CHAPTER : SOUND

Chapter checklist
 PRODUCTION AND PROPAGATION OF SOUND
Formation of compression and rarefaction in air
Sound needs a medium to travel

 THE SPEED OF SOUND

 TYPES OF WAVES
Longitudinal waves
Transverse waves

 TERMS TO DESCRIBE SOUND WAVES

Wavelength
Frequency
Time period
Amplitude
Velocity of wave

 CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUND
(i) Loudness
(ii) Intensity
(iii) Pitch or Shrillness
(iv) Quality or Timbre

 REFLECTION OF SOUND WAVE

Echo
Reverberation

 RANGE OF HEARING
Infrasonic sound
Ultrasonic sound
 NOTES
The sensation felt by our ears is called sound. Sound is a form of energy. Sound is that form of
energy which makes us hear.

PRODUCTION OF SOUND WAVES

Sound is produced when an object vibrates (moves back and forth rapidly). The energy required to
make an object vibrate and produce sound is provided by some outsides sources (like our hand,
wind, etc.). The sound of our voice is produced by the vibrations of two vocal cords in our throat.

PROPAGATION OF SOUND WAVES

When an object vibrates (and makes sound), then the air layers around it also start vibrating in
exactly the same way and carry sound waves from the sound producing object to our ears. A particle
of the medium in contact with the vibrating object is first displaced from its equilibrium position.
NOTE :- In the Transmission of sound through air, there is no actual movement of air from the
sound-producing body to our ear. The air layers only vibrate back and forth, and transfer the sound
energy from one layer to the next layer till it reaches our ear.
Formation of compression and rarefaction in air
When a vibrating object moves forward in air, it pushes and compresses the air infront of it, creating
a compression which starts to move away from the vibrating object. When the vibrating object
moves backwards, it create rarefaction.
Compression is the part of a longitudinal waves in which the particles of the medium are closer to
one another than they normally are and it is the region of high pressure. It is denoted by C.
Rarefaction is the part of a longitudinal wave in which the particles of the medium are farther
apart than they normally are and it is the region of low pressure. It is denoted by R.
As the object moves back and forth rapidly, a series
of compression and rarefaction is created in air.
More density of the particles in the medium given
more pressure and vice - versa.

Sound needs a medium to travel

The substance through which the sound travels is called medium. It can be solid, liquid or gas. Sound
waves are called mechanical waves because they need a material medium (like solid, liquid or gas)
for their propagation. Sound wave cannot travel through vaccum.

THE SPEED OF SOUND

The speed of sound tells us the rate at which sound travels from the sound producing body to our
ears.
Factors on which speed of sound depends:
1. The speed of sound depends on the nature of material through it travels – Sound travels slowest
in gases, faster in liquid and fastest in solids.
2. The speed of sound depends on the temperature – as the temperature rises the speed of sound
increases
3. The speed of sound depends on the humidity of air – as the humidity increases the speed of
sound through is also increases.
 Speed of Sound in Various Materials (or Media)
Material (or medium) Speed of sound (or velocity of sound)
Dry Air (at 0°C) 332 m/s
Dry Air (at 20°C) 344 m/s
Hydrogen (at 0°C) 1284 m/s
Water (distilled) (at 20°C) 1498 m/s
Sea - water (at 0°C) 1531 m/s
Blood (at 37°C) 1570 m/s
Copper (at 20°C) 3750 m/s
Aluminium (at 20°C) 5100 m/s
Iron (or steel) (at 20°C) 5130 m/s
Glass (at 20°C) 5170 m/s

TYPES OF WAVES
Mainly two types of waves :
1. Longitudinal waves
2. Transverse waves
Longitudinal waves
In longitudinal waves, the individual particles of the medium move in a direction parallel to the
direction of propagation of the disturbance. The particles do not move from one place to another
but they simply oscillate back and forth about their positions of rest.
This is exactly how a sound wave propagates, hence sound waves are
Longitudinal waves. Longitudinal waves can be produced in all the
three media such as solids, liquids and gases. The waves which travel
along a spring when it is pushed and pulled at one end, are the
longitudinal waves. When coils are closer together than normal, compressions (C) are observed in
spring. When coils are farther apart than normal, rarefactions (R) are observed. A long flexible spring
which can be compressed or extended easily is called slinky.
Transverse waves
In transverse waves, the individual particles of the medium move about its
mean position in a direction perpendicular to the direction of wave
propagation. e.g. Light is a transverse wave (but it is not a mechanical wave,
i.e. it does not require a medium for its propagation). Transverse waves
can be produced only in solids and liquids but not in gases.
The waves produced by moving one end of a long spring or rope, up and
down rapidly, whose other end is fixed, are transverse waves.

TERMS TO DESCRIBE SOUND WAVE

Sound wave can be described by its
(i) wavelength (ii) frequency (iii) time period
(iv) amplitude (v) speed of wave
Wavelength
The distance between the two consecutive compressions (C) or two consecutive rarefactions (R) is
called wavelength. Wavelength is the minimum distance in which a sound wave repeats itself.
In simple words, it is the length of one complete wave. The wavelength is denoted by the Greek
letter lambda, λ. Its S.I. unit is metre (m).
NOTE :- The distance between the centres of a compression and an adjacent rarefaction is equal to
λ
half the wavelength .
2
Frequency
The number of complete waves (or oscillations) produced in one second is called frequency of the
wave. It is the number of vibrations that occur per second.
Or the number of the compressions or rarefactions that cross a point per unit time.
The frequency of a wave is fixed and does not change even when it passes through different
substances. It is denoted by ν (Greek letter, nu). Its S.I. unit is hertz (symbol, Hz) named in honor of
Heinrich Rudolf Hertz who discovered photoelectric effect.
 The relation between time-period and frequency of a wave.
The frequency of a wave is the reciprocal of its time-period. That is,
1
Frequency (ν) =
Time Period(T )
Time Period
The time required to produce one complete wave (or cycle) is called time-period of the wave. It is
denoted by symbol T. its S.I. unit is second (s).
1
i.e. Time period (T) =
Frequency (ν)
Amplitude
The maximum displacement of the particles of the medium from their original undisturbed positions,
when a wave passes through the medium, is called amplitude of the wave. The term amplitude is, in
fact, used to describe the size of the wave. The amplitude of the wave. The amplitude of a wave is
usually denoted by the letter A. the S.I. unit of measurement of amplitude id metre (m) though
sometimes it is also measured in centimeters.
NOTE :- The amplitude of a wave is the same as the amplitude of the vibrating body producing wave.
Velocity of wave (or speed of wave)
The distance travelled by a wave in one second is called velocity of the wave (or speed of the wave).
The velocity of a wave is represented by the letter v. The SI unit for measuring the velocity of a wave
is metres per second (m/s or m s-¹).
Relationship between Velocity, Frequency and Wavelength of a Wave
Distance travelle d
We know that, Velocity =
Time taken
Suppose a wave travels a distance lambda, λ, (which is its wavelength) in time t, then:
λ
ν=
T
1
Here T is the time taken by one wave. We know that becomes the number of waves per second
T
1
and this is known as frequency (f) of the wave. So, we can write f in place in the above relation.
T
Thus, ν=fxλ
where ν = velocity of the wave
f = frequency
and lambda, λ = Wavelength
In other words:
Velocity of a wave = Frequency × Wavelength
Thus, the velocity (or speed) of a wave in a medium is equal to the product of its frequency and
wavelength. The formula ν = f x λ is called wave equation. It applies to all types of waves:
transverse waves (like water waves), longitudinal waves (like sound waves) and electromagnetic
waves (like light waves and radio waves). The wave equation has three quantities in it, so if we
know the values of any two quantities, then the value of third quantity can be calculated.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUND WAVE

A sound has three characteristics. These are loudness,
Pitch and quality (or timbre).
Loudness
The loudness of sound is a measure of the sound energy reaching the ear per second. The loudness
of the sound depends on the amplitude of sound wave.