(a) Greater
The frequency of the nth-harmonic on a string is an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency, [tex]f_1[/tex]:
[tex]f_n = n f_1[/tex]
So we have:
- On wire A, the second-harmonic has frequency of [tex]f_2 = 660 Hz[/tex], so the fundamental frequency is:
[tex]f_1 = \frac{f_2}{2}=\frac{660 Hz}{2}=330 Hz[/tex]
- On wire B, the third-harmonic has frequency of [tex]f_3 = 660 Hz[/tex], so the fundamental frequency is
[tex]f_1 = \frac{f_3}{3}=\frac{660 Hz}{3}=220 Hz[/tex]
So, the fundamental frequency of wire A is greater than the fundamental frequency of wire B.
(b) [tex]f_1 = \frac{v}{2L}[/tex]
For standing waves on a string, the fundamental frequency is given by the formula:
[tex]f_1 = \frac{v}{2L}[/tex]
where
v is the speed at which the waves travel back and forth on the wire
L is the length of the string
(c) Greater speed on wire A
We can solve the formula of the fundamental frequency for v, the speed of the wave:
[tex]v=2Lf_1[/tex]
We know that the two wires have same length L. For wire A, [tex]f_1 = 330 Hz[/tex], while for wave B, [tex]f_B = 220 Hz[/tex], so we can write the ratio between the speeds of the waves in the two wires:
[tex]\frac{v_A}{v_B}=\frac{2L(330 Hz)}{2L(220 Hz)}=\frac{3}{2}[/tex]
So, the waves travel faster on wire A.