Which of the following are not transverse waves?
a) Wind (Airy) waves on the ocean.
b) Water ripples in a small pool.
c) Microwaves inside a microwave oven.
d) Vibrations travelling on the string of a guitar.
e) Radio waves travelling through space.
f) Vibrations travelling on the surface of a drum.
g) Pressure fluctuation waves travelling through air.
h) Sound waves travelling through water.
To determine which of the following are not transverse waves, let's first understand what transverse waves are. Transverse waves are waves in which the particles of the medium move perpendicular to the direction of the wave propagation. In other words, the oscillations of the particles occur perpendicular to the direction in which the wave moves.
Now, let's analyze each option and determine if they are transverse waves:
a) Wind (Airy) waves on the ocean: These waves are transverse waves as the water particles move up and down perpendicular to the direction of the wave propagation.
b) Water ripples in a small pool: Similar to wind waves on the ocean, water ripples in a small pool are also transverse waves. The water particles move up and down as the ripples propagate.
c) Microwaves inside a microwave oven: Microwaves are electromagnetic waves, and they are not transverse waves. They are actually classified as a type of electromagnetic radiation, which consists of oscillating electric and magnetic fields that are perpendicular to each other and to the wave's direction of propagation.
d) Vibrations traveling on the string of a guitar: These vibrations are transverse waves. The string oscillates perpendicular to the direction in which the wave moves.
e) Radio waves traveling through space: Radio waves are also electromagnetic waves and, hence, they are not transverse waves. Similar to microwaves, radio waves consist of oscillating electric and magnetic fields perpendicular to each other and to the wave's direction of propagation.
f) Vibrations traveling on the surface of a drum: These vibrations are transverse waves. The drumhead moves up and down orthogonal to the direction of the wave propagation.
g) Pressure fluctuation waves traveling through air: These waves are not transverse waves. They are called longitudinal waves, as the particles of the medium (air, in this case) move parallel to the direction of the wave propagation.
h) Sound waves traveling through water: Sound waves are also longitudinal waves. In this case, the particles of the medium (water) move parallel to the direction of wave propagation.
Based on the explanations above, the answers would be:
c) Microwaves inside a microwave oven (not a transverse wave)
g) Pressure fluctuation waves traveling through air (not a transverse wave)
h) Sound waves traveling through water (not a transverse wave)