Two Source Sound Interference

A popular Physics demonstration involves the interference of two sound

waves from two speakers. The speakers are set approximately 1-meter apart
and produced identical tones. The two sound waves traveled through the air
in front of the speakers, spreading out through the room in spherical fashion.
A snapshot in time of the appearance of these waves is shown in the
diagram below. In the diagram, the compressions of a wavefront are
represented by a thick line and the rarefactions are represented by thin
lines. These two waves interfere in such a manner as to produce locations of
some loud sounds and other locations of no sound. Of course the loud
sounds are heard at locations where compressions meet compressions or
rarefactions meet rarefactions and the "no sound" locations appear wherever
the compressions of one of the waves meet the rarefactions of the other
wave. If you were to plug one ear and turn the other ear towards the place of
the speakers and then slowly walk across the room parallel to the plane of
the speakers, then you would encounter an amazing phenomenon. You
would alternatively hear loud sounds as you approached anti-nodal locations
and virtually no sound as you approached nodal locations. (As would
commonly be observed, the nodal locations are not true nodal locations due
to reflections of sound waves off the walls. These reflections tend to fill the
entire room with reflected sound. Even though the sound waves that reach
the nodal locations directly from the speakers destructively interfere, other
waves reflecting off the walls tend to reach that same location to produce a
pressure disturbance.)

Destructive interference of sound waves becomes an important issue in the

design of concert halls and auditoriums. The rooms must be designed in such
as way as to reduce the amount of destructive interference. Interference can
occur as the result of sound from two speakers meeting at the same location
as well as the result of sound from a speaker meeting with sound reflected
off the walls and ceilings. If the sound arrives at a given location such that
compressions meet rarefactions, then destructive interference will occur
resulting in a reduction in the loudness of the sound at that location. One
means of reducing the severity of destructive interference is by the design of
walls, ceilings, and baffles that serve to absorb sound rather than reflect it.

The destructive interference of sound waves can also be used

advantageously in noise reduction systems. Earphones have been
produced that can be used by factory and construction workers to reduce the
noise levels on their jobs. Such earphones capture sound from the
environment and use computer technology to produce a second sound wave
that one-half cycle out of phase. The combination of these two sound waves
within the headset will result in destructive interference and thus reduce a
worker's exposure to loud noise.

The Doppler Effect and Shock Waves

The Doppler effect is a phenomenon observed whenever the source of waves
is moving with respect to an observer. The Doppler effect can be described
as the effect produced by a moving source of waves in which there is an
apparent upward shift in frequency for the observer and the source are
approaching and an apparent downward shift in frequency when the
observer and the source is receding. The Doppler effect can be observed to
occur with all types of waves - most notably water waves, sound waves, and
light waves.

We are most familiar with the Doppler effect because of our experiences with
sound waves. Perhaps you recall an instance in which a police car or
emergency vehicle was traveling towards you on the highway. As the car
approached with its siren blasting, the pitch of the siren sound (a measure of
the siren's frequency) was high; and then suddenly after the car passed by,
the pitch of the siren sound was low. That was the Doppler effect - a shift in
the apparent frequency for a sound wave produced by a moving source.
Another common experience is the shift in apparent frequency of the sound
of a train horn. As the train approaches, the sound of its horn is heard at a
high pitch and as the train moved away, the sound of its horn is heard at a
low pitch. This is the Doppler effect.

A common Physics demonstration the use of a large Nerf ball equipped with
a buzzer that produces a sound with a constant frequency. The Nerf ball is
then thrown around the room. As the ball approaches you, you observe a
higher pitch than when the ball is at rest. And when the ball is thrown away
from you, you observe a lower pitch than when the ball is at rest. This is the
Doppler effect.

Explaining the Doppler Effect

The Doppler effect is observed because the distance between the source of
sound and the observer is changing. If the source and the observer are
approaching, then the distance is decreasing and if the source and the
observer are receding, then the distance is increasing. The source of sound
always emits the same frequency. Therefore, for the same period of time,
the same number of waves must fit between the source and the observer. if
the distance is large, then the waves can be spread apart; but if the distance
is small, the waves must be compressed into the smaller distance. For these
reasons, if the source is moving towards the observer, the observer
perceives sound waves reaching him or her at a more frequent rate (high
pitch). And if the source is moving away from the observer, the observer
perceives sound waves reaching him or her at a less frequent rate (low
pitch). It is important to note that the effect does not result because of
an actual change in the frequency of the source. The source puts out the
same frequency; the observer only perceives a different frequency because
of the relative motion between them. The Doppler effect is a shift in the
apparent or observed frequency and not a shift in the actual frequency at
which the source vibrates.

Standing Wave Patterns

All objects have a frequency or set of frequencies with which they naturally
vibrate when struck, plucked, strummed or somehow disturbed. Each of the
natural frequencies at which an object vibrates is associated with a standing
wave pattern. When an object is forced into resonance vibrations at one of
its natural frequencies, it vibrates in a manner such that a standing wave is
formed within the object. A standing wave pattern was described as a
vibrational pattern created within a medium when the vibrational frequency
of a source causes reflected waves from one end of the medium
to interfere with incident waves from the source. The result of the
interference is that specific points along the medium appear to be standing
still while other points vibrated back and forth. Such patterns are only
created within the medium at specific frequencies of vibration. These
frequencies are known as harmonic frequencies or merely harmonics. At
any frequency other than a harmonic frequency, the interference of reflected
and incident waves results in a disturbance of the medium that is irregular
and non-repeating.

Natural Frequencies and Vibrational Patterns

So the natural frequencies of an object are merely the harmonic frequencies
at which standing wave patterns are established within the object. These
standing wave patterns represent the lowest energy vibrational modes of
the object. While there are countless ways by which an object can vibrate
(each associated with a specific frequency), objects favor only a few
specific modes or patterns of vibrating. The favored modes (patterns) of
vibration are those that result in the highest amplitude vibrations with the
least input of energy. Objects favor these natural modes of vibration because
they are representative of the patterns that require the least amount of
energy. Objects are most easily forced into resonance vibrations when
disturbed at frequencies associated with these natural frequencies.

The wave pattern associated with the natural frequencies of an object is

characterized by points that appear to be standing still. For this reason, the
pattern is often called a "standing wave pattern." The points in the pattern
that are standing still are referred to as nodal points or nodal positions.
These positions occur as the result of the destructive interference of incident
and reflected waves. Each nodal point is surrounded by antinodal points,
creating an alternating pattern of nodal and antinodal points. In this unit, we
will elaborate on the essential characteristics and the causes of standing
wave patterns and relate these patterns to the vibrations of musical
instruments.

Chladni Plates
A common Physics demonstration utilizes a square metal plate (known as a
Chladni plate), a violin bow and salt. The plate is securely fastened to a table
using a nut and bolt. The nut and bolt are clamped to the center of
the square plate, preventing that section from vibrating. Salt (or
sand) is sprinkled upon the plate in an irregular pattern. Then the
violin bow is used to induce vibrations within the plate; the plate
is strummed and begins vibrating. And then the magic occurs. A
high-pitched pure tone is sounded out as the plate vibrates. And,
remarkably (as is often the case in a physics class), the salt upon the
plate begins vibrating and forms a pattern upon the plate. As we
know, all objects (even a silly little metal plate) have a set of natural
frequencies at which they vibrate; and each frequency is associated
with a standing wave pattern. The pattern formed by the salt on the plate is
the standing wave pattern associated with one of the natural frequencies of
the Chladni plate. As the plate vibrates, the salt begins to vibrate and tumble
about the plate until it reaches points along the plate that are not vibrating.
Subsequently, the salt finally comes to rest along the nodal positions. The
diagrams at the right show two of the most common standing wave patterns
for the Chladni plates. The white lines represent the salt locations (nodal
positions). Observe in the diagram that each pattern is characterized by
nodal positions in the corners of the square plate and in the center of the
plate. For these two particular vibrational modes, those positions are unable
to move. Being unable to move, they become nodal points - points of no
displacement.

Flickr Physics Photo

Salt is sprinkled onto a metal plate. The plate is strummed with a violin bow
and set into vibration. The salt crystals vibrate about the plate until they
settle onto positions of nodes (points of no displacement). Several patterns
can be obtained, each associated with a unique frequency of vibrations.
These standing wave patterns are known as Chladni patterns, named in
honor of a 19th century German physicist who advanced our understanding
of acoustics and the physics of music.
Standing Wave Patterns for Vibrating Strings
The diagram below depicts one of the natural patterns of vibrations for a
guitar string. In the pattern, you will note that there are certain positions
along the string (the medium) that appear to be standing still. These
positions are referred to as nodes and are labeled on the diagram. In
between each nodal position, there are other positions that appear to be
vibrating back and forth between a large upward displacements to a large
downward displacement. These points are referred to as antinodes and are
also labeled on the diagram. There is an alternating pattern of nodal and
antinodal positions in a standing wave pattern.

Because the antinodal positions along the guitar string are vibrating back
and forth from a large upward displacement to a large downward
displacement, the standing wave pattern is often depicted by a diagram such
as that shown below.

The pattern above is not the only pattern of vibration for a

guitar string. There are a variety of patterns by which the
guitar string could naturally vibrate. Each pattern is
associated with one of the natural frequencies of the
guitar strings. Three other patterns are shown in the
diagrams at the right. Each standing wave pattern is
referred to as a harmonic of the instrument (in this case,
the guitar string). The three diagrams at the right
represent the standing wave patterns for the first, second, and third
harmonics of a guitar string.

There are a variety of other low energy vibrational patterns that could be
established in the string. For guitar strings, each pattern is characterized by
some basic traits:

 There is an alternating pattern of nodes and antinodes.

 There are either a half-number or a whole number of waves within the
pattern established on the string.
 Nodal positions (points of no displacement) are established at the ends of
the string where the string is clamped down in a fixed position.
 One pattern is related to the next pattern by the addition (or subtraction)
of one or more nodes (and antinodes).

Fundamental Frequency and Harmonics

When an object is forced into resonance vibrations at one of its natural
frequencies, it vibrates in a manner such that a standing wave pattern is
formed within the object. Whether it is a guitar sting, a Chladni plate, or the
air column enclosed within a trombone, the vibrating medium vibrates in
such a way that a standing wave pattern results. Each natural frequency that
an object or instrument produces has its own characteristic vibrational mode
or standing wave pattern. These patterns are only created within the object
or instrument at specific frequencies of vibration; these frequencies are
known as harmonic frequencies, or merely harmonics. At any frequency
other than a harmonic frequency, the resulting disturbance of the medium is
irregular and non-repeating. For musical instruments and other objects that
vibrate in regular and periodic fashion, the harmonic frequencies are related
to each other by simple whole number ratios. This is part of the reason why
such instruments sound pleasant. We will see in this part of Lesson 4 why
these whole number ratios exist for a musical instrument.

Recognizing the Length-Wavelength Relationship

First, consider a guitar string vibrating at its natural frequency or harmonic
frequency. Because the ends of the string are attached and fixed in place to
the guitar's structure (the bridge at one end and the frets at the other), the
ends of the string are unable to move. Subsequently, these ends become
nodes - points of no displacement. In between these two nodes at the end of
the string, there must be at least one antinode. The most fundamental
harmonic for a guitar string is the harmonic associated with a standing wave
having only one antinode positioned between the two
nodes on the end of the string. This would be the
harmonic with the longest wavelength and the lowest frequency. The lowest
frequency produced by any particular instrument is known as
the fundamental frequency. The fundamental frequency is also called
the first harmonic of the instrument. The diagram at the right shows the
first harmonic of a guitar string. If you analyze the wave pattern in the guitar
string for this harmonic, you will notice that there is not quite one complete
wave within the pattern. A complete wave starts at the rest position, rises to
a crest, returns to rest, drops to a trough, and finally returns to the rest
position before starting its next cycle. (Caution: the use of the words crest
and trough to describe the pattern are only used to help identify the length
of a repeating wave cycle. A standing wave pattern is not actually a wave,
but rather a pattern of a wave. Thus, it does not consist of crests and
troughs, but rather nodes and antinodes. The pattern is the result of
the interference of two waves to produce these nodes and antinodes.) In this
pattern, there is only one-half of a wave within the length of the string. This
is the case for the first harmonic or fundamental frequency of a guitar string.
The diagram below depicts this length-wavelength relationship for the
fundamental frequency of a guitar string.

The second harmonic of a guitar string is produced by

adding one more node between the ends of the guitar
string. And of course, if a node is added to the pattern,
then an antinode must be added as well in order to
maintain an alternating pattern of nodes and antinodes. In
order to create a regular and repeating pattern, that node
must be located midway between the ends of the guitar string. This
additional node gives the second harmonic a total of three nodes and two
antinodes. The standing wave pattern for the second harmonic is shown at
the right. A careful investigation of the pattern reveals that there is exactly
one full wave within the length of the guitar string. For this reason, the
length of the string is equal to the length of the wave.

The third harmonic of a guitar string is produced by adding

two nodes between the ends of the guitar string. And of
course, if two nodes are added to the pattern, then two
antinodes must be added as well in order to maintain an alternating pattern
of nodes and antinodes. In order to create a regular and repeating pattern
for this harmonic, the two additional nodes must be evenly spaced between
the ends of the guitar string. This places them at the one-third mark and the
two-thirds mark along the string. These additional nodes give the third
harmonic a total of four nodes and three antinodes. The standing wave
pattern for the third harmonic is shown at the right. A careful investigation of
the pattern reveals that there is more than one full wave within the length of
the guitar string. In fact, there are three-halves of a wave within the length
of the guitar string. For this reason, the length of the string is equal to three-
halves the length of the wave. The diagram below depicts this length-
wavelength relationship for the fundamental frequency of a guitar string.

For a third harmonic of a guitar string, these are three-halves of a wave

within the length of the string

After a discussion of the first three harmonics, a pattern can be recognized.

Each harmonic results in an additional node and antinode, and an additional
half of a wave within the string. If the number of waves in a string is known,
then an equation relating the wavelength of the standing wave pattern to the
length of the string can be algebraically derived.

This information is summarized in the table below.

 # of # of Length-
Harmonic # of
Waves Anti- Wavelength
# Nodes
in String nodes Relationship
1 1/2 2 1 Wavelength = (2/1)*L
2 1 or 2/2 3 2 Wavelength = (2/2)*L
3 3/2 4 3 Wavelength = (2/3)*L
4 2 or 4/2 5 4 Wavelength = (2/4)*L
5 5/2 6 5 Wavelength = (2/5)*L

The above discussion develops the mathematical relationship between the

length of a guitar string and the wavelength of the standing wave patterns
for the various harmonics that could be established within the string. Now
these length-wavelength relationships will be used to develop relationships
for the ratio of the wavelengths and the ratio of the frequencies for the
various harmonics played by a string instrument (such as a guitar string).

Determining the Harmonic Frequencies

Consider an 80-cm long guitar string that has a fundamental frequency (1st
harmonic) of 400 Hz. For the first harmonic, the wavelength of the wave
pattern would be two times the length of the string (see table above); thus,
the wavelength is 160 cm or 1.60 m. The speed of the standing wave can
now be determined from the wavelength and the frequency. The speed of
the standing wave is

speed = frequency • wavelength

speed = 400 Hz • 1.6 m
speed = 640 m/s

This speed of 640 m/s corresponds to the speed of any wave within the
guitar string. Since the speed of a wave is dependent upon the properties of
the medium (and not upon the properties of the wave), every wave will have
the same speed in this string regardless of its frequency and its wavelength.
So the standing wave pattern associated with the second harmonic, third
harmonic, fourth harmonic, etc. will also have this speed of 640 m/s. A
change in frequency or wavelength will NOT cause a change in speed.

Using the table above, the wavelength of the second harmonic (denoted by
the symbol λ2) would be 0.8 m (the same as the length of the string). The
speed of the standing wave pattern (denoted by the symbol v) is still 640
m/s. Now the wave equation can be used to determine the frequency of the
second harmonic (denoted by the symbol f2).

speed = frequency • wavelength

frequency = speed/wavelength
f2 = v / λ 2
f2 = (640 m/s)/(0.8 m)
f2 = 800 Hz

This same process can be repeated for the third harmonic. Using the table
above, the wavelength of the third harmonic (denoted by the symbol λ3)
would be 0.533 m (two-thirds of the length of the string). The speed of the
standing wave pattern (denoted by the symbol v) is still 640 m/s. Now the
wave equation can be used to determine the frequency of the third harmonic
(denoted by the symbol f3).

speed = frequency • wavelength

frequency = speed/wavelength
f3 = v / λ 3
f3 = (640 m/s)/(0.533 m)
f3 = 1200 Hz

Now if you have been following along, you will have recognized a pattern.
The frequency of the second harmonic is two times the frequency of the first
harmonic. The frequency of the third harmonic is three times the frequency
of the first harmonic. The frequency of the nth harmonic (where n represents
the harmonic # of any of the harmonics) is n times the frequency of the first
harmonic. In equation form, this can be written as

fn = n • f1

The inverse of this pattern exists for the wavelength values of the various
harmonics. The wavelength of the second harmonic is one-half (1/2) the
wavelength of the first harmonic. The wavelength of the third harmonic is
one-third (1/3) the wavelength of the first harmonic. And the wavelength of
the nth harmonic is one-nth (1/n) the wavelength of the first harmonic. In
equation form, this can be written as

λn = (1/n) • λ1

These relationships between wavelengths and frequencies of the various

harmonics for a guitar string are summarized in the table below.

Harmonic Frequency Wavelength Speed

fn / f 1 λn / λ 1
# (Hz) (m) (m/s)
1 400 1.60 640 1 1/1
2 800 0.800 640 2 1/2
3 1200 0.533 640 3 1/3
4 1600 0.400 640 4 1/4
5 2000 0.320 640 5 1/5
n n * 400 (2/n)*(0.800) 640 n 1/n

The table above demonstrates that the individual frequencies in the set of
natural frequencies produced by a guitar string are related to each other
by whole number ratios. For instance, the first and second harmonics have
a 2:1 frequency ratio; the second and the third harmonics have a 3:2
frequency ratio; the third and the fourth harmonics have a 4:3 frequency
ratio; and the fifth and the fourth harmonic have a 5:4 frequency ratio. When
the guitar is played, the string, sound box and surrounding air vibrate at a
set of frequencies to produce a wave with a mixture of harmonics. The exact
composition of that mixture determines the timbre or quality of sound that
is heard. If there is only a single harmonic sounding out in the mixture (in
which case, it wouldn't be a mixture), then the sound is rather pure-
sounding. On the other hand, if there are a variety of frequencies sounding
out in the mixture, then the timbre of the sound is rather rich in quality.