ANALYSIS

Wave motion is the underlying principle for many common phenomena and may be
transverse or longitudinal in nature. In transverse wave motion, the displacement of
the particles is perpendicular to the direction of the wave propagation. The
characteristics of transverse waves can be studied using standing waves on a
stretched string. Standing waves (for both longitudinal and transverse wave motion)
are extremely important since many bodies vibrate with standing waves.
Theory of the Wave Equation
Suppose a string with a linear mass density (mass per unit length) of ρ is fixed at
both ends and is placed under a tension T. The vertical displacement, y, of every
point along the string is described by the wave equation
𝜕2𝑦 𝜕2𝑦
𝑇 2=𝜌 2
𝜕𝑥 𝜕𝑥
where x is the horizontal position of some point on the string (you should see your
text for the derivation of this expression).
When waves propagate along the string (in the x-direction), each particle in the string
moves at right angles to the string's original undisturbed position. The wavelength,
l, is the length of one complete cycle, from a point on the wave to the next point on
the wave which is in the same phase (or more simply, the distance between two
successive crests or two successive troughs). The period, τ, is the time required for
a crest (or trough) to travel one wavelength. The frequency, f, is the number of waves
1
that pass a given point in a given time and it is related to the period by 𝜏 = .
𝑓

Wave Speed
For any transverse wave on a string, the speed of the wave is given by:
𝑉 = 𝜆𝑓
A string of length, L, experiencing a tension, can be made to vibrate in many
different modes. When the tension, the frequency of vibration and the length of the
string are properly related, standing waves can be produced.
For a string with a tension, T, the velocity of the waves is given by:
 𝑇
𝑉=√
𝑝

Standing Waves
Of the many solutions to the wave equation, one of particular interest is the solution
for standing waves. Standing (or stationary) waves can be produced when two wave
trains of the same wavelength, frequency, and amplitude travel in opposite directions
through the same medium and interfere with each other. For a stretched, uniform
string fixed at one end, a train of transverse waves traveling along the string will be
reflected at the fixed end and interfere with the oncoming wave train. The amplitude,
wavelength, and frequency do not change upon reflection and if the conditions are
suitable, a standing wave pattern will result. A solution to the wave equation for
standing waves is given by:
𝑦(𝑥, 𝑡) = 𝐴𝑠𝑖𝑛(𝑘𝑥)cos⁡(𝜔𝑡)
Where
2𝜋 2𝜋
𝑘= ,𝜔 =
𝜆 𝜏
When the string vibrates in a standing wave pattern, the points with no vertical
vibration are called nodes; the points where the string has the largest vertical
displacement are called antinodes. The distance between two nodes is a half
wavelength. If the ends of the string are fixed in position, the ends will function as
nodes and the string must vibrate in a whole number of segments. If the string has
1
only one segment, the length, L, of the string is equal to 𝜆 if it vibrates in two
2
3
segments, L is equal to λ, if it vibrates in three segments then L equals 𝜆.
2
Vibrations and waves are extremely important phenomena in physics. In nature,
oscillations are found everywhere. From the jiggling of atoms to the large
oscillations of sea waves, we find examples of vibrations in almost every physical
system. In physics a wave can be thought of as a disturbance or oscillation that
travels through space-time, accompanied by a transfer of energy. Wave motion
transfers energy from one point to another, often with no permanent displacement of
the particles of the medium —that is, with little or no associated mass transport.
They consist, instead, of oscillations or vibrations around almost fixed locations.

The emphasis of the last point highlights an important misconception of waves.

Waves transfer energy not mass. An easy way to see this is to imagine a floating ball
a few yards out to sea. As the waves propagate (i.e., travel) towards the shore, the
ball will not come towards the shore. It may come to shore eventually due to the
tides, current or wind, but the waves themselves will not carry the ball with them. A
wave only moves mass perpendicular to the direction of propagation—in this case
up and down, as illustrated in the figure below:

A wave can be transverse or longitudinal depending on the direction of its

oscillation. Transverse waves occur when a disturbance causes oscillations
perpendicular (at right angles) to the propagation (the direction of energy transfer).
Longitudinal waves occur when the oscillations are parallel to the direction of
propagation. While mechanical waves can be both transverse and longitudinal, all
electromagnetic waves are transverse. Sound, for example, is a longitudinal wave.
The description of waves is closely related to their physical origin for each specific
instance of a wave process. For example, acoustics is distinguished from optics in
that sound waves are related to a mechanical rather than an electromagnetic (light)
wave transfer caused by vibration. Therefore, concepts such as mass, momentum,
inertia or elasticity become crucial in describing acoustic (as distinct from optic)
wave processes. This difference in origin introduces certain wave characteristics
particular to the properties of the medium involved. In this chapter we will closely
examine the difference between longitudinal and transverse waves along with some
of the properties they possess. We will also learn how waves are fundamental in
describing motion of many applicable physical systems.

A transverse wave is a moving wave that consists of oscillations occurring

perpendicular (or right angled) to the direction of energy transfer. If a transverse
wave is moving in the positive x-direction, its oscillations are in up and down
directions that lie in the y–z plane. Light is an example of a transverse wave. For
transverse waves in matter, the displacement of the medium is perpendicular to the
direction of propagation of the wave. A ripple on a pond and a wave on a string are
easily visualized transverse waves.

Transverse waves are waves that are oscillating perpendicularly to the direction of
propagation. If you anchor one end of a ribbon or string and hold the other end in
your hand, you can create transverse waves by moving your hand up and down.
Notice though, that you can also launch waves by moving your hand side-to-side.
This is an important point. There are two independent directions in which wave
motion can occur. In this case, these are the y and z directions mentioned above.
depicts the motion of a transverse wave. Here we observe that the wave is moving
in t and oscillating in the x-y plane. A wave can be thought as comprising many
particles (as seen in the figure) which oscillate up and down. In the figure we observe
this motion to be in x-y plane (denoted by the red line in the figure). As time passes
the oscillations are separated by units of time. The result of this separation is the sine
curve we expect when we plot position versus time.
The wavelength spans crest to crest while the amplitude is 1/2 the total distance from
crest to trough. Transverse waves have their applications in many areas of physics.
Examples of transverse waves include seismic S (secondary) waves, and the motion
of the electric (E) and magnetic (M) fields in an electromagnetic plane waves, which
both oscillate perpendicularly to each other as well as to the direction of energy
transfer. Therefore an electromagnetic wave consists of two transverse waves,
visible light being an example of an electromagnetic wave.
Longitudinal Waves
Longitudinal waves have the same direction of vibration as their direction of travel.
This means that the movement of the medium is in the same direction as the motion
of the wave. Some longitudinal waves are also called compressional waves or
compression waves. An easy experiment for observing longitudinal waves involves
taking a Slinky and holding both ends. After compressing and releasing one end of
the Slinky (while still holding onto the end), a pulse of more concentrated coils will
travel to the end of the Slinky.

A compressed Slinky is an example of a longitudinal wave. The wave propagates in

the same direction of oscillation.
Like transverse waves, longitudinal waves do not displace mass. The difference is
that each particle which makes up the medium through which a longitudinal wave
propagates oscillates along the axis of propagation. In the example of the Slinky,
each coil will oscillate at a point but will not travel the length of the Slinky. It is
important to remember that energy, in this case in the form of a pulse, is being
transmitted and not the displaced mass.
Longitudinal waves can sometimes also be conceptualized as pressure waves. The
most common pressure wave is the sound wave. Sound waves are created by the
compression of a medium, usually air. Longitudinal sound waves are waves of
alternating pressure deviations from the equilibrium pressure, causing local regions
of compression and rarefaction. Matter in the medium is periodically displaced by a
sound wave, and thus oscillates. When people make a sound, whether it is through
speaking or hitting something, they are compressing the air particles to some
significant amount. By doing so, they create transverse waves. When people hear
sounds, their ears are sensitive to the pressure differences and interpret the waves as
different tones.
Materials and Methods
For the objective to be accomplished. The use of equipment is necessary for this
experiment. It will help us to collect different sets of data which will be useful to
achieve the objectives.

A.Banana patch cords –Connect the sine wave generator and string vibrator.
B.Sine wave generator- determine the actual value of frequency. With this amplitude
and frequency can be adjusted
C.String Vibrator- generates the waves
D. String- the main material in the experiment. It is measured while it is vibrated and
determine the number of its segments
E. Iron stand- place where sine wave generator, string vibrator and pulley were
mounted.
F. Pulley –the string pass over this so that friction could not affect.
G. Mass hanger with weight- use as the tension
H. Meter Stick- Use to measure the segments of the string.
For the first part of the experiment, we set up the apparatus by connecting the sine
wave generator to the string vibrator and then attached a guitar string that will be
used for the five trials here in part one. A constant frequency was set by adjusting
the amplitude and the frequency of the sine wave generator

For the second part, a constant of guitar string of 0.010 inches was used having a
linear mass density of 0.0039 g/cm. The changing factor or the variable factor here
is the mass at the end of the string that is pulling it to have clearer vision of the wave,
also known as the tension. At first, we placed a 50g weight on the mass hanger and
turned on the sine wave generator. We adjusted the amplitude to see the waves better
and count the segment created. There are a variety of patterns by which the guitar
string could naturally vibrate; each pattern is associated with one of the natural
frequencies of the guitar strings. We counted 4 segments and length of 63cm. Using
the formula shown below, we computed for the experimental value of frequency of
the first trial in the experiment t and did the same thing for the remaining trials.

Results and Data Analysis

Table 1:

Frequency of
Number of Length of string with
vibration, 𝒇 =
TRIAL Tension, T Segments, complete no. of
𝒏 𝑻
n segements, L
𝟐𝑳
√𝝁

1 53,900 dynes 3 28.5 cm 90.0807 Hz

2 73,500 dynes 3 28.3 cm 105.9350 Hz
3 93,100 dynes 3 30.1cm 112.0961 Hz
4 112,700 3 40.4 cm 92.8078 Hz
dynes
5 132,300 3 43.5 cm 92. 4641Hz
dynes
 Average frequency of vibration 98.8497Hz
Actual value of frequency of vibration 110 Hz
Percent error 10.1366%

On the part 1 of the experiment, we used the string that is 0.022 inches in diameter
since one of my groupmates suggested it. Based on the gathered data, since the
diameter and the linear mass density of the wire is constant, we observed that as we
add mass to the pan, the tension also increases as well as the length of string that
forms segment of wave. It is because we adjusted the distance between the two iron
stand until it forms wave. From the time that we change the tension of the string, the
number of segment and the length of it will also change.
Table 2:
Length of
Frequency of
Linear Number of string with
Diameter Tension, vibration, 𝒇 =
TRIAL mass Segments, complete no.
of wire T 𝒏 𝑻
density, µ n of segements,
𝟐𝑳
√𝝁
L

𝑔 53,900
1 0.010 in 0.0039𝑐𝑚 3 59.5 cm 93.7209 Hz
dynes
𝑔 53,900
2 0.014 in 0.0078𝑐𝑚 3 37 cm 106.5704 Hz
dynes
𝑔 53,900
3 0.017 in 0.0112𝑐𝑚 3 33.4 cm 98.5213 Hz
dynes
𝑔 53,900
4 0.020 in 0.0150𝑐𝑚 3 21.7 cm 113.4778 Hz
dynes
𝑔 53,900
5 0.022 in 0.0184𝑐𝑚 3 28.5 cm 90.0807 Hz
dynes
Average frequency of vibration 100.4752 Hz
 Actual value of frequency of vibration 110 Hz
Percent error 8.6598 %

On the second part of the experiment, the one that is changing is the diameter of the
wire and the linear mass density, and we also observed that as the diameter of the
wire increases, the length of the string’s standing wave decreases. There are factors
that can affect the experiment and can cause earlier. One of these are the strings that
are used. As I said earlier, it is more difficult for the string to form standing waves
if it has some curve edges.
Error Analysis
When it comes to the setup of the experiment, we don’t have a hard time for it,
actually our group was very satisfied on what we see while we turn on the power
supply, it gives us almost perfect wave vibration and we don’t need to adjust the
distance between the two iron stand, but while gathering the data, counting and
measuring the segments were not clear for our group on which view should we do
it. As we observed, both top and side view produced a wave with certain number of
segments, since we saw that the waves on the top view are more visible than that on
the side view we attempted to measure one segment of the wave and computed the
experimental value of frequency but its gives us a large of percentage error so we
decided to take another trial but this time consider all the segments except for the
first one, and as we did it and computed the experimental value and compared it to
the actual value it gives us a lower percentage error. Another source of error was the
inaccuracy of measurement of the length because we cannot measure it near the
string for it will affect the movement of segments. In addition, we must count the
number of segment after it passes the stylus because the stylus is affected by the clip
that connects the string vibrator to the stylus. Two, we must also consider the
measurement of the length of string with complete number of segment. Last, we
must check the different relationship of frequency to the segment, tension, linear
mass density and length.
CONCLUSION
Based on the data that we have gathered from the experiment on the Table 1, that
the mass added or the tension on the string is directly proportional to the frequency
and to its wavelength. The number of segments doesn’t matter since it’s just like
getting the average of its length when we substitute the value to the formula.
However, Table 2 shows how the size or the diameter of the string, and its linear
mass density affect the frequency and number of segments. Based from what we
have gathered, it seems that there is no consistency on the number of segments and
to its frequency, but as I observe the result if you will remove the trial three I can
conclude that as linear mass density increases, the number of segments also increases
and its frequency decreases, thus linear mass density is directly proportional to the
number of segments and inversely proportional to frequency.
By performing this experiment, the two objectives of the experiment were obtained
by applying the concept of transverse wave and relating it on our experimentation.
By using different kind of string, we are able to determine the string’s frequency of
vibration. The second objective of this experiment which is to determine how the
linear mass density and the tension can affect the vibrating string’s frequency was
attained by performing the two parts of the experiment. The first one is the effect of
tension with constant linear mass density and the second is the reverse of it which is
the tension is constant and the linear mass density is the one that is changing. In
addition, I therefore conclude that 𝑓 ∝ √𝑇 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑓 ∝ 1 √𝜇 .
APPLICATION
Pulses on a String
There is another variety of wave, though it is defined in terms of behavior rather than
the direction of disturbance. (In terms of direction, it is simply a variety of transverse
wave.) This is a standing wave, produced by causing vibrations on a string or other
piece of material whose ends are fixed in place. Standing waves are really a series
of pulses that travel down the string and are reflected back to the point of the original
disturbance.
Suppose you hold a string in one hand, with the other end attached to a wall. If you
give the string a shake, this causes a pulse—an isolated, non-periodic disturbance—
to move down it. A pulse is a single wave, and the behavior of this lone wave helps
us to understand what happens within the larger framework of wave motion. As with
wave motion in general, the movement of the pulse involves both kinetic and
potential energy. The tension of the string itself creates potential energy; then, as the
movement of the pulse causes the string to oscillate upward and downward, this
generates a certain amount of kinetic energy.

TENSION AND REFLECTION.

The speed of the pulse is a function of the string and its properties, not of the way
that the pulse was originally delivered. The tighter the string, and the less its mass
per unit of length, the faster the pulse travels down it. The greater the mass per unit
of length, however, the greater the inertia resisting the movement of the pulse.
Furthermore, the more loosely you hold the string, the less it will respond to the
movement of the pulse.
In accordance with the third law of motion, there should be an equal and opposite
reaction once the pulse comes into contact with the wall. Assuming that you are
holding the string tightly, this reaction will be manifested in the form of an inverted
wave, or one that is upside-down in relation to the original pulse. In this case, the
tension on the end attached to the support is equal and opposite to the tension exerted
by your hand. As a result, the pulse comes back in the same shape as before, but
inverted.
If, on the other hand, you hold the other end of the string loosely; instead, once it
reaches the wall, its kinetic energy will be converted into potential energy, which
will cause the end of the string closest to the wall to move downward. This will result
in sending back a pulse that is reversed in horizontal direction, but the same in
vertical direction.
In both cases, the energy in the string is reflected backward to its source—that is, to
the place from which the pulse was originally produced by the action of your hand.
If, however, you hold the string so that its level of tension is exactly between perfect
rigidity and perfect looseness, then the pulse will not be reflected. In other words,
there will be no reflected wave.
TRANSMISSION AND REFLECTION.
If two strings are joined end-to-end, and a pulse is produced at one end, the pulse
would, of course, be transmitted to the second string. If, however, the second string
has a greater mass per unit of length than the first one, the result would be two pulses:
a transmitted pulse moving in the "right" direction, and a reflected, inverted pulse,
moving toward the original source of energy. If, on the other hand, the first string
has a greater mass per unit of length than the second one, the reflected pulse would
be erect (right side up), not inverted.

For simplicity's sake, this illustration has been presented in terms of a string attached
to a wall, but, in fact, transmission and reflection occur in a number of varieties of
wave motion— not just those involving pulses or standing waves. A striking
example occurs when light hits an ordinary window. The majority of the light, of
course, is transmitted through the window pane, but a portion is reflected. Thus, as
one looks through the window, one also sees one's reflection.
Similarly, sound waves are reflected depending on the medium with which they are
in contact. A canyon wall, for instance, will reflect a great deal of sound, and, thus,
it is easy to produce an echo in such a situation. On the other hand, there are many
instances in which the desire is to "absorb" sound by transmitting it to some other
form of material. Thus, for example, the lobby of an upscale hotel will include a
number of plants, as well as tapestries and various wall hangings. In addition to
adding beauty, these provide a medium into which the sound of voices and other
noises can be transmitted and, thus, absorbed.
References:
http://www.scienceclarified.com/everyday/Real-Life-Physics-Vol-2/Wave-Motion-
Real-life-applications.html
http://www.webassign.net/question_assets/tamucalcphysmechl1/lab_10/manual.ht
ml
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-physics/chapter/waves/