Answer to Question #213118 in Physics for Najam

Question

Question: Why waves moving speed in gases is lower than solids? Knowing that it is due to the density, but the gases have faster-moving particles that can transfer them faster. Explain, please.

Answer 1

The key point here is not the speed of the particles but how close the particles are located to each other, or how dense the gas is. Transverse waves in solids and gases are local compressions of particles, so, to get these compressions moving faster, we need particles located closer to each other.