General Oscillations, Simple Harmonic Motion, Equations of Motion

Oscillations are one of the most prevalent phenomena in our universe. From a swinging tree branch, to molecular vibrations, even to the orbits of celestial bodies, repetitive events happen everywhere in nature. Simple harmonic oscillators (SHO) are specific type of oscillation where the motion can be described by sinusoidal functions and the time per revolution (period) is independent of the amplitude of the vibration.

• Lecture 1 | General Oscillations, Simple Harmonic Motion, Equations of Motion

SHM Case Studies: Pendulums & Strings

Masses connected to ideal springs and simple pendulums are examples of Simple Harmonic Oscillators. When set into motion the masses will oscillate back and forth in a predictable sinusoidal way. These two systems provide excellent case studies in SHO.

• Lecture 2 | SHM Case Studies: Pendulums & Strings

Damped Oscillations, Driven Oscillations & Resonance

Alas, most oscillations are fleeting as the collective dance of energy between kinetic and potential gives way to the entropy gods. The culprit is usually a form of friction, which takes the ordered energy and transforms it into intractable random motion of atoms. Ultimately it ends up as thermal energy.

• Lecture 3 | Damped Oscillations, Driven Oscillations & Resonance

Wavelength, Frequency, Speed, Equations of Motion

A traveling wave, like a water wave or sound wave, is a collection of oscillators. Each part that makes up the wave feature simply oscillates back and forth in some manner, but the wave feature itself, propagates. This feature transfers energy and allows objects to interact at a distance, e.g. talking or seeing.

• Lecture 1 | Wavelength, Frequency, Speed, Equations of Motion

Sound, Light, Waves on a String

What is light?

• Lecture 2 | Sound, Light, Waves on a String

Energy & Intensity, Sound Intensity Level: Decibels

Waves carry energy and as the wave travels outward, that energy is spread out over a larger space. How loud a sound is depends not only on the energy put in by the source but also the distance between the source and the observer and the medium through which the sound travels.

• Lecture 3 | Energy & Intensity, Sound Intensity Level: Decibels

Doppler

When an ambulance drives past you at a high speed you can hear a change in the pitch of the sound. That change in the preserved frequency is called the Doppler effect. Whenever there is relative motion between a wave source and an observer, a Doppler shift in the frequency occurs.

• Lecture 4 | Doppler

Standing Wave Resonance in Tubes and on Strings

Standing Waves occur when two waves with the same wavelength, are traveling in opposite directions. If the system that contains the waves is of a certain size, a resonance occurs and the standing waves become more pronounced.

• Lecture 1 | Standing Wave Resonance in Tubes and on Strings

General Two Source Interference

When two waves enter the same space at the same time they can interfere in a such a way to cause a larger effect called constructive interference. They can also interfere in such a way to create a smaller effect called destructive interference. Light behaves like a wave and displays these light and dark inference patterns when setup in a clever way.

• Lecture 2 | General Two Source Interference