Modes: Feynman's Physics Explained
When a wave is confined — like a wave on a guitar string — it cannot have just any frequency; it is forced into specific patterns called modes, each with its own frequency. The simplest mode has the whole string swinging together; the next has a still point in the middle, and so on. The beautiful part is that any complicated vibration of the string is just a sum of these simple modes.
The big idea
A confined wave can only vibrate in certain special patterns.
Think about it
Why does a guitar string of a fixed length only sound certain notes, not a smooth slide of every pitch?
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