- #1
Raparicio
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Dear friends,
What are de principal differences between sound and light waves?
What are de principal differences between sound and light waves?
dextercioby said:Gale,do some reading,honey...
We call these waves longitudinal (like the sound waves) and transversal (like the em.waves).I'm sure an optics book will cover em waves and their polarization.
I'm sure a continuous media book will cover elastic/mechanical waves.So my advice is to go to the library.
Daniel.
Raparicio said:are light waves, plane waves? I've seen the example that always shows a electro-magnetic wave, with one 90º in diference to the other. But, really is this way?
The main difference between sound and light waves is that sound waves are mechanical waves that require a medium to travel through, while light waves are electromagnetic waves that can travel through a vacuum.
Sound waves travel by causing vibrations in a medium, such as air, water, or solids. Light waves, on the other hand, travel in a straight line and do not require a medium to travel through.
The speed of sound waves depends on the medium they are traveling through, but on average they travel at 343 meters per second in air. Light waves, however, travel at a much faster speed of 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum.
Both sound and light waves are forms of energy that travel in waves. They both have properties such as wavelength, frequency, and amplitude. They can also both be reflected, absorbed, or transmitted when they encounter different materials.
Sound waves are used for communication, entertainment, and in medical imaging technology such as ultrasounds. Light waves, on the other hand, are used for vision, communication through technology such as fiber optics, and in various forms of energy production such as solar power.