| A | B |
|---|
| medium | the matter through which a wave travels |
| mechanical wave | a wave that requires a medium through which to travel |
| electromagnetic wave | a wave caused by a disturbance in electric and magnetic fields and that does not require a medium; also called a light wave |
| transverse wave | a wave that causes the particles of the medium to vibrate perpendicularly to the direction the wave travels |
| longitudinal wave | a wave that causes the particles of the medium to vibrate parallel to the direction the wave travels |
| crest | the highest point of a transverse wave |
| trough | the lowest point of a transverse wave |
| amplitude | the greatest distance that particles in a medium move from their normal position when a wave passes |
| wavelength | the distance between any two successive identical parts of a wave |
| period | the time required for one full wavelength to pass a certain point |
| frequency | the number of vibrations that occur in a 1 second time interval |
| wave speed | the speed at which a wave passes through a medium |
| Doppler effect | an observed change in the frequency of a wave when the source or observer is moving |
| reflection | the bouncing back of a wave as it meets a surface or boundary |
| diffraction | the bending of a wave as it passes an edge or an opening |
| refraction | the bending of waves as they pass from one medium to another |
| wave | a disturbance that transmits energy through matter or space |
| interference | the combination of two or move waves that exist in the same place at the same time |
| constructive interference | any interference in which waves combine so that the resulting wave is bigger than the original waves |
| destructive interference | any interference in which waves combine so that the resulting wave is smaller than the largest of the orginal waves |
| standing wave | a wave form caused by interference that appears not to move along the medium and that shows some regions of no vibration (nodes) and other regions of maximum vibration (antinodes) |
