3/6/2017 IntensityandtheDecibelScale

IntensityandtheDecibelScale
PitchandFrequency
IntensityandtheDecibelScale
TheSpeedofSound
TheHumanEar

Soundwavesareintroducedintoamediumbythevibrationofanobject.Forexample,avibratingguitar
stringforcessurroundingairmoleculestobecompressedandexpanded,creatingapressure
disturbanceconsistingofanalternatingpatternofcompressionsand
rarefactions.Thedisturbancethentravelsfromparticletoparticle
throughthemedium,transportingenergyasitmoves.Theenergythat
iscarriedbythedisturbancewasoriginallyimpartedtothemediumby
thevibratingstring.Theamountofenergythatistransferredtothe
mediumisdependentupontheamplitudeofvibrationsoftheguitar
string.Ifmoreenergyisputintothepluckingofthestring(thatis,
moreworkisdonetodisplacethestringagreateramountfromitsrest
position),thenthestringvibrateswithagreateramplitude.The
greateramplitudeofvibrationoftheguitarstringthusimpartsmoreenergytothemedium,causingair
particlestobedisplacedagreaterdistancefromtheirrestposition.Subsequently,theamplitudeof
vibrationoftheparticlesofthemediumisincreased,correspondingtoanincreasedamount
ofenergybeingcarriedbytheparticles.Thisrelationshipbetweenenergyandamplitudewasdiscussed
inmoredetailinapreviousunit.

SoundIntensityandDistance
Theamountofenergythatistransportedpastagivenareaofthemediumperunitoftimeisknownas
theintensityofthesoundwave.Thegreatertheamplitudeofvibrationsoftheparticlesofthe
medium,thegreatertherateatwhichenergyistransportedthroughit,andthemoreintensethat
thesoundwaveis.Intensityistheenergy/time/areaandsincetheenergy/timeratioisequivalentto
thequantitypower,intensityissimplythepower/area.

TypicalunitsforexpressingtheintensityofasoundwaveareWatts/meter2.
Asasoundwavecarriesitsenergythroughatwodimensionalorthreedimensionalmedium,
theintensityofthesoundwavedecreaseswithincreasingdistancefromthesource.Thedecrease
inintensitywithincreasingdistanceisexplainedbythefactthatthewaveis
spreadingoutoveracircular(2dimensions)orspherical(3dimensions)surface
andthustheenergyofthesoundwaveisbeingdistributedoveragreatersurface
area.Thediagramattherightshowsthatthesoundwaveina2dimensional
mediumisspreadingoutinspaceoveracircularpattern.Sinceenergyis
conservedandtheareathroughwhichthisenergyistransportedisincreasing,
theintensity(beingaquantitythatismeasuredona perarea
basis)must
decrease.

Themathematicalrelationshipbetweenintensityanddistanceissometimes
referredtoasaninversesquarerelationship.Theintensityvariesinverselywiththesquareofthe
distancefromthesource.Soifthedistancefromthesourceisdoubled(increasedbyafactorof2),then
theintensityisquartered(decreasedbyafactorof4).Similarly,ifthedistancefromthesourceis
quadrupled,thentheintensityisdecreasedbyafactorof16.Appliedtothediagramattheright,
theintensityatpointBisonefourththeintensityaspointAandtheintensityatpointCisonesixteenth
theintensityatpointA.Sincetheintensitydistancerelationshipisaninverserelationship,anincreasein
onequantitycorrespondstoadecreaseintheotherquantity.Andsincetheintensitydistance
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/sound/Lesson2/IntensityandtheDecibelScale
relationshipisaninversesquarerelationship,whateverfactorbywhichthedistanceisincreased, 1/2
3/6/2017 IntensityandtheDecibelScale

theintensityisdecreasedbyafactorequaltothesquareofthe distancechangefactor
.Thesample
datainthetablebelowillustratetheinversesquarerelationshipbetweenpoweranddistance.

Distance Intensity
1m 160units
2m 40units
3m 17.8units
4m 10units

TheThresholdofHearingandtheDecibelScale
Humansareequippedwithverysensitiveearscapableofdetectingsoundwavesofextremely
lowintensity.Thefaintestsoundthatthetypicalhumanearcandetecthasanintensityof1*10
12 W/m2 .Thisintensitycorrespondstoapressurewaveinwhichacompressionoftheparticlesofthe

mediumincreasestheairpressureinthatcompressionalregionbyamere0.3billionthofan
atmosphere.Asoundwithanintensityof1*1012W/m2correspondstoasoundthatwilldisplace
particlesofairbyamereonebillionthofacentimeter.Thehumanearcandetectsuchasound.WOW!
Thisfaintestsoundthatahumanearcandetectisknownasthethresholdofhearing(TOH).The
mostintensesoundthattheearcansafelydetectwithoutsufferinganyphysicaldamageismorethan
onebilliontimesmoreintensethanthethresholdofhearing.
Sincetherangeofintensitiesthatthehumanearcandetectissolarge,thescalethatisfrequentlyused
byphysiciststomeasureintensityisascalebasedonpowersof10.Thistypeofscaleissometimes
referredtoasalogarithmicscale.Thescaleformeasuringintensityisthedecibelscale.Thethreshold
ofhearingisassignedasoundlevelof0decibels(abbreviated0dB)thissoundcorrespondsto
anintensityof1*1012W/m2.Asoundthatis10timesmoreintense(1*1011W/m2)isassigned
asoundlevelof10dB.Asoundthatis10*10or100timesmoreintense(1*1010W/m2)isassigned
asoundlevelof20db.Asoundthatis10*10*10or1000timesmoreintense(1*109W/m2)isassigned
asoundlevelof30db.Asoundthatis10*10*10*10or10000timesmoreintense(1*108W/m2)is
assignedasoundlevelof40db.Observethatthisscaleisbasedonpowersof10.Ifonesoundis
10xtimesmoreintensethananothersound,thenithasasoundlevelthatis10*xmoredecibelsthan
thelessintensesound.Thetablebelowlistssomecommonsoundswithanestimateof
theirintensityanddecibellevel.
#ofTimes
Source Intensity IntensityLevel
GreaterThanTOH
ThresholdofHearing(TOH) 1*1012W/m2 0dB 100
RustlingLeaves 1*1011W/m2 10dB 101
Whisper 1*1010W/m2 20dB 102
NormalConversation 1*106W/m2 60dB 106
BusyStreetTraffic 1*105W/m2 70dB 107
VacuumCleaner 1*104W/m2 80dB 108
LargeOrchestra 6.3*103W/m2 98dB 109.8
WalkmanatMaximumLevel 1*102W/m2 100dB 1010
FrontRowsofRockConcert 1*101W/m2 110dB 1011
ThresholdofPain 1*101W/m2 130dB 1013
MilitaryJetTakeoff 1*102W/m2 140dB 1014
InstantPerforationofEardrum 1*104W/m2 160dB 1016

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