2. Longitudinal wave
 The displacement of every such
oscillating string element is
perpendicular to the direction of
travel of the wave, as indicated in
Fig. 16-1b. This motion is said to be
transverse, and the wave is said to
be a transverse wave.

If you move your hand up and down in

continuous simple harmonic motion, a
If you push and pull on the piston in simple
continuous wave travels along the
harmonic motion, as is being done in Fig. 16-2,
string at velocity . Because the motion
a sinusoidal wave travels along the pipe.
of your hand is a sinusoidal function of
Because the motion of the elements of air is
time, the wave has a sinusoidal shape at
parallel to the direction of the wave’s travel,
any given instant, as in Fig. 16-1b; that
the motion is said to be longitudinal, and the
is, the wave has the shape of a sine
wave is said to be a longitudinal wave. In
curve or a cosine curve.
 Transverse waves Longitudinal waves

1. Particles vibrate in a direction perpendicular to the direction 1. Particles vibrate in a direction parallel to the direction of
of propagation of the wave. propagation of the wave.

2. Crests and troughs are formed. 2. Compressions and rarefactions are formed.

3. May be elastic or non-elastic wave. E.g. Ripples on the

3. Only elastic wave (mechanical). E.g. Sound wave, seismic
surface of water, wave on a string, light wave, radio wave,
wave, etc.
etc.

4. Do not create pressure difference in the medium. 4. Create pressure difference in the medium.

5. They can be propagated through solids and surfaces of 5. They can be propagated through solids, liquids and gases.
liquids but not in gases.

6. There is a change in the density throughout the medium.

6. There is no change in the density of medium.

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 Equation of a plane progressive or simple harmonic travelling wave

The pulse at time t = 0 is centered on x = 0 with amplitude A. The

pulse moves as a pattern with a constant shape, with a constant
maximum value A. The velocity is constant and the pulse moves a
distance Δx = vΔt in a time Δt. The distance traveled is measured
with any convenient point on the pulse. In this figure, the crest is
used
Notice that each select point on the string (marked by coloured dots)
oscillates up and down in simple harmonic motion, between y = + A and y =
−A, with a period T. The wave on the string is sinusoidal and is translating in
the positive x-direction as time progresses.
Looking at the first snapshot in Fig, the y-position of the string between x = 0 and x = λ can be modeled as a sine function.

The wave function modeling a sinusoidal wave, allowing for

an initial phase shift ϕ, is
 Show that the particles of the medium, or the mass elements, oscillate in simple harmonic motion for a mechanical wave?
In the case of the transverse wave propagating in the x-direction, the particles oscillate up and down in the y-direction, perpendicular to the
motion of the wave. The velocity of the particles of the medium is not constant, which means there is an acceleration. To find the velocity
of the particles, we have taken a partial derivative of y with respect to time t, the position x is treated as a constant. Although this may sound
strange if you haven’t seen it before, the object of this exercise is to find the transverse velocity at a point, so in this sense, the x-position is
not changing. We have

ay(x, t) = -ω2 y
This is the defining equation for SHM, where the acceleration a is directly proportional to the displacement y and is directed towards the
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equilibrium position.
 The Linear Wave Equation
We found the acceleration by taking the partial derivative, with respect to time, of the velocity, which is the second time
derivative of the position:

Now consider the partial derivatives with respect to the other variable, the position x, holding the time constant. The first
derivative is the slope of the wave at a point x at a time t,

The second partial derivative expresses how the slope of the wave changes with respect to position—in other words, the
curvature of the wave, where

The ratio of the acceleration and the curvature leads to a very important relationship in physics known as the linear wave
equation. Taking the ratio and using the equation v = ω/k yields the linear wave equation (also known simply as the wave
equation or the equation of a vibrating string),

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 Above equation is the linear wave equation, which is one of the most important equations in physics and engineering.
We derived it here for a transverse wave, but it is equally important when investigating longitudinal waves. This
relationship was also derived using a sinusoidal wave, but it successfully describes any wave or pulse that has the form
y(x, t) = f (x ∓ vt). These waves result due to a linear restoring force of the medium—thus, the name linear wave
equation. Any wave function that satisfies this equation is a linear wave function.

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 Some mathematical problems
❑ Analyze the following equations and find out which Solutions:
are the solutions of the one dimensional wave i. y = x2+v2t2
equation?
𝑑𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦
= 2 v2t and = 2v2
i. y= x2+v2t2 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡2
𝑑𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦
ii. y = x2-v2t2 = 2x and =2
𝑑𝑥 𝑑𝑥2
𝑑2 𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦
iii. y = 2x2+v2t2 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒, = v2 × 2 = v2
𝑑𝑡2 𝑑𝑥2

iv. y = (x-vt)2 y = x2+v2t2 is a solution of one dimensional wave equation.

v. y = 2 sinx cosvt ii. y = x2-v2t2
𝑑𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦
vi. y = sin2x cosvt = -2 v2t and = −2v2
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡2

vii. y = sin3x cosvt 𝑑𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦

= 2x and =2
𝑑𝑥 𝑑𝑥2
viii. y = 2 sinx cos4vt 𝑑2 𝑦 𝑑2 𝑦
𝑆𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒, 2 =- v2 ×2≠ v2
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑥2
ix. y = 15x – 8t
y = x2-v2t2 is not a solution of one dimensional wave
x. y = 5 sin (12t – 7) equation.

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 Some mathematical problems

1. The equation of displacement of a particle involved in a plane progressive wave motion at any instant of
time is given by, y = 0.25 sin 2π(500t – 0.125). Calculate the amplitude of the vibrating particle, wave
velocity, wavelength, frequency, time period. Find the equations of particle velocity, particle acceleration
and strain.

2. A plane progressive wave is travelling in a liquid medium. The wave travelling along positive X-direction
with an amplitude = 3 cm, velocity = 180 m/s and frequency=300. Find out the displacement, velocity and
acceleration of particle when the wave travels a distance 5 cm from the source after the time 6 s.

***Hints: identify a, v, n, x and t from the problem. Construct the equation of y. Differentiate y with respect to
t once and twice to get particle velocity and acceleration, respectively.

3. A plane progressive wave of amplitude 8 cm is travelling along positive X-direction. At an instant of time,
the displacement of a particle at a distance of 10 cm from the origin is +6 cm, meanwhile the displacement
of another particle at a distance 25 cm from the origin is +4 cm. Evaluate the wavelength.

4. A sound wave with the frequency 512 Hz and amplitude 0.25 cm is generated from a source. The wave is
propagating with the velocity 340 m/s in a medium with density 1.29 × 10-3 g/cm3. Calculate the total
energy per unit per unit volume and energy current per unit area of cross section during the wave motion?

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