hey guys, so i was revising and made this word bank with all the words needed for topic 6: waves
decided to put it on here if anyone needs it
if i forgot anything please let me know so i can add it on
sorry, theyre not in any particular order, js how we did them in school
wave
a pattern of oscillation that propagates outwards from a source
propagate
moves and spreads out
wavelength
the distance over which the wave pattern repeats itself
amplitude
the maximum displacement of a particles from its position of equilibrium
wavefront
a line showing where peak is at any instant in time
speed
how fast the pattern of vibration is passed through the medium (not the particles)
frequency
the number of complete vibrations per second from a specific point e.g. the source
time period
how long it takes for a full cycle of a wave
medium
the substance the wave moves through
oscilloscope
a high-speed wave plotting device
boundary
the point at which one substance ends and another substance begins
reflection
where the wave bounces off the boundary back into the original substance
transmission
where the wave passes into the second medium and travels through that
refraction
a type of transmission
where the wave changes direction at a boundary and goes into the non-original substance
absorption
where the wave enters the second substance but its energy is quickly absorbed there, often transferred to a thermal store
it does not propagate
seismometer
a device that records vibrations in the rock due to passing earthquake waves
seismograph
the trace from a seismometer
colour filter
a sheet of coloured, transparent material
black body
an object that absorbs all electromagnetic radiation that hits it irrespective of its wavelength
specular reflection
an incident beam of parallel rays is reflected as a beam of rays
diffuse reflection
an incident beam of parallel rays is reflected in scattered, random directions
carrier waves
the waves used to carry any type of signal
optically rare medium
the medium light travels faster in
optically dense medium
the medium light travels slower in
dispersion
occurs when different wavelengths of light refract through different angles
virtual image
where no rays really come from an object; they just seem to, but the image appears to come from behind the mirror
convex lens
converging lens
concave lens
diverging lens
principal focus
the point at which the refracted rays all meet
focal length
the distance from the middle of the length to the focus point
refractive index
different types of glass refract different amounts