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Hi /sci/, I'm not /sci/ but I just realized that I find radio waves fascinating and that I know nothing about how they work. I started reading "basics of radio waves" on dummies dot com and I'm not sure I understand some stuff and I have some questions.
>Transmitters cause electrons to move so that they, in turn, create the radio waves.
So is there some kind of "pattern" that the electrons form that retains itself in the form of a wave? Ho do they not get "messed up" as they travel, especially when there are different radio stations broadcasting different things? Also, can a station tell how many people are listening, and if so how?
>The fields of the radio wave aren’t just one strength all the time; they oscillate (vary between a positive and a negative value) the way that a vibrating string moves above and below its stationary position.
What does that mean, that they vary between positive and negative "values"? My guess is that since it's a wave, it goes up and down, and the down is like an inverse of when it's up, basically?
Also, when it talks about electrons moving in sync, does that mean just random electrons that exist in everything? Can radio waves travel through solid objects and liquids? How can a radiowave's wavelength remain constant if it's traveling through different mediums with presumably different amounts of electrons? Can radio waves travel through vacuums at all?
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>>8961348
If there is a amateur radio society in your country, hit their website for basic data on using moving electrons for fun. Other than that, an intro to Physics text should cover the basics in a few chapters.
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>>8961348
Hey anon
Radio waves are photons at a different frequency - it's the same stuff being emitted from a flash light just way slower so you don't see it, but radios can see it, so guess what - all the effects that can modify visibility can modify radio waves, just in different ways
Radio waves go through walls because they're too low energy to interact with matter. Same with x-rays except the opposite, they are too high energy
When you see multiple colors coming at you at once, they're all there - you can split white light into a rainbow, all those individual frequencies are there
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>>8961406
>>8961417
Thanks.
>Radio waves are photons at a different frequency
I remember learning in a physics class something about how light is caused by photons being emitted when, I think, electrons change valence level. But I just watched a lecture on youtube where the guy compares radio waves to water ripples, where each individual water "drop" will move up and down, but not actually move outward. He mentions photons, but doesn't explain how they fit in. I got the impression that when this wave hits your eye, it then interprets it into an image. But what of photons, then? (Also, where does the photon physically come from?)
Also, how do different radio station broadcasts not conflict with one another? I'm under the impression it's because their frequencies are different, but why does that matter?
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