Physics is what physicists do late at night.

Tuesday, 28 October 2014

Sam Tet wish (SPM 2014)


Sam Tet wish 2014

SPM 2014 is around the corner.  
SMJK Sam Tet is a happy hunting ground for A, A, A, …… ,  .
May your blood, toil, tears, and sweat bear bountiful fruits.    

To all science students of Sam Tet in general, and to all students of 5S1, 5S2 & 5S7 in particular, may you all score A's in Physics.



And, to relay a message from the Physicists Hall of Fame:
"Befriend us, read our minds, understand our works, and we'll never fail you!"


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Wednesday, 22 October 2014

Calculating Wave Energy

Calculating the Energy Carried by a Wave

The diagram below shows the volume of a small slice of a medium carrying a wave
(longitudinal or transverse included).

What is the total amount of energy carried by a wave of speed v travelling through S, the
cross-sectional surface area in a certain time t?
 
The energy transported by a wave can be expressed by:
            E  =  2p2mf2A2    
where E is the energy of the wave, m the mass of a particle in the medium, f the frequency of the wave & A the amplitude of the wave motion.

The energy transported by a wave can also be expressed by:
            E  =  2p2rSvtf2A2    
where r is the density of the medium, S the cross-sectional surface area through which the
wave travels, v the speed of the wave, & t the time taken for the wave to travel the
   distance l.

Example 1:  A wave propagates from left to right with a speed of 3.0 ms-1 through a medium of density 1.4 kg m-3. Given that the frequency of the wave is 8.0 Hz. & the amplitude 60 cm. Determine the total wave energy that passes through a cross-sectional surface area of 5.0 m2 during a time interval of 40 s.   
Answer:   E  =  2p2rSvtf2A2 
                      =  2  x  3.142   x  1.4  x  5.0  x  3.0  x  40  x  8.02  x  0.62      
                      =  380,000 J  (2 significant figures)


Example 2:  The diagram below shows the graphical representation of 3 waves P, Q & R passing through the same medium during the same period of time.
(i)   Compare wave P & wave Q. Which one possesses more energy?
(ii)  Compare wave P & wave R. Which one possesses more energy?



Answer:  
(i)   Frequency of wave Q is 1.5 times that of wave P (3 Hz ¸ 2 Hz).
       There is factor of f2 in the wave energy equation.
       Therefore, wave Q possesses more energy than wave P by a factor of 1.52 or 2.25.   

(ii)  Amplitude of wave R is 2 times that of wave P.
       There is factor of A2 in the wave energy equation.
       Therefore, wave R possesses more energy than wave P by a factor of 22 or 4.   

Tuesday, 21 October 2014

Producing A Sound Wave

Using a Drum to Produce a Sound Wave

Prior knowledge: Longitudinal wave, compression & rarefaction.

See how a vibrating drum membrane produces a sound wave.
The longitudinal wave produced will propagate from left to right.

 
 
 
A sound wave can be represented by a sinusoidal graph as shown below.