PHY11 Lesson 10

OSCILLATIONS
Periodic Motion or Oscillation
periodic motion - motion that repeats over and over in
a regular time interval.

simple harmonic motion SHM - motion where the

restoring force is directly proportional to the displacement
from equilibrium position.

Recall Hooke’s Law:

Fx  kx
Definition of Terms:
period (T) – time for one complete oscillation.

frequency (f) – number of oscillations per unit time.

1 1
T f 
f T
amplitude (A) – maximum displacement from
equilibrium position.

angular frequency () – 2 times the frequency.

2
  2f 
T
Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
Consider a body of mass m connected to a spring on a
frictionless horizontal track. The body is displaced toward +x
and then released.

(a) Equilibrium Position: (b) mass is displaced to +x

x = 0, and F = 0 x > 0, Fx < 0, and ax < 0

at x = + A:
vx =0 and ax = -maximum
Simple Harmonic Motion

(c) at equilibrium position: (d) x < 0

vmax

x = 0, and F = 0 x < 0, Fx > 0, and ax >0

at x = 0: vx = maximum at x = - A:
vx =0 and ax =+maximum

Fx
acceleration ax: ax 
m x
a x  k
m
UCM and SHM
The Reference Circle:
• The figure shows the top view of a horizontal disk of radius A
with a ball attached to its rim at point Q. The disk rotates
with constant angular speed .
• A horizontal light beam shines on the rotating disk and casts
a shadow of the ball on the screen. The shadow at point P
oscillates back and forth in SHM.
UCM and Equations of SHM
SHM is the projection of UCM onto a diameter.

displacement x :

x  A cos 

velocity vx :

v x  vQ sin 

v x   A sin 
UCM and Equations of SHM

acceleration ax :

a x  aQ cos 
2
vQ
ax  
A
cos  a x   2 x

a x   2 A cos 

angular frequency  , frequency f , and period T:

k 1 k m
  x  k
2 x  f  T  2
m m 2 m k
Equations of SHM
displacement x (as a function of time):

Suppose that at time t=0, the phasor OQ

makes an angle  with the positive x-axis.
The displacement will be

x  A cost    xmax   A

velocity vx (as a function of time):

dx
vx  v x  A sin t   
dt

vmax  A
Equations of SHM

acceleration ax (as a function of time):

dv x
ax 
dt

a x   2 A cost   

a x max   2 A
Phase Angle 
Suppose an oscillating body has an initial position xo and
initial velocity vox at time t=0.

vox  A sin 

xo  A cos 

vox  A sin 
   tan 
xo A cos 

 vox 
  tan  
1

 xo 
Amplitude A
2

vox  A sin 

 vox 
   A sin  
 

xo  A cos  xo  A cos   2

2
 vox 
   x
2
 A 2
sin 2
  cos 2
 
 
o

2
vox
A  xo
2

 2
Total Mechanical Energy in SHM
Consider a spring-mass system. The total energy of the
oscillating body is
1 2 1 2
E  K  U  cons tan t E  mv  kx  cons tan t
2 2
If the body is at rest, x=±A If the body is at x=0,

1 2 1
E  kA E  mvmax
2

2 2

1 2 1 2 1 2 k
mv  kx  kA v A x
2 2

2 2 2 m

vmax  A
The Simple Pendulum
Consider a pendulum of length L.
If the pendulum is displaced byu an
amount x, the restoring force is

F  mg sin 

For small values of , sin  = 

F  mg
x mg mg
F  mg  x k
L L L
k g
 
m L

1 g L
f  T  2
2 L g
Example 1

Answers:
(a) 0.120 m
(b) 1.60 s
(c) 0.625 Hz
Example 2

Answers:
(a) 0.98 m
(b) + /2
(c) x =A cos (t+) = 0.98m cos [(12.2rad/s)t + /2)
Example 3

0.840m  0.600m  0.240m

Example 4

Answers:
(a) 4.06 cm
(b) 1.21 m/s
(c) 29.8 rad/s
Example 5

Answers:
(a) 1.28 s
(b) 3.84 s
Example 6 Problem 17 p.405
An oscillator consists of a block attached to a spring
(k=425 N/m). At some time t, the position (measured
from the system’s equilibrium position), velocity, and
acceleration of the block are x=0.100m, v=-13.6 m/s, and
a=-123 m/s2. Calculate the (a) frequency of oscillation,
(b) the mass of the block, and (c) the amplitude of the
motion.

Answers:
(a) 5.58 Hz
(b) 0.346 kg
(c) 0.401 m