What does the principle of superposition for waves state?

• A. The energy is conserved
• B. The resultant displacement is the sum of the individual displacements
• C. The phase of one wave dominates
• D. The resultant displacement is the product of the individual displacements

Answer: (B)

In waves, when multiple disturbances travel through the same region, the overall effect at each point is obtained by adding the individual displacements together. This linear addition is the superposition principle, which explains interference patterns: amplitudes can strengthen or cancel depending on how the waves align in phase. Energy conservation is a separate idea about energy, not how displacements combine; the phase of one wave isn’t inherently the only contributor, since all waves contribute according to their phase; and multiplying the displacements would imply a nonlinear interaction, which isn’t what happens in linear wave superposition.