In the classic Ruben's tube demonstration, the tube containing the Bunsen burner gas has a speaker at each end that emits a pure tone. The tones have the same frequency and are in phase. The frequency of the tones is selected to set up a large standing wave inside the tube, and the resulting pressure distribution produces the pattern of flames. Read more on standing waves here.
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image credit: Jim Krider, Physics Instructional Resource Team, Arizona State University; larger image
