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Simple Harmonic Motion in A Spring

1. Hooke's law states that the restoring force (F) of a spring is proportional to the displacement (x) such that F=-kx, where k is the spring constant. 2. Newton's second law gives F=ma, where m is the mass and a is the acceleration. Equating the two equations gives a=-kx/m. 3. The equation for simple harmonic motion is a=-(2πf)2x, where f is the frequency. Substituting this into the previous equation and rearranging gives the equation for the period of oscillation: T=2π√(m/k).

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Leah Clovis
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93 views4 pages

Simple Harmonic Motion in A Spring

1. Hooke's law states that the restoring force (F) of a spring is proportional to the displacement (x) such that F=-kx, where k is the spring constant. 2. Newton's second law gives F=ma, where m is the mass and a is the acceleration. Equating the two equations gives a=-kx/m. 3. The equation for simple harmonic motion is a=-(2πf)2x, where f is the frequency. Substituting this into the previous equation and rearranging gives the equation for the period of oscillation: T=2π√(m/k).

Uploaded by

Leah Clovis
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Simple harmonic motion in a spring

What is the equation that links the force


applied F, to the extension x of the spring?
(Hooke’s law)

The object will be subject to an acceleration


relative to the tension force in the spring, and
the mass of the object. What is the equation
that links force, mass and acceleration?

Equate the two equations.

Now, knowing that a = -(2πf)2x, and (later) f = 1/T, insert a into the equation
above and rearrange the equation to make T the subject.

1. A mass of 2 kg is attached to a spring with constant 18 N/m. It is then


displaced to the point x = 2 . How much time does it take for the block to
travel one complete oscillation (2π)?

2. A 4 kg mass attached to a spring is observed to oscillate with a period of 2


seconds. What is the period of oscillation and the frequency if a 6 kg mass
is attached to the spring?

3. If the Time period T of an object (0.2 kg) on an oscillating spring was 0.5
seconds, calculate the spring constant of the spring
Using the apparatus provided, measure the mass and time period. As you
increase the mass, investigate what happens to the time period.

Draw a graph of T2 against m.

Determine the gradient and calculate the spring constant k


Answers
F=-kx
F=ma
F=F (tensile force) so -kx = ma
Rearrange: a = -kx/m
Input a = -(2πf)2x: a = -(2πf)2x = -kx/m
Cancel out x and – sign: (2πf)2 = k/m
Square root both sides: (2πf) = √(k/m)
f = (1/2π)√(k/m)

Remember T = 1/f so 1/f = 1÷(1/2π)√(k/m) = 2π√(m/k)


T = 2π √(m/k)

1. A mass of 2 kg is attached to a spring with constant 18 N/m. It is then


displaced to the point x = 2 . How much time does it take for the block to
travel one complete oscillation (2π)?
F = kx = 18 x 2 = 36 m
F = ma = 36 a = F/m = 36/2 = 18 m/s2
a = -(2π/T)2x T = 2π√(m/k) = 2π √(2/18) = 2.09 s
2. To find the period of oscillation we need only know m and k . We are given m and must
find k for the spring. If a 4 kg mass oscillates with a period of 2 seconds, we can
calculate k from the following equation:

T = 2Π 

Implying that

k =   =   = 4Π 2


Now that we have k , calculating the period for a different mass is easy:

T = 2Π   = 2Π   =   = 2.45 seconds


f = 1/T = 0.408
3. If the Time period T of an object (0.2 kg) on an oscillating spring was 0.5
seconds, calculate the spring constant of the spring
T = 2π√(m/k) m/ k = T2/4π2
k = 4π2m/ T2 = 4π2 x 0.2 / 0.52 = 31.58N/m

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