4.3.1: Torsional Waves
- Page ID
- 26160
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A third type of wave is a torsional or twisting wave. If you stretch a slinky out between two points and gently twist it at one end, the twist will travel down the slinky as a wave pulse. This is an example of a torsional wave. We saw two YouTube examples of bridges undergoing torsional motion in the last chapter: twisting bridge, Tacoma Narrows. These were examples of standing torsional waves.
Video/audio examples:
- Transverse, longitudinal and torsional waves lecture.
- Longitudinal and transverse waves on a slinky.
- Animations of different wave types.
- Torsion pendulum lecture demo.
- Wilberforce Pendulum which converts up and down motion to twisting motion and back.