Mechanical wave

A disturbance that propagates through a material medium, transferring energy without transporting matter overall. Its propagation depends on the medium’s elastic and inertial properties.

Wave equation: A partial differential equation describing how disturbances propagate through space and time. It models the evolving displacement of many mechanical waves.
Longitudinal wave: A wave in which particles of the medium oscillate parallel to the direction of propagation. This is one basic mode of mechanical wave motion.
Sound: Mechanical vibrations that propagate through a material medium and are heard when detected by an auditory system. Sound is a familiar mechanical wave traveling through air, liquids, or solids.
Electromagnetic wave: A propagating oscillation of electric and magnetic fields that can travel through a vacuum. Unlike a mechanical wave, it does not require a material medium.
Elasticity: The ability of a material to deform under stress and recover when the stress is removed. Restoring forces from elastic deformation pass disturbances between neighboring parts of a medium.
Transverse wave: A wave in which particles oscillate perpendicular to the direction of propagation. This is another basic mode, supported by shear resistance in solids.
Seismic wave: A mechanical wave that travels through Earth or along its surface, often generated by earthquakes. Its paths through Earth reveal how mechanical waves behave in layered materials.
Matter wave: A quantum wave associated with particles, expressing their wave-like behavior. It is not a disturbance traveling through a material medium.
Inertia: The resistance of matter to changes in its motion. A medium’s inertia helps determine how quickly a mechanical disturbance can propagate.
Amplitude: The maximum displacement of an oscillating quantity from its equilibrium value. For a mechanical wave, amplitude measures the size of the medium’s local disturbance.

Linked from 3 pages