Photo AI
Figure 7 shows a tuning fork - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2018 - Paper 1
Question 5
Figure 7 shows a tuning fork. When the prongs of the tuning fork are struck, the prongs vibrate in the directions shown by the arrows on Figure 7. Describe how the ... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Figure 7 shows a tuning fork - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2018 - Paper 1
Step 1
Describe how the vibrating tuning fork causes a sound wave to travel through the air.
Answer
When the prongs of the tuning fork are struck, they begin to vibrate or oscillate. This vibration compresses the air molecules around the prongs. As the prongs move outward, they push the air molecules away, creating regions of high pressure (compressions) followed by areas of low pressure (rarefactions). This alternating pattern of compressions and rarefactions travels through the air as a longitudinal wave, allowing sound to propagate to our ears.
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Explain, in terms of speed, why the light behaves like this.
Answer
When light crosses from air into glass, its speed decreases because glass is denser than air. This change in speed causes the light to refract, or bend, at the interface. Different wavelengths of light are affected differently, leading to dispersion, which causes the light to spread out into its constituent colours, creating the spectrum.