If two waves of equal amplitude interfere, what is the maximum intensity observe
Practice Questions
Q1
If two waves of equal amplitude interfere, what is the maximum intensity observed?
A^2
2A^2
4A^2
A
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
If two waves of equal amplitude interfere, what is the maximum intensity observed?
Step 1: Understand that two waves can interfere with each other, which means they can combine their effects.
Step 2: Know that the intensity of a wave is related to the square of its amplitude. If the amplitude of one wave is A, its intensity is proportional to A^2.
Step 3: Since we have two waves of equal amplitude A, the intensity of each wave is A^2.
Step 4: When two waves interfere constructively (which is the case for maximum intensity), their amplitudes add up. So, the total amplitude becomes A + A = 2A.
Step 5: Now, calculate the maximum intensity using the total amplitude. The intensity is proportional to the square of the total amplitude: (2A)^2.
Step 6: Simplify (2A)^2 to get 4A^2. This means the maximum intensity observed when two waves of equal amplitude interfere is 4A^2.
