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A dispersion relation relates the wavelength or wavenumber of a wave to its frequency. Given the dispersion relation, one can calculate the frequency-dependent phase velocity and group velocity of each sinusoidal component of a wave in the medium, as a function of frequency.
The wavelength can be calculated as the relation between a wave's speed and ordinary frequency. λ = c f . {\displaystyle \lambda ={\frac {c}{\ f\ }}~.} For sound waves, the amplitude of the wave is the difference between the pressure of the undisturbed air and the maximum pressure caused by the wave.
This form represents sinusoidal waves propagating in the x direction with wavelength 2π/k and frequency ω/2π. Displacement is a function of x , z , t only; there is no displacement in the y direction and no variation of any physical quantities in the y direction.
Wave profile displacement Along propagation direction, distance travelled (path length) by one wave from the source point r 0 to any point in space d (for longitudinal or transverse waves) L, d, r ^ m [L] Phase angle: δ, ε, φ: rad
For example, a wavenumber in inverse centimeters can be converted to a frequency expressed in the unit gigahertz by multiplying by 29.979 2458 cm/ns (the speed of light, in centimeters per nanosecond); [5] conversely, an electromagnetic wave at 29.9792458 GHz has a wavelength of 1 cm in free space.
In the context of electromagnetics and optics, the frequency is some function ω(k) of the wave number, so in general, the phase velocity and the group velocity depend on specific medium and frequency. The ratio between the speed of light c and the phase velocity v p is known as the refractive index, n = c / v p = ck / ω.
The "direction of wave propagation" is the direction of a wave's energy flow, and the direction that a small wave packet will move, i.e. the direction of the group velocity. For light waves in vacuum, this is also the direction of the Poynting vector. On the other hand, the wave vector points in the direction of phase velocity.
The wavelength of a sine wave, λ, can be measured between any two points with the same phase, such as between crests (on top), or troughs (on bottom), or corresponding zero crossings as shown. In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.