[Physltest] [Phys-L] Re: flipping over upon reflection

[Bernard Cleyet <anngeorg@PACBELL.NET>]

I should leave this to a more ...

But I can't resist.  The usual method is totally artificial. A wave
moves in the opposite direction so when the two meat at the interface,
the boundary condix are satisfied.  This is shown in numerous texts for
both a fixed end and an open end.  I guess in your case it is in between
the two.  I bet there's an animation showing this in 'slo mo" on the webb.

bc, who often rushes in.

Michael J. Moloney wrote:

> A student inquired today about pulses reflecting and possibly flipping over at,
> say, the boundary between two strings.
>
> When a pulse on a string reflects from a boundary with a more massive string,
> the reflected wave is inverted. This follows from the displacement and slope
> being continuous at the boundary. The flipping over requires a shorter
> wavelength (and lower phase velocity) and longer k-vector in the second medium.
>
> But I have no qualitative argument for this, without using equations.
>
> Does anyone have a qualitative argument for this behavior, without the
> equations: slower wave speed in the second medium (larger k, smaller
> wavelength) causes the reflected wave to be flipped over?
>
> Mike
>
> --
> Mike Moloney, Physics & Optical Engineering Department
> Rose-Hulman Inst of Tech, 812 877 8302
> moloney@rose-hulman.edu   http://www.rose-hulman.edu/~moloney
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