Reflection, Refraction, Dispersion, and Diffraction Besides meeting other waves, waves can (and do) meet objects

or a boundary with another medium. In such cases, several things may occur. One of these is reflection. Reflection occurs when a wave strikes an object or comes to a boundary of another medium and is at least partly diverted back into the original medium. An echo is the reflection of sound waves, and mirrors reflect light waves. Two cases of reflection are illustrated in Fig. 13.16. If the end of the string is fixed, the reflected pulse is inverted, or undergoes a 180 degrees phase shift. This is because the pulse causes the string to exert an upward force on the wall, and the wall exerts an equal and opposite downward force on the string (by Newtons third law). This downward force creates the downward or inverted reflected pulse. If the end of the string is free to move, then the reflected pulse is not inverted (0 or no phase shift). This is illustrated in Fig.13.16b, where the string is attached to a light ring that can move freely on the smooth pole. The ring is accelerated upward by the front portion of the incoming pulse and then comes back down, thus creating a non-inverted reflected pulse. More generally, when a wave strikes a boundary, the wave is not completely reflected. Instead, some of the waves energy is reflected and some is transmitted or absorbed. When a wave crosses a boundary into a another medium, its speed generally changes because the new material has a different characteristics. Entering the medium of obliquely (at an angle), the transmitted wave moves in a direction different from that of the incident wave. This phenomenon is called refraction. Since refraction depends on changes in waves speed, you might be wondering which physical parameters determine the wave speed. Generally, there are two types of situations. The simplest kind of wave is one whose speed does not depend on the wavelength (or frequency) of the wave. All such waves travel at the same speed determined solely by the properties of the medium. These waves are called nondispersive waves, because they do not disperse, or spread apart from one another. An example of a nondispersive transverse wave is on a string, where, as we shall see, the speed is determined only by the tension and mass density of the string. Sound is a nondispersive longitudinal wave; the sped of sound (in air) is determined only by the compressibility and density of the air. Indeed, if sounds speed did depend on the frequency, at the back of the symphony hall you might hear the violins well before the clarinets, even though the two sound waves were in perfect synchronization when they left the orchestra pit.

When the waves speed does depend on wavelength (or frequency), the waves are said to exhibit dispersion waves of different frequencies spread apart from one another. Although waves of light are nondispersive in a vacuum, when they enter water they become dispersive. Thus in water, the different wavelengths of light (seen as colors) separate. This is the basis for rainbow formation, as we shall see in chapter 22. Water waves are dispersive but only in very deep water. Under such conditions, longer wavelengths travel faster than shorter ones. Thus if waves are created in a storm region in the deep ocean, the long wavelength, low frequency waves reach the shore first. Dispersion will be most important for us in our study of light, but you should remember that waves other than light could also be dispersive under the right conditions. Diffraction refers to the bending of waves around an edge of an object but is unrelated to refraction. For example, if you stand along an outside wall of a building near the corner, you can hear people talking around the corner. Assuming there are no reflections or air motion (wind), this would not be possible if the sound waves sharply cut off, they wrap around the edge; thus you can hear the sound. In general, the effects of diffraction are evident only when the size of the diffracting object or opening is about the same as or smaller than the wavelength of the waves. Dependence of diffraction on wavelength in size of the object or opening is illustrated in Fig.13.8. For many waves, diffraction is negligible under normal circumstances. For instance, visible light has wavelengths on the order of 10 to the negative sixth power m. Such wavelengths are much too small to exhibit diffraction when passing through common-sized openings, such as an eyeglass lens. Reflection, Refraction, Dispersion, and Diffraction will be considered in more detail for light waves in chapter 22. 13.5 Standing waves and Resonance If you shake one end of a stretched rope, waves travel down into the fixed and are reflected back. The waves going down and back interfere. In most cases, the combined waveforms have a changing, jumbled appearance. But if the rope is shaken at the right frequency, a steady waveform, or series of uniform loops, appear to stand in place along the rope. Appropriately, this phenomenon is called a standing wave. a standing wave (Fig.13.19a; see Demonstration 11 on pg. 442). It arises because of interference with the reflected waves, which have the same wavelength, amplitude, and speed. Since the two identical waves travel in opposite directions, the net energy flow down the rope is 0. The energy is standing in the loops.

Some points on the rope remains stationary at all times and are called Nodes. At these points, the displacements of interfering waves are always equal and opposite. Thus, by the principle of superposition, the interfering waves must cancel each other completely at these points, and the rope does not undergo displacement there. At all other points, the rope oscillates back and forth at the same frequency. The points of maximum amplitude, were constructive interference is greatest, are called antinodes. As you can see in Fig.13.19b, adjacent antinodes are separated by a half wavelength or one loop; adjacent nodes are also separated by a half wavelength. Standing waves can be generated in a rope by more than one driving frequency; the higher the frequency, the more oscillating half wavelength loops in the rope. The only requirement is that the half wavelengths fit the rope length. The frequencies at which large amplitude standing waves are produced are called natural frequencies, or resonant frequencies. The resulting standing wave patterns are called normal, or resonant, modes of vibration. In general, all systems that oscillate have one or more natural frequencies, which depend on such factor as mass, elasticity or restoring force, and geometry (boundary conditions). The natural frequencies of a system are sometimes called its characteristic frequencies. A stretched string or rope can be analyzed to determine its natural frequencies. The boundary conditions are that the ends are fixed; thus, there must be a node at each end. The number of closed segments or loops of a standing wave that will fit between the nodes at the ends (along the length of the string) is equal to integral number of half wavelengths. Note that (1)

The natural frequencies of oscillation, where v is the speed of waves on a string, are (2) The lowest natural frequency (f1=v/2L for n=1,) is called the fundamental frequency. All of the other natural frequencies are integral multiples of fundamental frequency : fn=nf1(4n=1,2,3,). The set of frequencies f1, f2= 2f1, f3=3f1, , is called a harmonic series: f1 (the fundamental frequency) is the first harmonic, f2 the second harmonic, and so on. Strings fixed at each end are found in stringed musical instruments such as violins, pianos, and guitars. When such a string is excited, the resulting vibration generally, includes several harmonics in addition to the fundamental frequency. The number of harmonic depends on how and where the string is

excited that is, pluck, struck, or bowed. It is the combination of harmonic frequencies that gives a particular instrument its characteristic sound quality. (More on this in chapter 14.) As eq. 13.19 shows, the fundamental frequency have a stretched string, as well as the other harmonic, depends on length of the string. Think of how different notes are obtain on a particular string of a violin or guitar (Fig.13.21.). Natural frequencies also depend on other parameters, such as mass and force, which affect the wave speed in the string. For a stretched string, the wave speed (v) can be showed to be (13.20) where Ft is the tension in the string and u is the linear mass density (mass per unit length u = m/L). (We use Ft, rather than T of previous chapters, so as not to confuse the tension with period T.) Thus eq.13.19 can be written as (13.21) Note that the greater the linear mass density of a string, the lower its natural frequencies. As you may know, the low note strings on a violin or guitar are thicker, or more massive, than the high notes strings. By tightening a string, we increase all frequencies of that string. Changing string tension is how violinist, for example, tunes their instruments before performance.