If the period of an oscillator doubles, what happens to its wavelength and wave speed? In general, the wavelength gets shorter by a factor of two and the wave speed gets four times as fast. However, there are some exceptions to this rule. For example, a mass on a spring platform will cause the oscillator’s period to be doubled but its wavelength will not change. This is because the mass makes the spring vibrate at a constant frequency even though its length changes.
Period = time required for a cycle.
Frequency = number of cycles per second.
Wavelength = distance between two adjacent points of a wave.
What does a doubling of period mean?
When the period doubles, the frequency halves. This means that the number of cycles in a second remains the same, but the number of waves in a second decreases.
If the frequency halved, what happens to the wavelength and wave speed?
If the frequency halves, the wavelength doubles. This means that the number of waves in a second increases, but the number of waves in a distance remains the same.
What is the wavelength?
The wavelength is a unit of measurement for light waves. A meter is a distance of one millionth of a centimeter.
In optics, the wavelength is the distance between successive nodes on the wave front of a ray of light, where each node is an image point formed by the refraction of light at the boundary between two transparent media with different indices of refraction. The wavelength of light is one-half of the distance between successive image points.
What is the wave speed?
The wave speed is how quickly a wave moves through water, air, or any other medium. It’s measured in meters per second (m/s), or miles per hour (mph), or kilometers per hour (kph).
In waves, the crest of one wave moves forward and then slides under the next wave. The speed of a wave depends on how fast the water can move without losing energy, which is called wave speed. Water is made up of tiny particles called molecules. Waves are made up of many molecules moving together. The faster the molecules move together, the faster the wave. Waves move at different speeds at different places.
What is the frequency?
The frequency of a wave is the number of complete waves that pass a certain point in a certain amount of time. This is typically measured in hertz (Hz). Waves with a higher frequency have more complete cycles per second.
So in the end we can say that, if the period of the oscillator doubles, the wavelength will also double and the wave speed will remain the same. This information is important to know when designing oscillators, as altering the period can change the wavelength and wave speed.
