Almost All About Waves

by John R. Pierce

This text considers waves the great unifying concept of physics. With minimal mathematics, it emphasizes the behavior common to specific phenomena—earthquake waves studied by seismologists; waves and ripples on oceans, lakes, and ponds; waves of sound that travel through the air; mechanical waves in stretched strings and in quartz crystals that can be used to control the frequency of radio transmitters; electromagnetic waves that constitute light, and that are radiated by radio transmitters and received by radio receivers; and the waves of probability employed in quantum mechanics to predict the behavior of electrons, atoms, and complex substances.
Starting with a look at the strength and power of sinusoidal waves, author John R. Pierce explores wave media and modes, phase velocity and group velocity, vector and complex representation, energy and momentum, coupled modes and coupling between modes, polarization, diffraction, and radiation. References and an index appear at the end of the book.

Genres: Physics

Kindle Edition

First published April 6, 2015

About the author

John Robinson Pierce (John R.^^Pierce)

Reviews

[Claire Binkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book funny, but I also found my previous courses in Physics entertaining, as well, so that is only to be expected. It seemed like as reasonable a primer on waves as I could find without consulting anyone directly for help.

There are waves all around us, and this author explains what he knows about them without getting too technical. Maybe a little technical, but not terrible, and there's always recourse when stuck. TI-81s not required.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short introduction with a lot of math, but with much discussion on what is going on. This is a deep enough subject that even a supposedly simple introduction is plenty complicated, and it would take a LOT of study to understand it very well. I went through this quickly to get a feel for the subject, mostly to better understand a vibration problem I have on my job. This book did help me with that.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written book on waves. Pierce does go into the basic physics of TWTs (Traveling Wave Tubes) which is refreshing and entertaining.