In: Physics
The sound you produce when speaking is produced by both your vocal cords and the column of air between your mouth and the bottom of your lungs. Breathing in a different gas has no effect on your vocal cords, but does change the sound due to the standing wave resonance of your lungs supposing that the distance from your mouth to the bottom of your lung is about 50cm. What tone is produced under normal conditions? What if you breathe in helium ( 4g/mole)? Xenon (131 g/mole)? Assume temp is 20 degrees celsius
When you speak, the sound is produced by the vibrations of the cords which excite the air molecules in the vocal tract and sets up resonant frequencies. This vibration in vocal cord influences the pitch (frequency of the sound) of the voice, the vibration of air in vocal tract influences the voice's timbre. Now, these different resonant frequencies allow us to make different sounds of speech. The voice finally leaves the mouth in the form of waves, oscillations of pressure transmitted through a medium.
Now, when you inhale Helium, which is lighter than air. Air is mostly comprised of Nitrogen. At, 20 degrees Celcius. The speed of sound in air is ~344 m/s but in Helium it is ~927 m/s. So, the sound is faster in Helium. Which changes the timbre of the voice. It changes the resonance of the vocal tract by making them more responsive to high-frequency sounds and less responsive to lower ones.
In case of Xenon, it is opposite. The sound is slower in xenon. It makes the resonant frequencies lower for the vocal tract.