Sound wave spreading radially question

In summary, sound waves spread radially outward from a coherent source, with the intensity decreasing as the wave travels further. The quality of the sound is not dependent on location for a pure tone, but the intensity of the sound does vary at different locations. In the case of two-source interference, the listener at location D would experience the most intense sound, followed by those at locations C, A, and B in descending order.
  • #1
nophun6
26
0
I have a question dealing with sound waves.
agag.jpg



This figure shows waves spreading radially outward from a coherent source located at the center. The center spot represents a coherent source emitting at a constant frequency. Black indicates maxima (positive peaks) and white indicating minima (negative troughs)
a) The source is a speaker emitting a pure tone. Quantitatively speaking, would you hear a different sound intensity at points A and
B?
b) Is the quality of the sound (the tone) dependent
on location? That is, would you expect a
qualitatively different sound at different
locations?

I remember that the intenesity of sound decreases as sound increases because as the wave spreads further from the source to the areas of low and high pressure respecitively gain and lose pressure (compressions and rarefactions)
So would this mean that the sound you hear at point B is more intense than the sound you hear at point A?
And thus the quality of the sound is dependant on location?

thanks for the help;
 
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  • #2
A) correct. Since the energy of the wave is spread out over the surface of an ever-increasing sphere, the intensity drops off as an inverse-square proportion with distance from source.

B) No. "Quality" is referring to what combination of frequencies you are hearing. This is a pure tone, and the frequency does not change as a function of distance from source.
 
  • #3
Ah, I see, thank you for your help. I have another question...
349a8a6e.jpg

This picture depicts 2-source interference. There are 2 coherent sources emitting at the same frequency. Black indicates maxima, white indicates minima and pure gray corresponds to total destructive interference. Rank locations A-D according the intensities that a listener at each
location would experience (loudest to quietest).

So, in order from most intense to least: D(most intense) > C > A > B

I reasoned this from the fact that D is the closest and lies on a black line (maxima) and B, although not the furthest, lies in a grey region which means there is destructive interference.
Is this correct?
Thanks for the help!
 
  • #4
Yes, that's correct. Cool diagrams, BTW.
 

Related to Sound wave spreading radially question

1. How does sound wave spread radially?

Sound waves spread radially in all directions from the source, similar to how ripples spread out on the surface of a pond. This means that the sound energy is evenly distributed in all directions, creating a spherical wavefront.

2. What factors affect the spreading of sound waves?

The spreading of sound waves is affected by several factors, including the distance from the source, the frequency of the sound, and the medium through which the sound is traveling. In general, higher frequency sounds tend to spread less than lower frequency sounds, and sound waves will spread further in a denser medium, such as water, compared to air.

3. Is the spreading of sound waves uniform?

No, the spreading of sound waves is not uniform. As sound waves travel further from the source, they experience a phenomenon known as geometric spreading, where the energy of the wave is spread out over a larger area. This results in a decrease in sound intensity, making the sound quieter.

4. How does temperature affect the spreading of sound waves?

Temperature can affect the spreading of sound waves in several ways. In general, sound waves will spread further in warmer temperatures due to the increased speed of sound in warmer air. However, temperature gradients, where there is a difference in temperature between two layers of air, can also cause sound waves to bend and spread in unusual ways.

5. Can sound waves spread indefinitely?

No, sound waves cannot spread indefinitely. As the sound waves travel further from the source, they will eventually dissipate due to factors such as absorption, scattering, and dispersion. The distance that sound waves can travel before dissipating depends on the intensity of the sound, the frequency, and the medium through which it is traveling.

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