Physics · Energy and waves
Wave on a String
A wave carries energy along the string while each bit of string only moves up and down.
- Frequency
- 1.2 Hz
- Time period
- 0.83 s
- Wave speed
- fast (high tension)
Wave maker
End of the string
Tension
Try this
- Send a single pulse towards a fixed end. Does it come back upside down?
- Now try a loose end. What is different about the reflected pulse?
- Raise the frequency. What happens to the wavelength?
- Find a frequency that makes a steady standing wave.
Key ideas
- Wave speed = frequency × wavelength.
- A wave reflected from a fixed end comes back inverted; from a loose end it comes back the same way up.
- Higher tension makes waves travel faster.