Week 6 notes of Physics 3LB lab at University of California, Irvine. Notes are based on the course's lab manual and are intended to help you understand the theory of "Sound Waves."
• Sound waves are pressure waves that travel through air.
• The speed of sound depends on temperature.
○ Speed of sound in air: 𝑣 = 331.4 + 0.6𝑇 𝑚/𝑠 (6.1)
○ The temperature is in degrees Celcius.
• To determine speed of sound, divide the wavelength by the period of the wave. (v = l/T)
○ l: is the distance moved by the second speaker.
○ T: is the period of the wave given by the scope.
• In the experiment: We will bounce sound waves from one speaker(1) off of another
speaker(2), and view how it will interfere w/ new sound waves(1).
• Standing Wave Pattern: superposition in multiple waves, giving rise to a stationary
pattern.
• When two waves meet, they are pushed in the air in different directions and combine into
a superposition.
• When sound waves hit a wall, much of their energy is reflected back in the other
direction.
• Constructive Interference: occurs when reflected and un-reflected waves add together
rather than cancel.
○ When constructive interference occurs, its sound intensity is greatly enhanced -->
This is RESONANCE!
○ When the speakers are separated by proper distance(l) for constructive
interference, a weak resonance occurs, and sound intensity is maximized!
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