Chapter 16

Sound and Hearing

Modifications by
Mike Brotherton
PowerPoint® Lectures for
University Physics, Thirteenth Edition
– Hugh D. Young and Roger A. Freedman

Lectures by Wayne Anderson

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.
 Goals for Chapter 16
• To describe sound waves in terms of particle displacements or
pressure variations
• To calculate the speed of sound in different materials
• To calculate sound intensity
• To find what determines the frequencies of sound from a pipe
• To study resonance in musical instruments
• To see what happens when sound waves overlap
• To investigate the interference of sound waves of slightly
different frequencies
• To learn why motion affects pitch

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 Introduction
• Most people prefer listening
to music instead of noise. Ha!
But what is the physical
difference between the two?
• We can think of a sound wave
either in terms of the displace-
ment of the particles or of the
pressure it exerts.
• How do humans actually
perceive sound?
• Why is the frequency of
sound from a moving source
different from that of a
stationary source?

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 Sound waves
• Sound is simply any
longitudinal wave in a
medium.
• The audible range of
frequency for humans is
between about 20 Hz and
20,000 Hz.
• Ultrasonic sound waves have
frequencies above human
hearing and infrasonic waves
are below.
• Figure 16.1 at the right shows
sinusoidal longitudinal wave.

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 Different ways to describe a sound wave
• Sound can be
described by a graph
of displace-ment
versus position, or by
a drawing showing
the displacements of
individual particles,
or by a graph of the
pres-sure fluctuation
versus position.
• The pressure
amplitude is
pmax = BkA.
• B is the bulk modulus
from Ch. 11, which
we skipped, where
B=-p(x,t)/(dv/V)

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 Sound wave entering ears
A sound wave entering the ear canal exerts a
fluctuating pressure on one side of the eardrum;
the air on the other side of the eardrum, vented
to the outside by the Eustachian tube, is at
atmospheric pressure. The pressure difference
on the two sides of the eardrum sets it into
motion.
Microphones and similar devices also usually
sense pressure differences, not displacements,
so it is very useful to develop a relationship
between these two descriptions.
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 Amplitude of a sound wave
• Follow Examples 16.1 and 16.2 using Figure 16.4 below.

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 Perception of sound waves
• The harmonic content greatly affects our perception of sound.

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 Speed of sound waves
• The speed of sound
depends on the
characteristics of the
medium. Table 16.1 gives
some examples.

• The speed of sound:

v= B
ρ (fluid)

v = Yρ (solid rod)

v = γ RT (ideal gas)
M

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 The speed of sound in water and air
• Follow Example 16.3 for the speed of sound in water,
using Figure 16.8 below.
• Follow Example 16.4 for the speed of sound in air.

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 Sound intensity
• The intensity of a sinusoidal sound wave is proportional
to the square of the amplitude, the square of the
frequency, and the square of the pressure amplitude.
• Study Problem-Solving Strategy 16.1.
• Follow Examples 16.5, 16.6, and 16.7.

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 The decibel scale
• The sound intensity level b is b = (10 dB) log(I/I0).
• Table 16.2 shows examples for some common sounds.

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 Examples using decibels

• Follow Example 16.8, which deals with hearing loss due to loud
sounds.
• Follow Example 16.9, using Figure 16.11 below, which
investigates how sound intensity level depends on distance.

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 Standing sound waves and normal modes
• The bottom figure shows displacement
nodes and antinodes.
• A pressure node is always a displace-
ment antinode, and a pressure antinode
is always a displacement node, as
shown in the figure at the right.

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 The sound of silence
• Follow Conceptual Example 16.10, using Figure 16.14 below, in
which a loudspeaker is directed at a wall.

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 Organ pipes
• Organ pipes of different sizes
produce tones with different
frequencies (bottom figure).
• The figure at the right shows
displacement nodes in two cross-
sections of an organ pipe at two
instants that are one-half period
apart. The blue shading shows
pressure variation.

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 Harmonics in an open pipe
• An open pipe is open at both ends.
• For an open pipe ln = 2L/n and fn = nv/2L (n = 1, 2, 3, …).
• Figure 16.17 below shows some harmonics in an open pipe.

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 Harmonics in a closed pipe
• A closed pipe is open at one end and closed at the other end.
• For a closed pipe ln = 4L/n and fn = nv/4L (n = 1, 3, 5, …).
• Figure 16.18 below shows some harmonics in a closed pipe.
• Follow Example 16.11.

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 Resonance and sound

• In Figure 16.19(a) at the

right, the loudspeaker
provides the driving force
for the air in the pipe. Part
(b) shows the resulting
resonance curve of the
pipe.
• Follow Example 16.12.

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 Interference
• The difference in the lengths of the paths traveled by the sound
determines whether the sound from two sources interferes
constructively or destructively, as shown in the figures below.

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 Loudspeaker interference

• Follow Example 16.13 using Figure 16.23 below.

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 Beats
• Beats are heard when two tones of slightly different frequency (fa
and fb) are sounded together. (See Figure 16.24 below.)
• The beat frequency is fbeat = fa – fb.

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 The Doppler effect
• The Doppler effect for sound is the shift in frequency when there is
motion of the source of sound, the listener, or both.
• Use Figure 16.27 below to follow the derivation of the frequency the
listener receives.

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 The Doppler effect and wavelengths
• Study Problem-Solving Strategy 16.2.
• Follow Example 16.14 using Figure 16.29 below to see
how the wavelength of the sound is affected.

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 The Doppler effect and frequencies
• Follow Example 16.15 using Figure 16.30 below to see
how the frequency of the sound is affected.

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 A moving listener
• Follow Example 16.16 using Figure 16.31 below to see
how the motion of the listener affects the frequency of
the sound.

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 A moving source and a moving listener
• Follow Example 16.17 using Figure 16.32 below to see
how the motion of both the listener and the source
affects the frequency of the sound.

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 A double Doppler shift
• Follow Example 16.18 using Figure 16.33 below.

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 Shock waves
• A “sonic boom” occurs if the source is supersonic.
• Figure 16.35 below shows how shock waves are generated.
• The angle a is given by sina = v/vS, where v/vS is called the
Mach number.

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 A supersonic airplane
• Follow Example 16.19 using Figure 16.37 below.

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