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S-wave

S Wave

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	S-wave can also refer to the lowest energy electronic wavefunction in atomic physics; see atomic orbital Atomic orbital An atomic orbital is a mathematical function that describes the wave-like behavior of an electron in an atom. This function can be used to calculate the probability of finding any electron of an atom in any specific region around the atom's nucleus.... . A type of seismic wave Seismic wave Seismic waves are waves that travel through the Earth or other elastic body, for example as the result of an earthquake, explosion, or some other process that imparts forces to the body.... , the S-wave, secondary wave, or shear wave (sometimes called an elastic S-wave) is one of the two main types of elastic body waves, so named because they move through the body of an object, unlike surface wave Surface wave In physics, a surface wave is a mechanical wave that propagates along the interface between differing media, usually two fluids with different densities.... s. The S-wave move as a shear or transverse wave Transverse wave A transverse wave is a moving wave that consists of oscillations occurring perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer. If a transverse wave is moving in the positive x-direction, its oscillations are in up and down directions that lie in the y-z plane.... , so motion is perpendicular to the direction of wave propagation: S-waves, like waves in a rope, as opposed to waves moving through a slinky, the P-wave P-wave P-waves are type of elastic wave, also called seismic waves, that can travel through gases , elastic solids and liquids, including the Earth.... . The wave moves through elastic media, and the main restoring force comes from shear effects. These waves are divergenceless and obey the continuity equation for incompressible media: Its name, S for secondary, comes from the fact that it is the second direct arrival on an earthquake seismogram Seismogram A seismogram is a graph output by a seismograph. It is a record of the ground motion at a measuring station. The energy measured in a seismogram may result from an earthquake or from some other source, such as an explosion.A recording of earth motion as a function of time is called a seismogram.... , after the compressional primary wave, or P-wave, because S-waves travel slower in rock. Unlike the P-wave, the S-wave cannot travel through the molten outer core Outer core The outer core of the Earth is a liquid layer composed of iron and nickel above the solid inner core. Sulfur and oxygen could also be present.... of the Earth, and this causes a shadow zone Shadow Zone *Shadow Zone* is the third album by the band Static-X, released on October 7, 2003. It is the first Static-X album that guitarist Tripp Eisen helped write and record.... for S-waves opposite to where they originate. They can still appear in the solid inner core Inner core The inner core of the Earth, its innermost part as detected by seismology, is a primarily solid sphere about in radius, only about 70% that of the Moon.... : when a P-wave strikes the boundary of molten and solid cores, called the Lehmann discontinuity Lehmann discontinuity The Lehmann discontinuity, named after seismology Inge Lehmann, is the discontinuity in seismic velocity near a depth of 220 km, which is still debated.... , S-waves will then propagate in the solid medium. And when the S-waves hit the boundary again they will in turn create P-waves. In fact, this property allows seismologists Seismology Seismology is the scientific study of earthquakes and the propagation of Linear elasticity#Elastic waves through the Earth. The field also includes studies of earthquake effects, such as tsunamis as well as diverse seismic sources such as volcanic, tectonic, oceanic, atmospheric, and artificial processes .... to determine the nature of the inner core. The velocity of an S-wave in an isotropic medium can be described by the shear modulus Shear modulus In materials science, shear modulus or modulus of rigidity, denoted by G, or sometimes S or ?, is defined as the ratio of shear stress to the shear strain:... and density Density The density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol of density is .... . As transverse waves, S-waves exhibit properties, such as polarization Polarization Polarization is a property of waves that describes the orientation of their oscillations. For transverse waves such as many electromagnetic waves, it describes the orientation of the oscillations in the plane perpendicular to the wave's direction of travel.... and birefringence Birefringence Birefringence, or double refraction, is the decomposition of a Ray of light into two rays when it passes through certain types of material, such as calcite crystals or boron nitride, depending on the polarization of the light.... , much like other transverse waves. S-waves polarized in the horizontal plane are classified as SH-waves. If polarized in the vertical plane, they are classified as SV-waves. When an S- or P-wave strikes an interface at an angle other than 90 degrees, a phenomenon known as mode conversion occurs. As described above, if the interface is between a solid and liquid, S becomes P or vice versa. However, even if the interface is between two solid media, mode conversion results. If a P-wave strikes an interface, four propagation modes may result: reflected and transmitted P and reflected and transmitted SV. Similarly, if an SV-wave strikes an interface, the same four modes occur in different proportions. The exact amplitudes of all these waves are described by the Zoeppritz equations Zoeppritz equations In seismology, the Zoeppritz equations describe how seismic waves are transmitted and reflected at media boundaries.The Zoeppritz equations relate the amplitudes of P-waves and S-waves at each side of an interface.... , which in turn are solutions to the wave equation Wave equation The wave equation is an important second-order linear partial differential equation that describes the propagation of a variety of waves, such as sound waves, light waves and water waves.... . See also Love wave Love wave In elastodynamics, Love waves are essentially horizontally polarized shear waves guided by an elastic layer, which is "welded" to an elastic half space on one side while bordering a vacuum on the other side.... P-wave P-wave P-waves are type of elastic wave, also called seismic waves, that can travel through gases , elastic solids and liquids, including the Earth.... Rayleigh wave Rayleigh wave Rayleigh waves are a type of elastic surface wave that travel on solids. They are produced on the Earth by earthquakes, in which case they are also known as "ground roll", or by other sources of seismic energy such as an explosion or even a sledgehammer impact.... Transverse wave Transverse wave A transverse wave is a moving wave that consists of oscillations occurring perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer. If a transverse wave is moving in the positive x-direction, its oscillations are in up and down directions that lie in the y-z plane.... 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