Visualization of wave phenomena, liquid transport and particle trapping on surface flow

Abstract

We construct a table-top ripple tank on an overhead projector and show that it can be used for three different studies. We visualize common wave phenomena such as reflection, interference, plane-to-spherical wave conversion, and wave-path focusing with the use of water surface flow in a ripple tank and with a numerical simulation. Oil transport driven by surface wave propagation is demonstrated experimentally to effectively model the location and morphological changes seen on the oil droplet during water surface flow at different times. Thirdly, we have successfully trapped a Styrofoam floater at a specific region where destructive interference of ripples occurred.