Resonance - Key terms
AMPLITUDE:
The maximum displacement of particles from their normal position during a single period of oscillation.
CYCLE:
One full repetition of oscillation.
FREQUENCY:
For a particle experiencing oscillation, frequency is the number of cycles that take place during one second. Frequency is measured in Hertz.
HARMONIC MOTION:
The repeated movement of a particle about a position of equilibrium, or balance.
HERTZ:
A unit for measuring frequency, named after nineteenth-century German physicist Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857-1894). Higher frequencies are expressed in terms of kilohertz (kHz; 10 3 or 1,000 cycles per second) or megahertz (MHz; 10 6 or 1 million cycles per second.)
KINETIC ENERGY:
The energy that an object possesses due to its motion, as with a sled when sliding down a hill. This is contrasted with potential energy.
LONGITUDINAL WAVE:
A wave in which the movement of vibration is in the same direction as the wave itself. This is contrasted to a transverse wave.
MAXIMUM DISPLACEMENT:
For an object in oscillation, maximum displacement is the furthest point from stable equilibrium.
OSCILLATION:
A type of harmonic motion, typically periodic, in one or more dimensions.
PERIOD:
The amount of time required for one cycle in oscillating motion.
PERIODIC MOTION:
Motion that is repeated at regular intervals. These intervals are known as periods.
PERIODIC WAVE:
A wave in which a uniform series of crests and troughs follow one after the other in regular succession.
POTENTIAL ENERGY:
The energy that an object possesses due to its position, as, for instance, with a sled at the top of a hill. This is contrasted with kinetic energy.
RESONANCE:
The condition in which force is applied to an object in oscillation at the point of maximum amplitude.
RESONANT FREQUENCY:
A frequency that matches that of an oscillating object.
STABLE EQUILIBRIUM:
A position in which, if an object were disturbed, it would tend to return to its original position. For an object in oscillation, stable equilibrium is in the middle of a cycle, between two points of maximum displacement.
TRANSVERSE WAVE:
A wave in which the vibration or motion is perpendicular to the direction in which the wave is moving. This is contrasted to a longitudinal wave.
WAVE MOTION:
A type of harmonic motion that carries energy from one place to another without actually moving anymatter.