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Section 18.4 Boundaries
Subsubsection Simulation Activity
Activity 18.4.1 . String Boundary.
(a) Write an interesting observation you made using the simulation. Try to connect your observation to something you have experienced in your everyday life.
(b) If you have not done so already, follow these steps in the simulation:
Click on the Pulse button and reduce the damping to zero.
With the right end fixed , click on the green Pulse button once and observe what happens.
Develop a rule for what happens to a wave pulse when it reflects from a fixed end.
Click on the yellow Restart button.
With the right end loose , click on the green Pulse button once and observe what happens.
Develop a rule for what happens to a wave pulse when it reflects from a loose end.
Answer .
Reflections from fixed ends tend to flip over, while reflections from free ends do not.
Figure 18.4.1. A wave reflecting from a fixed end.
Figure 18.4.2. A wave reflecting from a free end.
References References
[1]
Animations courtesy of Dr. Dan Russell, Grad. Prog. Acoustics, Penn State. licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. For more information see
https://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/demos.html
