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Simple Pendulum
Date:___________________________
A system made of a string fixed at one end and a mass on the other is called a simple
pendulum. Simple pendulum, the name denotes that it oscillates at simple harmonic motion at small
angle displacement, where sin . This is shown in Figure 11.A.
For the system in Figure 11.A, the force according to Newtons
law is given by
l
x
m
Solving for the function x, we get
W
W sin
pendulum
Figure 11.A A simple
; where
Thus, the period is dependent only the length of the string regardless of the suspended mass m.
In this experiment, your task is to describe the motion of a simple pendulum and to show the
dependence of the period of oscillations in mass, length of string, and the angle of release.
Materials: String, bob, stop watch/ timer, iron stand with rod, meterstick
Procedure
A. Period and Mass of bob
1. Set up the simple pendulum.
2. Set the length of the string to l = 1 m.
3. Weigh the first bob and attached to free of the string.
4. Pull the mass to the side at an angle of 10 and release.
5. Record the time for 50 complete vibrations in Table 11.1.
6. Repeat steps 1 through 5 for the other two bobs.
Simple Pendulum
Data:
Table 11.1 Period and mass of bob
Mass of bob
Length of
string
Angle of
release
Time for 50
vibrations
Period
Experimental Computed
% difference
Time for 50
vibrations
Period
Experimental Computed
% difference
Length of
string
Mass of bob
Simple Pendulum
Mass of bob
Angle of
release
Time for 50
vibrations
Period
Experimental Computed
% difference
Questions.
1. What is the relation of the period of oscillation to the mass of the bob?
3. What is the relation of the period of oscillation to the length of the string?
4. What is the length of the string if the period of the simple pendulum system is 2 second?
Conclusion: