Question

A metal stamping machine in the factory pounds the floor, creating waves which travel outward across the concrete surface. The waves have an amplitude A=0.046 millimeter, a wave number k=1.8 rad/meter, and a frequency ω=21.8 rad/second.

The machine is so profitable that the factory owners install a second one, identical to the first. When they set it up, it creates identical waves in the concrete floor; however, because the pistons of the two machines are slightly out of sync, the waves created by the new machine start slightly later than those of the original machine; the difference is just 0.0778 seconds.

What is the phase offset between the two sets of waves, expressed in radians?

What is the amplitude of the combined waves in the floor?

Answer 1