Waves

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 Chapter on oscillations focuses on simple harmonic oscillations

 Simple harmonic oscillations are simplest form of harmonic motions


 Important property of oscillating system is restoring force, which is always
directed towards a central/mean position
 Object should move to and fro around a mean position in simple harmonic
motion
 Time period of oscillation is smallest time interval after which motion is
repeated; reciprocal of which is called frequency
 Restoring force should be expressed as a function of position, and can be
represented as F = -kX where X is raised to the power of 1
 If the power of X is even, motion will not be oscillatory but in a straight line
 If the power of X is 1, 3, 5, 7, etc., the force will have a restoring property and
motion can be harmonic
 Simple harmonic motion is a special case of harmonic motion where the
power of X is 1
 The equation for simple harmonic motion is F = -kX, or m d^2 X/dt^2 + kX = 0
 Solution for amplitude of simple harmonic motion is X = a cos(Ωt + Φ)
 Time period for simple harmonic motion is T = 2π√(m/k)
 Phase angle Φ tells you what phase angle is there initially
 Simple harmonic motion can be generated using uniform circular motion
 Position, velocity, and acceleration of simple harmonic motion can be found
using the equations of motion
 Maximum velocity during oscillation is Vmax = aΩ and maximum acceleration
is Amax = aΩ^2
 Condition for maximum velocity to be equal to maximum acceleration is Ω = 1
rad/s
 Time period for spring-mass system is T = 2π√(m/k)
 Time period for spring-mass system is unaffected by gravitational forces in
horizontal configuration
 Angular frequency for spring-mass system is Ω = √(k/m)
 Damping forces experienced by oscillating bodies result in decreasing energy
and amplitude
 Damped oscillations can be simple harmonic if angular displacement is very
small
 Damping force is proportional to velocity and is represented as Fdamping = -
bV
 Damping coefficient is a dimensional quantity with units of kg/s
 Amplitude of damped oscillations decreases exponentially with time
 Forced oscillations are oscillations with a driving force that is periodic
 Forced oscillations can be simple harmonic if angular displacement is very
small
 Resonance is the phenomenon where the vibrating system has maximum
amplitude and energy when driving frequency is equal to natural frequency
 Amplitude of forced oscillations is given by F0/(m^2 * (Ωd^2 - Ω0^2)^2 + B^2 *
Ωd^2)^(1/2)
 Graph between amplitude and driving angular frequency shows a peak at
resonance frequency
 Resonant amplitude is given by F0/(B * Ωd)
 Damping coefficient is inversely proportional to resonant amplitude
 Resonance is important in many applications such as soldiers breaking their
step on bridges, tuning radio channels, and transferring energy in
electromagnetic circuits.

 Oscillations and Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM): Oscillations are periodic


motions around an equilibrium position. SHM is a special type of oscillation
where the force acting on the object is proportional and opposite to the
displacement from its equilibrium position. The period of SHM is independent
of the amplitude.
 Travelling Waves: These are continuous disturbances in a medium
characterized by repeating oscillations. Energy is transferred by waves, but
matter is not. The direction of a wave is defined by the direction of the energy
transfer.
 Wave Properties: Wavelength, frequency, and period follow the same rules
as SHM. Wave speed can be calculated using the formula wave speed =
frequency * wavelength .
 Types of Waves: There are two main types of waves: transverse waves
(where the oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer)
and longitudinal waves (where the oscillations are parallel to the direction of
energy transfer).
 Superposition: This principle states that the net displacement of the
underlying medium for a wave is equal to the sum of the individual wave
displacements.
 Interference: This is the phenomenon that occurs when two or more waves
overlap. Constructive interference occurs when the waves add up, while
destructive interference occurs when the waves cancel each other out.
 Polarization: This is a property of transverse waves that refers to the
orientation of the oscillation in the underlying electric field.
 Reflection and Refraction: Reflection is the change in direction of a wave
when it bounces off a barrier. Refraction is the change in direction of a wave
when it passes from one medium to another.
 Standing Waves: These are waves that result from the superposition of two
opposite waves which are otherwise identical. They do not transfer energy.
 Harmonics: These are the different frequencies at which a system can
oscillate. The lowest frequency is called the fundamental frequency, and the
higher frequencies are called overtones.

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