Parametric equations
A stationary wave is what two waves of equal amplitude and frequency produce when they travel in opposite directions. This figure draws the equivalent closed form, so the nodes and antinodes are easy to compare:
- A is the amplitude.
- k is the wave number, the spatial frequency. It sets how many nodes and antinodes appear.
- ω is the angular speed in time. It sets how fast the wave oscillates.
Interaction
- Amplitude A: a larger value raises the crests, and the upper and lower envelopes open with it
- Spatial frequency k: change how many nodes and antinodes there are. Switching k grows the wave in again from the left end
- Time speed ω: set how fast the stationary wave oscillates
What to notice
- At a node the displacement stays zero. At an antinode the amplitude is largest.
- The envelopes do not travel as time passes.
- The drawn curve is that closed form, the sum of two opposite traveling waves, not one traveling wave.
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