From "Physics, Waves, Music": a website about the physics of waves and sound, acoustics of musical instruments, musical scales, harmony and music.

AI-translated from Italian. Original page: Polarizzazione

Some simulations of mechanical waves with polarisation, although the concept is much more commonly applied to electromagnetic waves.

polarisation	wave	comment
vertical		Harmonic oscillation polarised in a vertical plane: the wave propagates along the chain, but the oscillations take place in a vertical plane perpendicular to the direction of propagation. The chain forms a sinusoid.
horizontal		Harmonic oscillation polarised in a horizontal plane: the wave propagates along the chain, but the oscillations take place in a horizontal plane perpendicular to the direction of propagation. The chain forms a sinusoid.
circular		Harmonic oscillation with circular polarisation: the wave propagates along the chain, but the oscillations do not take place in a plane; they follow circles perpendicular to the direction of propagation. The chain forms a helix.

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