0 a wave moving through a substance in which the particles are vibrating (= moving quickly backwards and forwards) at a 90 degree angle to the direction of the wave --
1 a wave in which the substance the wave travels through moves at an angle of 90° to the wave itself --
Polarization is an important parameter in areas of science dealing with transverse wave propagation, such as optics, seismology, radio and microwaves.
The polarization of a transverse wave describes the direction of oscillation in the plane perpendicular to the direction of travel.
If a transverse wave is moving in the positive "x" -direction, its oscillations are in up and down directions that lie in the "yz" plane.
An oscillating string is another example of a transverse wave; a more everyday example would be an audience wave.
The energy associated with the transverse wave system travels at one half the phase velocity or the group velocity of the waves.
However, because of gravity, the water or medium is pulled back down and the repetition of this cycle creates the transverse wave motion.
The transverse current, perpendicular to the wave vector, drives the transverse wave.
However, a transverse wave apparently required the propagating medium to behave as a solid, as opposed to a gas or fluid.
