Waves Intro

Waves Intro Screenshot
  • Frequency
  • Amplitude
  • Wave Speed

Topics

  • Frequency
  • Amplitude
  • Wave Speed
  • Wavelength
  • Water
  • Sound
  • Light

Description

Make waves with a dripping faucet, audio speaker, or laser! Adjust frequency and amplitude, and observe the effects. Hear the sound produced by the speaker, and discover what determines the color of light.

Sample Learning Goals

  • Make waves with water, sound, and light and see how they are related.
  • Discuss wave properties using common vocabulary.
  • Explain how changing the frequency and amplitude affects the characteristics of the wave.
  • Design an experiment to measure the speed of the wave.
Version 1.0.2

Teacher Tips

Download teacher tips PDF Overview of sim controls, model simplifications, and insights into student thinking ( PDF ).

Teacher-Submitted Activities

Waves Intro‌ Remote Lab ‌ A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. This contribution was designed by PhET. Trish Loeblein HS
UG-Intro
Lab
Remote
Earth Science
Physics
Alignment of PhET sims with NGSS This contribution was designed by PhET. Trish Loeblein updated by Diana López MS
HS
Other Earth Science
Chemistry
Physics
Biology
Properties of Waves Virtual Lab Amy Mattes MS Guided
Lab
Physics
Writing an Equation for the Wave Sean Cordry UG-Intro Guided Physics
Intro to Waves I: Basics of waves in liquids Don Loving HS
UG-Intro
MS
Guided
HW
Physics
Introduction to Waves: Liquid Matter, Sound, and Light Lonny Villalobos, M.Ed. HS
MS
Lab
Guided
Physics
Wave Intro Simulation Worksheet Bonnie Meaders MS Lab Physics
Introducción a la Física: medidas, unidades y relación entre variables A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. This contribution was designed by PhET. Diana López HS
UG-Intro
Guided
HW
Remote
Lab
Physics
SECUNDARIA: Alineación PhET con programas de la SEP México (2011 y 2017) This contribution was designed by PhET. Diana López MS
HS
Other Chemistry
Biology
Mathematics
Physics
PREPARATORIA: Alineación de PhET con programas de la DGB México (2017) This contribution was designed by PhET. Diana López UG-Intro
HS
Other Mathematics
Physics
Chemistry
PRIMARIA: Alineación con programas de la SEP México (2011 y 2017) This contribution was designed by PhET. Diana López K-5
MS
Discuss
HW
Guided
Lab
Demo
Physics
Astronomy
Chemistry
Mathematics
Werkblad Inleiding Golven Roland Van Kerschaver MS HW
Lab
Physics
Guião de Exploração Teresinha Patrício MS Guided
Remote
Physics

Language Download or Run Tips
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Chinese (Simplified) All 中文 (中国) Run now 波动入门
Chinese (Traditional) All 中文 (台灣) Run now Waves Intro_波的介紹
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HTML5 sims can run on iPads and Chromebooks, as well as PC, Mac, and Linux systems.

iPad:
iOS 12+ Safari
iPad compatible sims

Android:
Not officially supported. If you are using the HTML5 sims on Android, we recommend using the latest version of Google Chrome.

Chromebook:
Latest version of Google Chrome
The HTML5 and Flash PhET sims are supported on all Chromebooks.
Chromebook compatible sims

Windows Systems:
Microsoft Edge, latest version of Firefox, latest version of Google Chrome.

Macintosh Systems:
macOS 10.9.5+, Safari 9+, latest version of Chrome.

Linux Systems:
Not officially supported. Please contact phethelp@colorado.edu with troubleshooting issues.

Design Team Third-party Libraries Thanks To
  • Sam Reid (lead developer)
  • Amy Rouinfar (lead designer)
  • Noah Podolefsky (original designer)
  • Wendy Adams
  • Diana López Tavares
  • Ariel Paul
  • Kathy Perkins
  • Katie Woessner
  • Cheryl McCutchan (graphic arts)
  • almond-0.2.9.js
  • base64-js-1.2.0.js
  • FileSaver-b8054a2.js
  • font-awesome-4.5.0
  • game-up-camera-1.0.0.js
  • he-1.1.1.js
  • himalaya-0.2.7.js
  • jama-1.0.2
  • jquery-2.1.0.js
  • lodash-4.17.4.js
  • pegjs-0.7.0.js
  • seedrandom-2.4.2.js
  • text-2.0.12.js
  • TextEncoderLite-3c9f6f0.js