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Important parts of our experience with sound involve diffraction. The fact that you can hear sounds around corners and around barriers involves both diffraction and reflection of sound. Diffraction in such cases helps the sound to "bend around" the obstacles.
Diffraction of sound waves is commonly observed; we notice sound diffracting around corners or through door openings, allowing us to hear others who are speaking to us from adjacent rooms. Many forest-dwelling birds take advantage of the diffractive ability of long-wavelength sound waves.
Diffraction is another result of interaction of sound waves and objects. Practically, diffraction is the name used to explain the results of such interactions that can not be explained by ray theory.
This is because sound waves undergo diffraction, bending and spreading as they go through the doorway between the two rooms. Diffraction only occurs when the wavelength is close to the size of the opening or object.
We head back to the recording studio to study interference and diffraction of sound waves. We investigate qualitatively how diffraction affects sound waves ...
diffraction, the spreading of waves around obstacles. Diffraction takes place with sound; with electromagnetic radiation, such as light, X-rays, and gamma rays; and with very small moving particles such as atoms, neutrons, and electrons, which show wavelike properties.
The spreading and bending of sound and ocean waves are two examples of diffraction, which is the bending of a wave around the edges of an opening or an obstacle—a phenomenon exhibited by all types of waves.
Diffraction involves the bending or spreading out of a sound wave in a single medium, in which the speed of sound is constant. Another important case in which sound waves bend or spread out is called refraction.
Sound waves diffract at large angles through an open door, which, as noted, is comparable in size to a sound wave; similarly, when light is passed through extremely narrow openings, its diffraction is more noticeable.
Diffraction is the process of sound ‘bending’ around objects. As with most aspects of acoustics, this is a complex phenomena, governed by equally complex equations. However, some of the basics are easy to understand.