2D Wave Interference
Drag the sources — watch constructive and destructive interference emerge
Drag sources (circles) to reposition them. Right-click canvas to add a third source.
About: When two wave sources emit circular ripples, they interfere. Where crests meet crests, amplitude doubles (constructive interference — bright); where crests meet troughs, they cancel (destructive interference — dark). The nodal lines — curves of zero amplitude — are hyperbolas defined by |d₁−d₂| = (n+½)λ. This is the same principle behind Young's double-slit experiment, which established the wave nature of light in 1801. The interference pattern depends on wavelength, source separation, and phase offset.