Introduction to Sound Waves
A sound is also said to be a form of energy, it is just like heat, electricity, or light. When we strike a bell, it makes a very loud noise or ringing. Now if we see then instead of just listening to the bell,we put our finger on the bell after we have struck it. We can feel it shaking? Now this shaking or the movement that is the to and fro motion of the body is called as Vibration.
The sound starts moving from a medium by contracting the alternately and expanding parts of the medium it is travelling. This expansion and compression create a minute pressure with a difference that we perceive as sound.
What is Sound?
The energy of sound is a form of energy that is just like heat, electricity or light. When we strike a bell, it makes us listen to a huge ringing noise. Now instead of just listening to the bell, we can put our finger on the bell and after doing we have struck it. This is the shaking and movement that is the motion which is to and fro the body is termed as Vibration. This is the sound which we can hear, we hear sounds in our everyday life. This whole thing of hearing and being heard is known as the sound.
Sound Waves Explained
Let’s discuss their characteristics of waves of sound like frequency, amplitude, wavelength and timbre as well.
Sound is said to be a form of energy which makes us hear it. The sound can travel in the form of waves. The waves of Sound can be described by five characteristics. Let us study all of this in an article.
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The sensation which is felt by our ears is called sound. It is an energy or a form of energy which makes us hear. We can hear several sounds which are around us in our everyday life.
We know the fact that the sound travels in the form of waves.
A wave is called a disturbance of a vibratory medium which carries energy from one point to another point without there being a direct contact between the two points.
We can even say that a wave is produced by which the vibrations of the particles of the medium through which it can pass.
Types of Waves
There are mainly two types of waves: that are the transverse and Longitudinal waves.
The Longitudinal Waves is said to be a wave in which the particles of the medium back vibrate and forth in the direction which is the same in which the wave is moving. Medium can be liquid, solid or gases. sound waves therefore are longitudinal waves.
The transverse Waves is defined as a wave in which the particles of the medium vibrate down and up at right angles to the direction in which the wave does movement. These are produced of waves that are only in liquid and solids but not in gases.
Sound is said to be a longitudinal wave which consists of refraction and compressions travelling through a medium.
Wavelength
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The distance minimum in which a wave of sound repeats itself is called its wavelength. That is it is , the length of one wave complete. It is greek denoted by a letter λ that is lambda. We know that in a wave of sound, the length combined of a compression and an refraction which is adjacent is called its wavelength. the distance which is between the centres of two compression consecutive or two consecutive rarefactions is equal to its wavelength.
Note that the distance which is between the centres of a compression and refraction of adjacent is equal to half of its wavelength that is λ/2. The unit or the S.I unit for measuring wavelength is metre m.
Amplitude
When a passage of wave is through a medium,that is the particles of the medium get temporarily displaced from their original position which is undisturbed. The displacement with maximum of the particles of the medium from their original undisturbed positions, when a pass of wave is through the medium is called wave amplitude.
In fact that the amplitude is then used to describe the wave size. The S.I unit of which is measurement of amplitude is metre denoted by m though sometimes it is also measured in centimetres as well. Do we know that the wave amplitude is the same as the amplitude of the body which is vibrating producing the wave?
Frequency of the Sound Wave
The sound Frequency wave refers to the rate of the sound and vibration and the travelling through the air. This decides of the parameter is whether a sound is perceived as pitched high or low pitched. The frequency of sound is also known as Pitch. The frequency of the sound vibrating is calculated in cycles per second.
The SI Unit which is for Frequency and being hertz and its definition being as ‘1/T’ where T ros referred to the time period of the wave. The period of time is the time which is required for the wave to complete one cycle. The frequency of the Wavelength of a sound wave are related mathematically as:
Sound velocity = Frequency * Wavelength
The graph which is mentioned below can be used for understanding more about sound. The graph which is first represents a wave of sound from a drum while the second graph represents the wave of sound from a whistle. We already know probably the difference which is in the sounds but have a look at the difference in their frequencies.
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There are two graphs which show the difference between waves of sound with low and high frequencies and their corresponding pitches.
FAQs on Characteristics of Sound Waves Amplitude
1. What is the amplitude of a sound wave?
The amplitude of a sound wave is the maximum displacement or distance moved by a point on a vibrating body or wave measured from its equilibrium position. In simple terms, it is the 'height' of the wave. A larger amplitude corresponds to a more intense vibration.
2. How does amplitude affect the loudness of a sound we hear?
Amplitude directly determines the loudness of a sound. A sound wave with a large amplitude will be perceived as a loud sound, while a wave with a small amplitude will be heard as a quiet or soft sound. For example, when you turn up the volume on a speaker, you are increasing the amplitude of the sound waves it produces.
3. What is the main difference between amplitude and frequency in a sound wave?
While both are key characteristics of a sound wave, they control different aspects of what we hear:
- Amplitude is related to the energy and intensity of the wave, which we perceive as loudness.
- Frequency is the number of vibrations per second, which we perceive as the pitch (how high or low the sound is).
A loud, low-pitched sound has a high amplitude and a low frequency.
4. Why does a wave with a larger amplitude carry more energy?
A larger amplitude means that the particles of the medium (like air) are displaced further from their resting positions. To make the particles move a greater distance, more work must be done on them initially. This initial work is converted into the energy carried by the wave. Therefore, a higher amplitude wave is a higher energy wave.
5. How is amplitude represented on a diagram of a wave?
In a typical waveform diagram, the amplitude is shown as the vertical distance from the central line (the equilibrium or rest position) to the highest point of the wave (the crest) or the lowest point (the trough). It represents the maximum displacement.
6. Does changing the amplitude of a sound wave also change its speed?
No, the speed of a sound wave is not affected by its amplitude. The speed of sound depends primarily on the properties of the medium it is travelling through (such as its temperature, density, and elasticity), not on the characteristics of the wave itself like amplitude or frequency.
7. Besides amplitude, what are the other main characteristics of a sound wave?
The main characteristics of a sound wave include:
- Frequency (f): The number of complete waves passing a point per second, determining pitch.
- Wavelength (λ): The distance between two consecutive crests or troughs.
- Time Period (T): The time taken to complete one full vibration or wave.
- Speed (v): How fast the wave travels through a medium.
