Amplitude of a wave units

Light, sound, and waves in the ocean are common examples of waves. Sound and water waves are mechanical waves; meaning, they require a medium to travel through.

The amplitude of a wave refers to the maximum amount of displacement of a particle on the medium from its rest position . In a sense, the amplitude is the distance from rest to crest. Similarly, the amplitude can be measured from the rest position to the trough position.

It refers to maximum displacement from the equilibrium that an object in periodic motion show . As an example, a pendulum swings through its equilibrium point (straight down), and then swing to a maximum distance away from the center.

The amplitude ( ) of a wave is the distance from the centre line (or the still position) to the top of a crest or to the bottom of a trough . Be careful with this quantity – the centre line is not always given in a diagram.