Waves Concepts
22 concepts · Grades 6-8, 9-12 · 37 prerequisite connections
Waves carry energy without carrying matter. A ripple on a pond, the sound of a guitar string, and the light from a phone screen are all wave phenomena. Students learn the universal wave properties — wavelength, frequency, amplitude, and speed — then see how these properties explain reflection, refraction, diffraction, and interference. The wave family connects to sound (longitudinal waves), light (electromagnetic waves), and the full electromagnetic spectrum from radio to gamma rays.
This family view narrows the full physics map to one connected cluster. Read it from left to right: earlier nodes support later ones, and dense middle sections usually mark the concepts that hold the largest share of future work together.
Use the graph to plan review, then use the full concept list below to open precise pages for definitions, examples, formulas, and related guides.
Concept Dependency Graph
Concepts flow left to right, from foundational to advanced. Hover to highlight connections. Click any concept to learn more.
Connected Families
Waves concepts have 10 connections to other families.
All Waves Concepts
Waves
A disturbance that transfers energy and information through space or a medium without permanently displacing the matter it travels through.
Wavelength
Wavelength is the distance between two consecutive identical points on a wave, such as from one peak to the next peak or one trough to.
Frequency
The number of complete wave cycles passing a fixed point per second, measured in hertz (Hz).
Amplitude
The maximum displacement of a wave from its equilibrium (rest) position, measuring the wave's strength or intensity.
Wave Speed
Wave speed is the distance a wave pattern travels each second through a medium.
Transverse Wave
A wave in which the particles of the medium oscillate perpendicular to the direction of wave propagation.
Longitudinal Wave
A wave in which the particles of the medium oscillate parallel to the direction of wave propagation, creating alternating regions of compression (high pressure) and.
Sound
A longitudinal mechanical wave that travels through a medium (solid, liquid, or gas) via alternating compressions and rarefactions of particles.
Electromagnetic Waves
Transverse waves consisting of oscillating electric and magnetic fields that are perpendicular to each other and to the direction of propagation.
Electromagnetic Spectrum
The complete continuum of all electromagnetic waves, organized in order of increasing frequency (or decreasing wavelength).
Diffraction
The spreading of a wave as it passes through a gap or around the edge of an obstacle.
Interference
The phenomenon that occurs when two or more waves overlap in space, combining their displacements at every point according to the principle of superposition.
Doppler Effect
The change in the observed frequency (and wavelength) of a wave when the source and the observer are in relative motion.
Period
The time required for one complete cycle of a repeating wave or oscillation to occur, measured in seconds.
Intensity
Wave intensity is the power carried by a wave through each unit of area.
Speed of Sound
The speed of sound is how fast a sound wave travels through a medium.
Pressure Wave
A pressure wave is a longitudinal wave made of alternating regions of higher and lower pressure moving through a medium.
Pitch
Pitch is how high or low a sound seems to a listener. It is mainly determined by the frequency of the sound wave.
Loudness
Loudness is how strong or weak a sound seems to a listener.
Standing Waves
Standing waves are wave patterns that stay in place, formed when two waves of the same frequency and amplitude travel in opposite directions and interfere.
Harmonics
Harmonics are the allowed standing-wave frequencies of a vibrating system. The first harmonic is the fundamental frequency, and higher harmonics are whole-number multiples of it.
Resonance
Resonance occurs when a system is driven at or near one of its natural frequencies, causing the amplitude of its oscillation to grow strongly.