Sum of two waves & wave equation

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the conditions under which the sum of two sinusoidal waves satisfies the one-dimensional wave equation. The sum wave is expressed as D(x,t) = A_{1}sin(k_{1} x - ω_{1} t) + A_{2}sin(k_{2} x - ω_{2} t). The key conclusion is that for the sum wave to satisfy the wave equation, the velocities of the individual waves must be equal, leading to the relationship ω_{1}/k_{1} = ω_{2}/k_{2}. The user also explored the derivation of the wave equation and identified potential errors in their calculations regarding the relationship between the wave parameters.

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  • Understanding of sinusoidal wave functions
  • Familiarity with the one-dimensional wave equation
  • Knowledge of derivatives and trigonometric identities
  • Basic concepts of wave velocity and its relationship to frequency and wavenumber
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  • Study the derivation of the one-dimensional wave equation in detail
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This thing is driving me mad, I thought I figured it out already, but it seems I was wrong. Any help would be appreciated.

Homework Statement



"Under what conditions does the sum of two sinusoidal waves also satisfy the wave equation?"
The sum wave is

[itex]D(x,t) = A_{1}sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)+A_{2}sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t)[/itex]


Homework Equations



The (1D) wave equation

[itex]\frac{\partial^{2}D}{\partial x^{2}}=\frac{1}{c²} \frac {\partial^{2}D}{\partial t^{2}}[/itex]

The Attempt at a Solution



Not much, but derivating both sides:

[itex]\frac{\partial^{2}}{\partial x^{2}}(A_{1}sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)+A_{2}sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t))[/itex]
[itex]=-A_{1}k_{1}^{2} sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)-A_{2}k_{2}^{2}sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t)[/itex]

[itex]\frac{1}{c^{2}} \frac {\partial^{2}}{\partial t^{2}}( A_{1}sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)+A_{2}sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t))[/itex]
[itex]=-A_{1}\frac{\omega_{1}^{2}}{c^{2}} sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)-A_{2}\frac{\omega_{2}^{2}}{c^{2}}sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t)[/itex]

And rearranging gives:

[itex]A_{1}(k_{1}-\frac{\omega_{1}^{2}}{c^{2}}) sin(k_{1} x-\omega_{1} t)=A_{2}(\frac{\omega_{2}^{2}}{c^{2}}-k_{2}^{2})sin(k_{2} x-\omega_{2} t)[/itex]

But to be honest I've got little else I'm able to do after this. I don't think I've ever had to solve something like that. Is there some sort of an obvious trigonometric identity or something I'm missing here?

The answer should be that the velocities of the waves, ie [itex]\frac{\omega}{k}[/itex] are the same (which seems to lead to the velocity of the sum wave being that same velocity).
 
Last edited:
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EDIT: Hmm. I think I might've found a way to solve this.

The only problem is that I got

[itex]\omega_{1} k_{1} = \omega_{2} k_{2}[/itex]

instead of

[itex]\omega_{1} k_{2} = \omega_{2} k_{1}[/itex]

But I might've made a mistake somewhere.
 
Last edited:

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