WHAT IS RIPPLE TANK?

Ripple Tank

Ripple tank is a device to produced water waves and to study their characteristics.

This apparatus consist of a rectangular tray glass bottom and is placed nearly half meter above the surface of a table. Waves can be produced on the surface of the water present in the tray by means of vibrator (paddle).

ripple tank apparatus

This Vibrator is an oscillating electric motors fixed on a wooden plate over the tray such that its lower surface just touches the surface of water. On setting the vibrator ON,  this wooden plate stats vibrating to generate water waves consist of straight wave fronts. An electric bulb is hung above the tray of observer the image of water wave on the paper or screen. The crests and the through of the waves appear as bright and dark lines respectively, on the screen.

Now we explain the reflection of water waves with the helps of ripple tank. Placed the barrier in the ripple tank. The water wave will be reflect from the barrier. If the barrier is placed at an angle to the wave front, the reflected wave can be seen to obey the law of reflection i.e,the angle of the incident wave along the normal will be equal to the angle of the reflected wave. Therefore we characterize Reflection of Wave as:

When waves moving in one medium fall on the surface of another medium they skip again into the main medium with the end goal that the point of the occurrence is equivalent to the edge of reflection.

The speed of a wave in water depends on the depth of water. On the off chance that the square is submerged in the ripple tank, the profundity of water in the tank will be shall allow water their wavelength will diminishes. But the frequency of the water wave remain the same in both parts of water because it is equal to the frequency of the vibrator. 

For the perception of refraction of water waves, we rehash the above examination with the end goal that the limit between the profound and the shallower water is at some point to the wave front. Now we will observe that in addition to the change in wavelength, the waves change their direction of propagation as well. Note that the direction of propagation is always normal to the wave fronts. This change of path off water waves will passing through the region of deep water to that of shallower one is called Refraction which is define as:

When a wave from one medium enters into the second medium at some angle, its direction of travel changes.

Now we observe the phenomenon of diffraction of water waves. Generate Straight waves in a ripple tank and place two obstacles in line in such a way that separation between them is equal to the wavelength of water waves. In the wake of going through a little opening between the two deterrents, the waves will spread toward each path and change into practically half circle design.

Differentiation of water waves

Differentiation of waves can only be observed clearly if the size of the obstacles is comparable with the with the wavelength of the wave. Differentiation of waves while passing through a slit with size larger than the wavelength of the wave. Only a small differentiation is occurs near the corner of the obstacle.

The bending or spreading of the waves around the sharp edges or corner of obstacles or slits is called diffraction.