Sound

Pitch
Loudness
Sound Intensity Level
Doppler Effect
Physics
Mrs. Coyle
 Sound
 Sound is a longitudinal mechanical wave.

 Compressions(High Pressure)
 Rarefactions(Low Pressure)
Speed of Sound
 Depends on the medium.

 The more elastic the medium the

faster sound will travel through it.

 Speedin metals>speed in
water>speed in air

 Sound can’t travel through vacuum.

Speed of Sound in Air
v = 331 + 0.6 T ( in meters/sec)

 T is the temperature in 0C.

 In higher humidity, sound will travel faster.
Properties of Sound
 Reflection (Echo)
 Refraction
 Interference
 Diffraction
Pitch: the frequency of a
sound wave.
 Musical notes have a given pitch.

 The note C has a frequency of 327Hz.

 When two notes differ by a ratio of 2:1

they are one octave apart.

 What would be the next higher C?

(Ans:654Hz)
Bow (Shock) Waves
When the speed of a moving sound
source is greater than the speed of the
wave, a pressure ridge builds similar to
the wave created by the bow of a ship.

physlet animation
Sonic Boom

 When the pressure ridge of a bow wave

of a jet passes over an observer on the
ground, the observer experiences a sonic
boom.
Doppler Effect

 The change in a wave's perceived frequency

due to the motion of either the sound source or
the observer.

 It is applicable to any type of wave.

 Austrian physicist Christian Doppler (1803-1853).

train sound clip

Simulations
 physlet animation
 http://www.walter-fendt.de/ph14e/dopplereff.htm
The Doppler Effect

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/sound/u11l3b.cfm
Doppler Effect
Detected Frequency, (fD)

fD = f ( v±vo )
v±vs
f : frequency of source
v : speed of sound

vo : speed of observer
(+)when observer moving towards source
vs : speed of source
(-)when source is moving towards observer
Example 1
An ambulance is approaching a
stationary observer.
The siren of the ambulance emits a
frequency of 480Hz and the speed of
the ambulance is 50km/h(=13.88m/s).
What frequency will the stationary
observer hear when the ambulance is
approaching? Assume T=20oC.

Answer: fd = 500Hz
 Sound Intensity (I)
I = (Power transmitted by the Wave)/Area

 Threshold of human hearing:

Io =1 x 10-12 Watts/m2

 Threshold of Pain:
IP = 1 Watts/m2
Sound (Intensity) Level
 A measure of our perception of the
loudness of the sound.

 Unit: decibel(dB)
Sound (Intensity) Level, (decibel)

b= 10 log I , unit for b is dB (decibel)

I0

The decibel compares the sound intensity (I), to

Io (1 x 10-12 Watts/m2) ,
the threshold of human hearing.

Remember: log(10x )= x
 Examples of Sound Intensity Levels

 jet plane taking off 140 dB

 air raid siren 125 dB
 threshold of pain 120 dB
 loud rock music 115 dB
 ear damage starts 85 dB
 busy traffic 70 dB
 normal conversation 60 dB
 quiet library 40 dB
 soft whisper 20 dB
 threshold of human hearing 0 dB
Example 2
 What is the sound level (decibel) of
a sound of 10-4 W/m2 intensity ?

 Answer: 80dB
 Example 3
 How many times louder is a quiet library
sound (40 dB) compared to a soft whisper
(20 dB)?

 Hint 1: Property of logs:

log(A/B) = logA –logB

Hint 2: Take the difference in dB and then find

(I2 /I1)
 Answer: (I2 /I1 )= 100/1