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Form 3 Physics Sound

Sound is produced by vibrations that travel through a medium as sound waves. The vibrations cause particles in the medium to vibrate, transferring energy from one particle to the next. When the sound waves reach the ear, they cause the eardrum and bones to vibrate similarly, allowing the brain to interpret the vibrations as sound. The amplitude of a sound wave determines its loudness, with higher amplitudes producing louder sounds. The frequency of a sound wave determines its pitch, with higher frequencies producing higher pitched sounds.

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189 views5 pages

Form 3 Physics Sound

Sound is produced by vibrations that travel through a medium as sound waves. The vibrations cause particles in the medium to vibrate, transferring energy from one particle to the next. When the sound waves reach the ear, they cause the eardrum and bones to vibrate similarly, allowing the brain to interpret the vibrations as sound. The amplitude of a sound wave determines its loudness, with higher amplitudes producing louder sounds. The frequency of a sound wave determines its pitch, with higher frequencies producing higher pitched sounds.

Uploaded by

Chibale Mchere Banda
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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LILONGWE PRIVATE SCHOOL


FORM 3 PHYSICS
SOUND
Sound is the term to describe what is heard when sound waves pass through a medium to the
ear. All sounds are made by vibrations of molecules through which the sound travels. ... The
bones of the ear vibrate in the same way that of the object that started the sound wave. These
vibrations let you hear different sounds.
Sound is a form of energy that is produced by a vibrating object.
A vibration is a to and fro movement or a backward and forward movement about a fixed point.
Sound travels in a gas, liquid and solid because they all contain particles to vibrate and carry the
energy.
When sound travels through air, it makes the particles vibrate forming regions called
rarefactions and compressions.
Compressions are regions where particles are close together. Rarefactions are regions where
particles are spread apart.
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Sound waves travel in the same direction and parallel to the vibrating particle. Sound travels
faster in solids than in liquids and gases because particles in solid are close together and
therefore they carry the energy easily.
Sound cannot travel in a vacuum because there is no particles to vibrate and pass on energy.
Describing a sound Wave
A cathode ray oscilloscope (CRO) is a device that is used to describe the nature of sound
produced.

One complete wave is made out of a crest and a trough.

Amplitude is the maximum distance an object vibrate from its rest position.
Wavelength is the distance between two successive corresponding points on the
graph. It could be distance between one crest to another crest or between one
trough to another trough.
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Amplitude and the Loudness of Sound

The loudness of sound depends on the size of amplitude. When a particle vibrates
more, it means it has a larger amplitude. The sound produced is louder. The
higher the amplitude then louder the sound. The smaller the amplitude, the
quieter the sound.
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Frequency and Pitch of Sound


Frequency is the number of waves passing through a point per second.
It is expressed in units called Hertz (Hz).

In the diagram above, the Blue Trace has the same amplitude as the
Red Trace but their frequencies are different. The blue trace has a
higher frequency while the red trace has a lower frequency. Therefore,
the blue trace has a higher pitch of sound like that of a whistle and the
red trace has a lower pitch of sound just like our normal voices.
The ear of a young person is sensitive to frequencies in the range 20-
20000Hertz, but the ability to detect higher frequencies decreases with
age. Some people may have restricted range due to nerve damage.
They may not be able to hear low pitched or high pitched sounds.
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