Mechanical waves are disturbances that transport kinetic and potential energy through a material medium, for example: sea, seismic and sound waves.
It can only happen in a material medium, but they do not carry matter but energy.
These disturbances happen in the form of pulses, which are waves of short duration that are repeated with equal time intervals, that is, in periodic movements.
How to Calculate your Speed?
The speed at which mechanical waves spread depends on two general properties of the material in which they are transported: density and elasticity.
The calculation of the wave velocity must consider the period and its length.
The period is the time it takes the wave to complete a swell, while its length is the distance the wave travels during a period.
So, to calculate the speed, we use the following formula:
v=λ/T
Where,
v = speed
λ = wavelength
T = ripple period
Types of Mechanical Waves
Mechanical waves can be classified according to the directions of vibration and propagation:
As for the vibration, they can be:
- Transverse - waves whose vibration is perpendicular to their propagation. This type of wave can be seen when we drop an object into water.
- Longitudinal - waves whose vibration parallels the movement in which they propagate. A classic example of longitudinal waves are sound waves, which travel through the air.
As for propagation, they can be:
- One-dimensional - propagate in one direction.
- two-dimensional - propagate in two directions.
- three-dimensional - propagate in various directions.
Know all about:
- waves
- Sound waves
- Speed of sound
- Mechanical Energy
- Physics Formulas
Mechanical Waves vs. Electromagnetic Waves
Unlike mechanical waves that necessarily propagate through a material medium, electromagnetic waves can propagate with or without a material medium.
Therefore, electromagnetic waves propagate in a vacuum, while mechanical waves do not. After all, one of the characteristics of a vacuum is precisely the absence of matter.
Electromagnetic waves they are the oscillations that happen as a result of the release of electrical and magnetic energy. There are 7 types: radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, x-rays and gamma rays.
