Gr 11 Science Waves Summary Page 1

Transverse Waves
 A wave is a regular succession of pulses eg a transverse wave consists of a series of transverse
pulses.(wave train)
 A transverse wave is one in which the direction
of the disturbance is perpendicular to the
direction in which the transverse wave travels.
 Electromagnetic waves are transverse waves, eg
microwaves that are used for cooking.

DEFINITIONS

Crest Maximum position above rest position [equilibrium position].

Trough Minimum position below rest position.

Amplitude (A) Maximum displacement of the particles in the medium from

the rest position. Measured in metres (m).

In Phase Two particles are in phase when they move

simultaneously in exactly the same direction and with
the same speed eg particles at the troughs are exactly
in phase with particles of other troughs.
Out of phase Any particles that are not in phase, eg particles at
crests and troughs are exactly out of phase with each
other.

Wavelength (λ) One wavelength is the distance between two

consecutive points that are in phase. Measured in
metres (m).

f=1 T=1
Frequency and period T f

The period of a wave (T)

(i.e. the time for one complete vibration) - measured in seconds(s)
Definition The period (T) of a wave is the time taken for one
complete wave to pass a point

The frequency of a wave (ƒ) Unit : s-1 or Hz

The number of waves per total time or the number of waves per second
Definition Frequency of a wave is the number of complete
waves to pass a point in one second.

Velocity of a wave (v)

The velocity of the wave is the displacement (s) of the wavefront per unit time (t).
Velocity is measured in metres per second (m.s-1), time in seconds(s) and displacement in metres(m).

The wave equation: v=fλ v Symbol Quantity Unit

f λ v Speed (velocity) m.s-1
f Frequency Hz
Wavelength is inversely proportional to frequency,
λ Wavelength M
The shorter λ -> higher ƒ and vice versa
T Period (time) s
Gr 11 Science Waves Summary Page 2

Calculations EM wave

Long wavelength (c is a constant) Short wavelength

8 -1
Low frequency High frequency
Low energy c = 3 x 10 ms High energy
-1
c = λƒ = ms

λ = 3 x 10 ms
8 -1 c 8 -1
ƒ = 3 x 10 ms
ƒ λ
=m
λ  ƒ =s
-1

EM waves carries energy “packets”

Defined as photons (hƒ)
Each photon has an amount of energy determined by its (frequency or wave length)

E = h.ƒ =-34h.c/λ
h = 6,626 x10 J.s Plank’s constant