A Home-Lab Experiment on the Resonance and Beats of Guitar Strings Using Phyphox

Kittiwat Tangmongkollert

doi:10.53848/ssstj.v12i2.1047

Authors

Kittiwat Tangmongkollert Ramkhamhaeng University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53848/ssstj.v12i2.1047

Keywords:

Resonance, Standing waves, Beats, Harmonics, Guitar, Phyphox, Physics education

Abstract

This work presents an attractive way to teach high school students the concepts of resonance, standing waves, and beats of sound. The guitar and the application “Phyphox” are employed for demonstration. This work consists of three sections. Firstly, the first harmonic is discussed. The same note played from a guitar can be generated by different guitar strings. By plucking a single string, one can observe the resonant vibration of other strings with the naked eye. Secondly, higher-order harmonics are discussed. When plucking a string, many frequencies are generated. The author shows how to mute some harmonic frequencies by gently touching the string. The touching position becomes a node and the muted frequencies can be captured by Phyphox. Harmonics that do not have a node at this point attenuate immediately. This opens an opportunity to explain standing waves to students. Lastly, when two strings play very close frequencies simultaneously, the beat of sound can be captured by Phyphox or even perceived by the ears.

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