Class 12 Physics - Chapter Wave Optics NCERT Solutions | For sound waves, the Doppler formula for

Welcome to the NCERT Solutions for Class 12th Physics - Chapter Wave Optics. This page offers a step-by-step solution to the specific question from Exercise 1, Question 15: for sound waves the doppler formula for frequency....
Question 15

For sound waves, the Doppler formula for frequency shift differs slightly between the two situations:

(i) source at rest; observer moving, and

(ii) source moving; observer at rest.

The exact Doppler formulas for the case of light waves in vacuum are, however, strictly identical for these situations. Explain why this should be so. Would you expect the formulas to be strictly identical for the two situations in case of light travelling in a medium?

Answer

Sound waves require a material medium for propagation. That is why situation (i) and (ii) are not identical physically though relative motion between the source and the observer is the same in the two cases. Infact, relative motion of the observer relative to the medium is different in the two situations. That is why Doppler’s formulae for sound are different in the two cases.

For light waves travelling in vacuum, there is nothing to distinguish between the two situations. That is why the formulae are strictly identical.

For light propagating in a medium, situations (i) and (ii) are not identical. The formulae governing the two situations would obviously be different.

More Questions From Class 12 Physics - Chapter Wave Optics

Popular Questions of Class 12 Physics

Recently Viewed Questions of Class 12 Physics

Write a Comment: