Which statement about the relationship between period and frequency is correct?

Which statement about the relationship between period and frequency is correct?

• A. The period is the product of frequency and time
• B. The period is the reciprocal of the frequency
• C. The period is equal to the wavelength
• D. The period is the same as the frequency

Answer: (B)

Period and frequency are reciprocal. The period is the amount of time for one complete cycle, while the frequency tells how many cycles occur each second. Because frequency is cycles per second, the time for one cycle must be the inverse, so the period T equals 1 over the frequency f. This means if the frequency doubles, the period halves. For example, 60 Hz corresponds to a period of about 0.0167 seconds. The other statements mix up units or concepts: the period isn’t a product of frequency and time, it isn’t equal to wavelength (time vs length), and it isn’t the same as frequency (different units).

Period and frequency are reciprocal. The period is the amount of time for one complete cycle, while the frequency tells how many cycles occur each second. Because frequency is cycles per second, the time for one cycle must be the inverse, so the period T equals 1 over the frequency f. This means if the frequency doubles, the period halves. For example, 60 Hz corresponds to a period of about 0.0167 seconds. The other statements mix up units or concepts: the period isn’t a product of frequency and time, it isn’t equal to wavelength (time vs length), and it isn’t the same as frequency (different units).