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A monochromatic wave (a wave of a single frequency) consists of successive troughs and crests, and the distance between two adjacent crests or troughs is called the wavelength. Waves of the electromagnetic spectrum vary in size, from very long radio waves longer than a continent to very short gamma rays smaller than atom nuclei.
The electromagnetic waves in each of these bands have different characteristics, such as how they are produced, how they interact with matter, and their practical applications. Radio waves, at the low-frequency end of the spectrum, have the lowest photon energy and the longest wavelengths—thousands of kilometers, or more.
A standing wave, also known as a stationary wave, is a wave whose envelope remains in a constant position. This phenomenon arises as a result of interference between two waves traveling in opposite directions. The sum of two counter-propagating waves (of equal amplitude and frequency) creates a standing wave. Standing waves commonly arise when ...
From the basic one-dimensional plane-wave solutions, a general form of a wave packet can be expressed as (,) = (()). where the amplitude A(k), containing the coefficients of the wave superposition, follows from taking the inverse Fourier transform of a "sufficiently nice" initial wave u(x, t) evaluated at t = 0: = (,) . and / comes from Fourier ...
There are many cases where this approach is used to describe single-particle matter waves: Bloch wave, which form the basis of much of band structure as described in Ashcroft and Mermin, and are also used to describe the diffraction of high-energy electrons by solids. [58] [33] Waves with angular momentum such as electron vortex beams. [59]
Sound waves that have frequencies below 16 Hz are called infrasonic and those above 20 kHz are called ultrasonic. Sound is a mechanical wave and as such consists physically in oscillatory elastic compression and in oscillatory displacement of a fluid. Therefore, the medium acts as storage for both potential and kinetic energy. [1]
Mechanical wave: kinetic and potential energy in an elastic material due to a propagating oscillation of matter Sound wave: kinetic and potential energy in a material due to a sound propagated wave (a particular type of mechanical wave) Radiant: potential energy stored in the fields of waves propagated by electromagnetic radiation, including ...
Tracing the y component of a circle while going around the circle results in a sine wave (red). Tracing the x component results in a cosine wave (blue). Both waves are sinusoids of the same frequency but different phases. A sine wave, sinusoidal wave, or sinusoid (symbol: ∿) is a periodic wave whose waveform (shape) is the trigonometric sine ...