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What is a wave?
A wave is a disturbance that travels or propagates and transports energy and momentum without
the transport of matter. The ripples on a pond, the sound we hear, visible light, radio and TV
signals are a few examples of waves. Sound, light and radio waves provide us with an effective
means of transmitting and receiving energy and information.
The ripples on a pond, the sound we hear, visible light, radio and TV signals are a few examples
of waves. Sound, light and radio waves provide us with an effective means of transmitting and
receiving energy and information.
Mechanical waves such as water waves or sound waves require material medium for
their propagation. These waves travel within or on the surface of material with elastic properties.
There must be some mechanism that tends to restore the medium to its normal or equilibrium
state.
Electromagnetic waves, such as light and TV signals, are non-mechanical and can
propagate through vacuum.
1. WAVE CHARACTERISTICS
If we watch a leaf on a pond as a ripple goes by we observe that it does not travel with
the wave; it merely moves up and down at the same position. This fact implies that a wave
transports both energy and momentum without transporting matter.
If the particles of the medium in which the wave is travelling move perpendicular to the
direction of wave propagation, the wave is called transverse.
1. Wave Dimension
The above two characteristics were related to spatial description of a wave. The third
characteristic describes a wave behaviour in time.
Wave Pulse
Wave Train
In a wave train the wave travels through the medium, and the mediums particles undergo
periodic motions. If the periodic motions are simple harmonic oscillations, the disturbance is
called a sinusoidal wave train.
One can generate a wave train on a stretched string by continuously moving the end of
the string up and down in simple harmonic motion as shown in Fig.( 3 b). A wave train need not
be sinusoidal; any continuous succession of pulses constitutes a wave train.