Resonance
In physics, resonance refers to a wide class of phenomena that arise as a result of matching temporal or spatial periods of oscillatory objects. For an oscillatory dynamical systems driven by a time-varying external force, resonance occurs when the frequency of the external force coincides with the natural frequency of the system.[3] Resonance can occur in various systems, such as mechanical, electrical, or acoustic systems, and it is desirable in certain applications, such as musical instruments or radio receivers. Resonance can also be undesirable, leading to excessive vibrations or even structural failure in some cases.
This article is about resonance in physics. For other uses, see Resonance (disambiguation).
All systems, including molecular systems and particles, tend to vibrate at a natural frequency depending upon their structure; this frequency is known as a resonant frequency or resonance frequency. When an oscillating force, an external vibration, is applied at a resonant frequency of a dynamic system, object, or particle, the outside vibration will cause the system to oscillate at a higher amplitude (with more force) than when the same force is applied at other, non-resonant frequencies.[4]
The resonant frequencies of a system can be identified when the response to an external vibration creates an amplitude that is a relative maximum within the system.[4] Small periodic forces that are near a resonant frequency of the system have the ability to produce large amplitude oscillations in the system due to the storage of vibrational energy.
Resonance phenomena occur with all types of vibrations or waves: there is mechanical resonance, orbital resonance, acoustic resonance, electromagnetic resonance, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), electron spin resonance (ESR) and resonance of quantum wave functions. Resonant systems can be used to generate vibrations of a specific frequency (e.g., musical instruments), or pick out specific frequencies from a complex vibration containing many frequencies (e.g., filters).
The term resonance (from Latin resonantia, 'echo', from resonare, 'resound') originated from the field of acoustics, particularly the sympathetic resonance observed in musical instruments, e.g., when one string starts to vibrate and produce sound after a different one is struck.
Overview[edit]
Resonance occurs when a system is able to store and easily transfer energy between two or more different storage modes (such as kinetic energy and potential energy in the case of a simple pendulum). However, there are some losses from cycle to cycle, called damping. When damping is small, the resonant frequency is approximately equal to the natural frequency of the system, which is a frequency of unforced vibrations. Some systems have multiple, distinct, resonant frequencies.
A familiar example is a playground swing, which acts as a pendulum. Pushing a person in a swing in time with the natural interval of the swing (its resonant frequency) makes the swing go higher and higher (maximum amplitude), while attempts to push the swing at a faster or slower tempo produce smaller arcs.[5]: p.2-24 This is because the energy the swing absorbs is maximized when the pushes match the swing's natural oscillations.
Resonance occurs widely in nature, and is exploited in many devices. It is the mechanism by which virtually all sinusoidal waves and vibrations are generated. For example, when hard objects like metal, glass, or wood are struck, there are brief resonant vibrations in the object.[5]: p.2-24 Light and other short wavelength electromagnetic radiation is produced by resonance on an atomic scale, such as electrons in atoms. Other examples of resonance include:
is called the undamped of the oscillator or the natural frequency,
angular frequency
is called the damping ratio.
is the of the left- and right-traveling waves interfering to form the standing wave,
amplitude
is the ,
wave number
is the .
frequency
Resonance in complex networks[edit]
A generalization to complex networks of coupled harmonic oscillators shows that such systems have a finite number of natural resonant frequencies, related to the topological structure of the network itself. In particular, such frequencies result related to the eigenvalues of the network's Laplacian matrix. Let be the adjacency matrix describing the topological structure of the network and the corresponding Laplacian matrix, where is the diagonal matrix of the degrees of the network's nodes. Then, for a network of classical and identical harmonic oscillators, when a sinusoidal driving force is applied to a specific node, the global resonant frequencies of the network are given by where are the eigenvalues of the Laplacian .[12]
Disadvantages[edit]
A column of soldiers marching in regular step on a narrow and structurally flexible bridge can set it into dangerously large amplitude oscillations. On April 12, 1831, the Broughton Suspension Bridge near Salford, England collapsed while a group of British soldiers were marching across.[18] Since then, the British Army has had a standing order for soldiers to break stride when marching across bridges, to avoid resonance from their regular marching pattern affecting the bridge.[19][20]
Vibrations of a motor or engine can induce resonant vibration in its supporting structures if their natural frequency is close to that of the vibrations of the engine. A common example is the rattling sound of a bus body when the engine is left idling.
Structural resonance of a suspension bridge induced by winds can lead to its catastrophic collapse. Several early suspension bridges in Europe and United States were destroyed by structural resonance induced by modest winds. The collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge on 7 November 1940 is characterized in physics as a classic example of resonance.[21] It has been argued by Robert H. Scanlan and others that the destruction was instead caused by aeroelastic flutter, a complicated interaction between the bridge and the winds passing through it—an example of a self oscillation, or a kind of "self-sustaining vibration" as referred to in the nonlinear theory of vibrations.[22]