Unit 4

Sound and Hearing

 Outline
• 4.0 Mechanical Waves
• 4.1 Sound
• 4.2 Speed, frequency and wavelength
• 4.3 Sound intensity and sound level
• 4.4 Resonance
• 4.5 Hearing
• 4.6 Effect of noise
 4.0 Mechanical Waves
• Mechanical waves are produced by a disturbance,
e.g. a vibrating object, in a material medium and
are transmitted by the particles of the medium
vibrating to and fro.
• A progressive or traveling wave is disturbance
which carrier energy from one place to another
without transferring matter.
– Transverse
– Longitudinal
1.4 Mechanical Waves
Transverse wave

Longitudinal wave
• Wavelength
– Wavelength, represented by the Greek letter λ (lambda), is
the distance between two adjacent crests.
• Frequency
– The frequency f is the number of complete waves generated
per second.
– f is also the number of crests passing a fixed point per second.
• Speed
– The speed v of the wave is the distance moved by the crest or
any point of the wave in 1 second.
• Amplitude
– The amplitude a is the maximum height of a crest, or the
maximum depth of a trough, measured from the resting (or
equilibrium) position of the medium, e.g. a rope.
• Phase
– The arrows at A, B, C, D show the vibration directions of the
wave at these points. A and C are moving at the same speed in
the same direction (downwards). They are in phase.
– B and D are also in phase, but they are out of phase with A and
C because they are moving in different directions.
• Wave equation
Speed of wave = frequency x wavelength

v = fλ
 4.1 Sound
S sound is a disturbance of matter transmitted
outwards from its source.
In air, sound is a longitudinal wave.
 The amplitude of a sound wave decreases with distance from its
source, because the energy of the wave is spread out over a larger
area. The sound is also absorbed by objects, as well as being
converted to thermal energy by viscosity in the air.

Compressions and rarefactions of

sound wave exert a net force on the
eardrum, since it causes a pressure
difference between atmospheric
pressure and the pressure behind the
eardrum. This causes the eardrum to
vibrate. The vibrations are convered
to nerve impulses, which are
transmitted to the brain and allows
the person to ‘hear’ the sound.
 4.2 Speed, Frequency and wavelength

A sound wave coming from a source vibrating at a

frequency f, travels at speed v and has a wavelength λ .

v = fλ
Perception of frequency is called pitch. A high pitch means a
short wavelength. Large musical instruments generate low pitches.
The speed of sound is affected by the temperature of the
medium. For air at one atmospheric pressure,

T (K )
v = (331m / s )
273K

A bat uses sound echoes to

find its way about and to catch
prey. The time for the echo to
return is directly proportional
to the distance according to .
The speed of sound is not affected by frequency (from 20
to 20 000 Hz, which is human hearing range).

v = fλ

Low-frequency sounds have a greater wavelength than the

high-frequency sounds, since they travel at the same
speed. Here the lower-frequency sounds are emitted by the
large speaker, called a woofer, while the higher-frequency
sounds are emitted by the small speaker, called a tweeter.
4.3 Sound intensity and Sound level

Power is the energy in/out per unit time. The unit of

power is watt (W: 1 W= 1 J/s ).

Intensity of a wave (I) is its power P per unit area A.

The SI unit for I is W/m2.

P
I=
A
 Sound intensity and Sound level

The intensity of a wave is related

to its amplitude squared.
The amplitude of a sound wave is
related to the maximum pressure
in the sound wave.
The sound level (or intensity level) is quoted in decibels
(dB) instead of W/m2.
The reasons for this choice of unit is related to how we
perceive sound. Our ear respond proportionally to the
logarithm of the sound intensity rather than the change
in intensity itself.
The sound level β (unit: dB) of a sound wave having an
intensity I in W/m2 is defined to be

I
β (dB) = 10 log10
I0
where I0 = 10-12 W/m2 is a reference intensity. This is the smallest
or threshold intensity of a 1000 Hz sound that can be heard by a
person with normal hearing.
The decibel level of a sound having the threshold intensity of
10-12 W/m2 is β = 0 dB, because log10 1=0.
 How to calculate a sound level in decibels
Find the dB value of a sound that has an intensity of 5.00×10-4
W/m2 (five times as intense as an 80.0 dB sound)

I 5 × 10 −4
β (dB) = 10 log10 = 10 log10 −12
I0 1×10
= 87.0dB

A factor of five in intensity corresponds to a difference of 7.00

dB in sound level. This is true for any intensities differing by a
factor of five.
 How does doubling intensity affect the
decibel level
Show that if one sound has twice the intensity as another sound, it
is 3 dB higher in intensity
I2
β 2 − β1 = 10 log10 = 10 log10 2 = 10 × 0.301dB = 3.01dB
I1
Since I1 and I2 can be replaced by any
numbers, this result is true for any
intensities that differ by a factor of two.
For example, a 56.0 dB sound is twice
as intense as a 53.0 dB sound, a 97.0 dB
sound is half as intense as a 100 dB
sound, and so on.
 4.4 Resonance

Interference

constructive interference destructive interference

 Sound interference and resonance

Headphones is designed to cancel noise with destructive interference

create a sound wave exactly opposite to incoming sound. These can
be more effective than the simple passive attenuation used in most
ear protection.
Resonance : standing wave
 Resonance at a air tube closed at one end
The wave travels down the tube
and bounces off the closed end. If
the frequency of the turning fork is
right, interference of incoming and
reflected waves produces a
v
fn =standing
nw
wave. The wavelength
4L
and length of the tube has the
following relation:
λ =4L
v v
The node is at the closed end and f = =
the antinodes at the open end. λ 4L
 Standing waves with higher frequencies can be produced in
the same tube. The general expression for the resonant
frequencies of a tube closed at one end is:

vw
fn = n , n = 1,3,5,7...
4L

1st harmonic 3rd harmonic 5th harmonic 7th harmonic

 How long is a tube with a 128 Hz
Fundamental
What length should a tube, opened at one end and closed at another,
have on a day when air temperature is 22.0°C, if its fundamental
frequency is to be 128 Hz (C below middle C)? (b) What is the
frequency of its fourth overtone?

T (K ) 295K
vw = 331m / s = 331m / s = 344m / s
273K 273K

vw 344m / s
L= = = 0.672m
4 f1 4(126 Hz )

vw
f9 = 9 = 9 f1 = 1152 Hz
4L
Resonance at a air tube opened at both end
vw
fn = n , n = 1,2,3,4...
2L
 4.5 Hearing
Hearing is the perception of
sound by the ear. Hearing
depends certain properties of
the sound wave:

• The pitch of the sound, determined by the frequency of

the wave
• The loudness of the sound, determined by the intensity
of the wave and also on its frequency
• The timber of the sound, determined by the number of
different frequencies and their relative intensities.
 Hearing-Frequency response
The frequencies which an ear can detect depends on
resonance in the ear. Shorter, stiff hairs in the cochlea
resonate at high frequencies, whereas the longer hairs
resonate at low frequencies.
Below about 20 Hz, there is no stimulation of the hairs: this
gives rise to a lower limit of frequency that can be detected.
The upper limit is about 20 kHz .
Thus the range of audible frequencies for normal human
hearing is about 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
In general, sound of frequencies above 20 kHz is
ultrasound. sound of frequencies under 20 Hz is
Resonance can occur in the ear canal, acting as a tube of
length about 2.5 cm, closed at one end.
A standing wave may be set up in this canal :
• a displacement node near the eardrum
• an antinode near the pinna.
The wavelength of this standing wave
4 X 2.5 = 10 cm=0.1 m
If a sound wave of this wavelength enters the ear,
resonance will occur in the canal, giving rise to greater
pressure differences across the eardrum.
The middle ear also acts as a resonant cavity, giving
resonances between about 700- 1500 Hz.

All these resonances mean, that for a particular frequency

the intensity can be detected is not constant. For example,
because of resonance in the auditory canal, sound with
frequencies around 3 kHz can be heard at lower intensities.
 Instensity response
An increase of sound intensity is perceived by the brain as
an increase in loudness. An increase in loudness is caused
by:

• greater stimulation of nerve endings caused by the

greater vibration of hairs in the cochlea
• Stimulation of more nerve endings caused by the
greater vibration of the hairs in cochlea
• higher stimulation thresholds of nerve cells being
activated.
Hearing-Instensity response
Loudness is a person’s subjective perception of sound intensity. A person is
sensitive to logarithmic changes in loudness (just like sound intensity).
Loudness is measured in phons.
The curved lines are equal-loudness curves – all sounds on a given line are
perceived as equally loud, although they can have different sound levels.
Phons and sound levels are defined to be the same at 1000 Hz.
The shaded region represents phon level of normal
conversation. The 0 phon line is the hearing threshold,
The other lines represent thresholds for people with 40
and 60 phon hearing losses.
The minimum sound intensity at any particular frequency
that can be detected by the ear is known as the threshold
intensity.
The threshold sound level at a frequency of 3 kHz for a
normal person is -8dB.
 4.6 Effect of noise

• Damages to ear increase with

increasing noise level. A noise
level of 85 dB and above is
generally unacceptable.
• Hearing ability decreases with
age. This is called presbycusis.
• The green curves show the
hearing losses at different
frequencies, for a forty year old
and a 65 year old.

The harmful effects of long-term exposure to high noise

levels are shown by the red curves.
 Effect of noise (II)
Loud noises may cause tinnitus, which is a temporary
or a permanent ringing sound in the ears. It makes
people hard to hear what people are saying, especially
if there is background noise.

Other effects of noise include:

1. feelings of annoyance
2. inability to think clearly
3. dizziness or sickness (> 125 dB)
4. pain in the ears (> 130 dB)
5. permanent deafness (~ 190 dB, short-term exposure)