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Cambridge O Level Physics Your notes
3.4 Sound
Contents
Sound Waves
Properties of Sound Waves
Reflection of Sound Waves
Measuring the Speed of Sound
Ultrasound
Page 1 of 20
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Sound Waves
Your notes
Describing Sound
Sound waves are produced by vibrating sources
When a sound wave comes into contact with a solid, those vibrations can be transferred to the solid
For example, sound waves can cause a drinking glass to vibrate
If the glass vibrates too much the movement causes the glass to shatter
Sound waves are longitudinal: the molecules vibrate in the same direction as the energy transfer
Sound waves require a medium to travel through
This means that if there are no molecules, such as in a vacuum, then the sound can’t travel through
it
The range of frequencies a human can hear is 20 Hz to 20 000 Hz
Compression & Rarefaction

Longitudinal waves consist of compression and rarefactions:
A compression is a region of higher density i.e. a place where the molecules are bunched together
A rarefaction is a region of lower density i.e. a place where the molecules are spread out
Compressions and Rarefactions of Air in a Column
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Your notes
Sound is a longitudinal wave consisting of compressions and rarefactions - these are areas where the
pressure of the air varies with the wave
These compressions and rarefactions cause changes in pressure, which vary in time with the wave
Therefore, sound is a type of pressure wave
When the waves hit a solid, the variations in pressure cause the surface of the solid to vibrate in sync
with the sound wave
Compressions and Rarefactions of Sound Reflecting from a Solid
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Your notes
When sound waves hit a solid, the fluctuating pressure causes the solid to vibrate
Examiner Tip
When describing compressions and rarefactions, make sure to use the correct terms. It is best to refer
to them as regions of high and low densities of particles instead of the particles are more 'bunched up'
or 'far apart', as this is too vague and not very scientific!
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Investigating Sound in a Vacuum

Sound Waves in a Vacuum Your notes
Sound waves are longitudinal waves
All longitudinal waves require a medium through which to travel
A vacuum is a region of space that does not contain air (or any other matter)
This means that, in a vacuum, there is no medium for sound waves
So sound waves cannot travel in a vacuum
Using a Bell Jar
This can be easily demonstrated using a piece of equipment called a bell jar
This is a glass container from which air can be pumped out, creating a vacuum (or nearly a vacuum)
A sound-emitting object is used, such as a battery-operated ringing bell or alarm
This is placed in a bell jar, which still contains air
The ringing bell can be heard despite the bell jar's glass walls
However, as the air begins being pumped out, the volume of the sound heard starts decreasing
When the air is completely removed from the bell jar, the ringing bell cannot be heard at all
Sound in a Bell Jar Demonstration
In the absence of air, sound waves are unable to travel and leave the bell jar
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Examiner Tip
Your notes
It is very difficult to make a perfect vacuum. This means that you may well still hear a very faint ringing in
this experiment, even when as much air as possible is removed from the jar.
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Properties of Sound Waves

Your notes
Pitch & Loudness
The frequency of a sound wave is related to its pitch
Sounds with a high pitch have a high frequency (or short wavelength)
Sounds with a low pitch have a low frequency (or long wavelength)
Sounds with a large amplitude have a high volume
Sounds with a small amplitude have a low volumeThe amplitude of a sound wave is related to its
volume
Graphs of Different Amplitudes & Frequencies
The amplitude of a wave determines the volume of the sound and the frequency determines the pitch
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Different Sound Sources

An oscilloscope is a device that can be used to study a rapidly changing signal, such as: Your notes
A sound wave
An alternating current
Oscilloscope
Oscilloscopes have lots of dials and buttons, but their main purpose is to display and measure changing
signals like sound waves and alternating current
When a microphone is connected to an oscilloscope, the (longitudinal) sound wave is displayed as

though it were a transverse wave on the screen
The time base (like the 'x-axis') is used to measure the time period of the wave
A Soundwave Depicted as a Transverse Wave on an Oscilloscope
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Your notes
A sound wave is displayed as though it were a transverse wave on the screen of the oscilloscope. The
time base can be used to measure a full time period of the wave cycle
The height of the wave (measured from the centre of the screen) is related to the amplitude of the
sound
The number of entire waves that appear on the screen is related to the frequency of the wave
If the frequency of the sound wave increases, more waves are displayed on screen
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Reflection of Sound Waves

Your notes
Echoes
Sound waves reflect off hard surfaces
The reflection of a sound wave is called an echo
Echo sounding can be used to measure depth or to detect objects underwater
A sound wave can be transmitted from the surface of the water
The sound wave is reflected off the bottom of the ocean
The time it takes for the sound wave to return is used to calculate the depth of the water
This is the distance to the ocean floor plus the distance for the wave to return
The distance the wave travels is twice the depth of the ocean
Ship using Radar
Echo sounding is used to determine water depth
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Investigating the Reflection of Sound Waves

Using Echoes to Measure the Speed of Sound Your notes
Measuring the speed of sound using echoes
1. A person stands about 50 m away from a wall (or cliff) using a trundle wheel to measure this distance
2. The person claps two wooden blocks together and listens for the echo
3. A second person has a stopwatch and starts timing when they hear one of the claps and stops timing
when they hear the echo
4. The process is then repeated 20 times and an average time calculated
5. The distance travelled by the sound between each clap and echo will be (2 × 50) m
6. The speed of sound can be calculated from this distance and the time using the equation:
2 × distance to wall
speed of sound =
time taken
2d
v=
t
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Your notes
There are several experiments that can be carried out to determine the speed of sound
Three methods are described below
The apparatus for each experiment is given in bold
Method 1: Measuring Sound Between Two Points

Measuring the Speed of Sound Using a Loud Noise
Measuring the speed of sound directly between two points
1. Two people stand a distance of around 100 m apart

2. The distance between them is measured using a trundle wheel
3. One person has two wooden blocks, which they bang together above their head
4. The second person has a stopwatch which they start when they see the first person banging the blocks
together and stops when they hear the sound
5. This is then repeated several times and an average value is taken for the time
6. The speed of sound can then be calculated using the equation:
Page 12 of 20
distance travelled
speed of sound =
time taken Your notes
Method 2: Using an Oscilloscope

Measuring the Speed of Sound Using Microphones
Measuring the speed of sound using an oscilloscope
1. Two microphones are connected to an oscilloscope and placed about 5 m apart using a tape measure
to measure the distance
2. The oscilloscope is set up so that it triggers when the first microphone detects a sound, and the time
base is adjusted so that the sound arriving at both microphones can be seen on the screen
3. Two wooden blocks are used to make a large clap next to the first microphone
4. The oscilloscope is then used to determine the time at which the clap reaches each microphone and
the time difference between them
5. This is repeated several times and an average time difference calculated
6. The speed can then be calculated using the equation:
distance between microphones
speed of sound =
time between peaks
Measuring Wave Speed in Water

Ripples on water surfaces are used to model transverse waves
Page 13 of 20
The speed of these water waves can be measured

Ripples on Water
Your notes
Creating ripples in water
1. Choose a calm flat water surface such as a lake or a swimming pool

2. Two people stand a few metres apart using a tape measure to measure this distance
3. One person counts down from three and then disturbs the water surface (using their hand, for example)
to create a ripple
4. The second person then starts a stopwatch to time how long it takes for the first ripple to get to them
5. The experiment is then repeated 10 times and an average value for the time is calculated
6. The average time and distance can then be used to calculate the wave speed using the equation:
distance moved
average speed =
time taken
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Examiner Tip
Your notes
When you are answering questions about methods to measure waves, the question could ask you to
comment on the accuracy of the measurements
In the case of measuring the speed of sound:
Method 2 is the most accurate because the timing is done automatically
Method 1 is the least accurate because the time interval is very short
Whilst this may not be too important when giving a method, you should be able to explain why each
method is accurate or inaccurate and suggest ways of making them better (for example, use greater
distances)
For example, if a manual stopwatch is being used there could be variation in the time measured
which can be up to 0.2 seconds due to a person's reaction time
The time interval could be as little as 0.3 seconds for sound travelling in air
This means that the variation due to the stopwatch readings has a big influence on the results and
they may not be reliable
Speed of Sound in Air

Sound waves travel at a speed of about 340 m/s in air at room temperature
The higher the air temperature, the greater the speed of sound
The speed of sound in air varies from 330 – 350 m/s
Speed of Sound in Materials

Sound travels at different speeds in different mediums:
Sound travels fastest in solids
Sound travels slowest in gases
Some typical speeds of sound in solids, liquids and gases are:
Solids ≈ 5000 m/s
Liquids ≈ 1500 m/s
Gases ≈ 350 m/s
Page 15 of 20
Ultrasound
Your notes
Ultrasound
Humans can hear sounds between about 20 Hz and 20 000 Hz in frequency (although this range
decreases with age)
Infrasound & Ultrasound
Humans can hear sounds between 20 and 20 000 Hz

Ultrasound is the name given to sound waves with a frequency greater than 20 000 Hz
Page 16 of 20
Uses of Ultrasound
Your notes
When ultrasound reaches a boundary between two media, some of the waves are partially reflected
The remainder of the waves continue through the material and are transmitted
Ultrasound transducers are able to:
Emit ultrasound
Receive ultrasound
The time taken for the reflections to reach a detector can be used to determine how far away a
boundary is
This is because ultrasound travels at different speeds through different media
This is by using the speed, distance, time equation
distance moved
average speed =
time taken
Where:
v = speed in metres per second (m/s)
s = distance in metres (m)
t = time in seconds (s)
This allows ultrasound waves to be used for both medical and industrial imaging
Ultrasound in Medicine
In medicine, ultrasound can be used:
To construct images of a foetus in the womb
To generate 2D images of organs and other internal structures (as long as they are not surrounded
by bone)
As a medical treatment such as removing kidney stones
An ultrasound detector is made up of a transducer that produces and detects a beam of ultrasound
waves into the body
The ultrasound waves are reflected back to the transducer by boundaries between tissues in the path
of the beam
For example, the boundary between fluid and soft tissue or tissue and bone
When these echoes hit the transducer, they generate electrical signals that are sent to the ultrasound
scanner
Using the speed of sound and the time of each echo’s return, the detector calculates the distance
from the transducer to the tissue boundary
By taking a series of ultrasound measurements, sweeping across an area, the time measurements may
be used to build up an image
Unlike many other medical imaging techniques, ultrasound is non-invasive and is believed to be
harmless
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Foetal Imaging Using Ultrasound

Your notes
Ultrasound can be used to construct an image of a foetus in the womb
Ultrasound in Industry
In industry, ultrasound can be used to:
Check for cracks inside metal objects
Generate images beneath surfaces
A crack in a metal block will cause some waves to reflect earlier than the rest, so will show up as pulses
on an oscilloscope trace
Each pulse represents each time the wave crosses a boundary
The speed of the waves is constant, so measuring the time between emission and detection can allow
the distance from the source to be calculated
Cracked Surface Detection Using Ultrasound
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Your notes
Ultrasound is partially reflected at boundaries, so in a bolt with no internal cracks, there should only be
two pulses (at the start and end of the bolt)
Page 19 of 20
Worked example
Your notes
In the diagram above, a very high-frequency sound wave is used to check for internal cracks in a large
steel bolt. The oscilloscope trace shows that the bolt does have an internal crack. Each division on the
oscilloscope represents a time of 0.000002 s. The speed of sound through steel is 6000 m/s.
Calculate the distance, in cm, from the head of the bolt to the internal crack.
Answer:
Step 1: List the known quantities
Speed of ultrasound, v = 6000 m/s
Time taken, t = 5 × 0.000002 = 0.00001 s
Step 2: Write down the equation relating speed, distance and time
distance, d = v × t
Step 3: Calculate the distance
d = 6000 × 0.00001 = 0.06 m
Step 4: Convert the distance to cm
d = 6 cm
Page 20 of 20

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Cambridge O Level Physics Your notes

Compression & Rarefaction

Investigating Sound in a Vacuum

Properties of Sound Waves

Different Sound Sources

When a microphone is connected to an oscilloscope, the (longitudinal) sound wave is displayed as

Reflection of Sound Waves

Echo sounding is used to determine water depth

Investigating the Reflection of Sound Waves

Measuring the speed of sound using echoes

Measuring the Speed of Sound

Method 1: Measuring Sound Between Two Points

Measuring the speed of sound directly between two points

1. Two people stand a distance of around 100 m apart

Method 2: Using an Oscilloscope

Measuring the speed of sound using an oscilloscope

Measuring Wave Speed in Water

The speed of these water waves can be measured

Creating ripples in water

1. Choose a calm flat water surface such as a lake or a swimming pool

Speed of Sound in Air

Speed of Sound in Materials

Humans can hear sounds between 20 and 20 000 Hz

Foetal Imaging Using Ultrasound

Ultrasound can be used to construct an image of a foetus in the womb

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