Adding two sinusoidal waves of same frequency but out of phase

Click For Summary
The discussion focuses on the mathematical derivation of the sum of two sinusoidal waves with the same frequency but differing phases. It begins with the expression Asin(wt) + Bsin(wt + φ) and uses the trigonometric identity sin(a + b) to expand it. The result is simplified to the form Csin(wt) + Dcos(wt), where C and D are defined in terms of A, B, and φ. The relationship between these coefficients is further explored using Pythagorean identities, leading to the conclusion that the sum can be expressed as Esin(wt + θ). The conversation emphasizes the importance of understanding the underlying trigonometric principles to derive the final expression accurately.
souky101
Messages
21
Reaction score
1
Homework Statement
Adding two sinusoidal waves of same frequency but out of phase - Does the resultant wave form still pure sinusoidal with same frequency?
Relevant Equations
Asin(wt) + Bsin(wt+a)
Asin(wt)}+Bsin(wt+a)
Asin(wt) +B sin(wt)cos(a) +Bcos(wt)sin(a)
Asin(wt) + ksin(wt) + Lcos( wt)
(A+K) sin(wt) + Lcos(wt)
Fsin(wt) + Lcos(wt)
 
Physics news on Phys.org
It can be deduced to the form of
C\sin(\omega t+\phi)
 
.
Thanks for your reply
But how you can drive it mathematically
.
 
You started out OK. It's mostly based on the trig identity you used ##sin(a+b)=sin(a)cos(b) + cos(a)sin(b)##
So:

##Asin(\omega t) + B sin(\omega t + \phi) =##
##Asin(\omega t)+B(sin(\omega t)cos(\phi)+cos(\omega t)sin(\phi)) =##
##(A+Bcos(\phi))sin(\omega t)+Bsin(\phi)cos(\omega t) \equiv Csin(\omega t)+Dcos(\omega t) ##
where ##C \equiv A+Bcos(\phi)## and ##D \equiv Bsin(\phi)##
since sin(x) and cos(x) are orthogonal, we can used Pythagoras to simplify to
##Asin(\omega t) + B sin(\omega t + \phi) = \sqrt{C^2+D^2}sin(\omega t + \theta)##
where ##\theta = tan^{-1}(\frac{D}{C})##

The last bit comes from working that original identity in reverse:
Assume the answer has the form ##Csin(\omega t)+Dcos(\omega t) \equiv Esin(\omega t + \theta)##
Then ##Esin(\omega t + \theta) = E cos(\theta)sin(\omega t)+Esin(\theta)cos(\omega t)## from the identity.
This means ##C \equiv Ecos(\theta)## and ##D \equiv Esin(\theta)##
Then note that ## C^2+D^2=E^2cos^2(\theta)+E^2sin^2(\theta)= E^2## so ##E=\sqrt{C^2+D^2}##
Also ##\frac{D}{C} = \frac{Esin(\theta)}{Ecos(\theta)} = tan{\theta}##
 
  • Like
Likes FactChecker and Delta2
souky101 said:
But how you can drive it mathematically
Let us equate them as
F \sin \omega t + L \cos\omega t = C \sin (\omega t + \phi)
Expanding RHS you see
F=C \cos \phi, L=C\sin \phi
 
The working out suggests first equating ## \sqrt{i} = x + iy ## and suggests that squaring and equating real and imaginary parts of both sides results in ## \sqrt{i} = \pm (1+i)/ \sqrt{2} ## Squaring both sides results in: $$ i = (x + iy)^2 $$ $$ i = x^2 + 2ixy -y^2 $$ equating real parts gives $$ x^2 - y^2 = 0 $$ $$ (x+y)(x-y) = 0 $$ $$ x = \pm y $$ equating imaginary parts gives: $$ i = 2ixy $$ $$ 2xy = 1 $$ I'm not really sure how to proceed from here.