SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCES

Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery [Pre-Med]

PMPH120 A Level Physics
Lab 3: Simple Harmonic Motion – Mass on a Spring
Sample Lab Report
Lab 3: Simple Harmonic Motion – Mass on a Spring

Objectives
▪ Directly determine the spring constant k of a spring by measuring the elongation versus
applied force.
▪ Determine the spring constant k from measurements of the period T of oscillation for
different values of mass.
▪ Investigate the dependence of the period T of oscillation of a mass on a spring on the
value of the mass and on the amplitude of the motion.
Equipment
Spring, timer, meter stick
Right-angle clamps, laboratory balance, and calibrated hooked masses
Theory
A mass that experiences a restoring force proportional to its displacement from an equilibrium
position is said to obey Hooke’s law. In equation form this relationship can be expressed as

Eqn. 1
where k is a constant with dimensions of N/m. The negative sign indicates that the force is in
the opposite direction of the displacement. If a spring exerts the force, the constant k is the
spring constant. A force described by Equation 1 will produce an oscillatory motion called
simple harmonic motion because it can be described by a single sine or cosine function of time.
A mass displaced from its equilibrium position by some value A, and then released, will
oscillate about the equilibrium position. Its displacement y from the equilibrium position will
range between y = A and y = - A with A called the amplitude of the motion. For the initial
conditions described above, the displacement y as a function of time t is given by:

Eqn. 2
Figure 1 New equilibrium position with mass M placed on a spring
with angular frequency 𝜔 related to the frequency f and the period T by

Eqn. 3
A mass M placed on the end of a spring hangs vertically as shown in Figure 1. The original
equilibrium position of the lower end of the spring is shown in Figure 1 (a). The position of
the lower end of the spring when the mass is applied, shown in Figure 1 (b), can be considered
as the new equilibrium position. In Figure 1 (c) the mass is pulled down to a displacement A
from this new equilibrium position. When released, the mass will oscillate with amplitude A
and period T given above. Equation 3 for the period is strictly true only if the spring is
massless. For real springs with finite mass, a fraction of the spring mass ms must be included
along with the mass M. If C stands for the fraction of the spring mass to be included, the period
is

Eqn. 4
You will be challenged to discover what fraction C of the spring mass should be included from
your analysis of the data that you will take in the laboratory.
Experimental Procedure

Spring Constant
1. Suspend the spring from a rigid support.
2. Measure the length (L0) of the spring using the provided meter stick.
3. Place the provided hooked mass M of 0.05 kg on the end of the spring. Slowly lower
the mass M until it hangs at rest in equilibrium when released. Carefully read the
position of the lower end of the spring on the meter stick scale. Record the value of the
mass M and the length (L1) of spring in Data and Calculations Table 1.
4. Repeat Step 3 using 0.10 kg, 0.15 kg, 0.20 kg and 0.25 kg and measure the length (L1)
of the spring. Record all values of M, L1 and the displacement y (L1 - L0) in Data and
Calculations Table 1.
Mass Variation
1. Place a hooked mass of 0.200 kg on the spring and let it hang at rest. Displace the mass
below the equilibrium (A = 0.0100 m), release it, and let the system oscillate. Measure
the time for 10 periods of the motion and record it in Data Table 2 as Δt. Repeat the
procedure two more times for a total of three trials with this mass.
2. Repeat the procedure of Step 1 with the same A for three values of the mass M (use
0.100 kg, 0.150 kg, 0.250 kg and 0.300 kg) Perform three trials of the time for 10
periods for each mass and record the results in Data Table 2.
3. Measure the mass of the spring ms using the provided electronic scale and record it in
Data Table 2.
Calculations

Spring Constant
1. Calculate the force Mg for each mass and record the values in Data and Calculations
Table 1. Use the value of 9.80 m/s2 for g. [Shown in Table 1]
2. Perform a linear least square fit to the data with Mg as the vertical axis and y as the
horizontal axis. Record in Data and Calculations Table 1 the slope of the fit as the
spring constant k and the correlation coefficient r.
L0: 0.115 m y = L1 – L0 F=Mxg
y-variable = Force [F] x-variable = displacement [y]
Table 1: Computing Slope and Constant Using the Static Method [Part 1]
M L1 F y xi – 𝒙
̅ yi – 𝒚
̅ (xi – 𝒙
̅)2 (xi – 𝒙
̅) (yi – 𝒚
̅)
0.100 0.116 0.98 0.001 -0.099 -0.49 0.0098 0.049
0.150 0.156 1.47 0.041 -0.059 0.00 0.0035 0.000
0.200 0.211 1.96 0.096 -0.004 0.49 0.000016 0.002
0.250 0.266 2.45 0.151 0.051 0.98 0.00260 0.050
0.300 0.326 2.94 0.211 0.111 1.47 0.0123 0.163
Sum 9.80 0.500 0.000 2.45 0.0282160 0.264
Mean 1.47 0.10

Slope
∑𝑛𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ )2 = 0.02822 ∑𝑛𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ ) (𝑦𝑖 − 𝑦̅) = 0.2597000 Nm
∑𝑛 ̅)
𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 −𝑥̅ ) (𝑦𝑖 −𝑦 0.264 Nm
Slope = ∑𝑛 2
= 0.0282160 𝑚2 = 9.37 Newton per meter (Nm-1)
𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 −𝑥̅ )

Intercept = 𝑦̅ − (𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒 x 𝑥̅ ) = 1.47 – (9.37 x 0.10) = 0.533 m

Straight Line Equation: F = 9.37 (y) + 0.533
Table 2: Computing Correlation Coefficient [Part 1]
F y xi2 yi2 xiyi
0.98 0.001 0.0000010 0.9604000 0.0009800
1.47 0.041 0.0017000 2.1609000 0.0602700
1.96 0.096 0.0092000 3.8416000 0.1881600
2.45 0.151 0.0228000 6.0025000 0.3699500
2.94 0.211 0.0445000 8.6436000 0.6203400
9.80 0.500 0.0782010 21.6090000 1.2397000

Correlation Coefficient
𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖2 = 5 x 0.78201 = 0.391005 𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖2 = 5 x 21.609 = 108.045

∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 = 0.5 x 9.8 = 4.9 𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 𝑦𝑖 = 5 x 1.2397 = 6.1985

2 2
(∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ) = 0.52 = 0.25 (∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 ) = 9.82 = 96.04

𝑛 ∑𝑛 𝑛 𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 𝑦𝑖 − ∑𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖
𝑟=
2 2
√[𝑛 ∑𝑛 2 𝑛 𝑛 2 𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 − (∑𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ) ][(𝑛 ∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 − (∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 ) ]

6.1985− 4.9
𝑟=
√[0.391005− 0.52 ][(108.045− 9.82 ]
1.2985
𝑟= = 0.9980
√1.692765
Mass Variation
1. Calculate the mean Δt for the two trials for each mass. The results are recorded Table
3. [Shown in Table 3]
2. Calculate the period T from T = ̅̅̅̅
𝛥𝑡 /10. Record the results in Calculations Table 3. If
both sides of Equation 4 are squared the result is

Eqn. 5

3. Equation 5 states that T2 is proportional to M with 4π2/k as the slope and 4π2Cms/k as
the intercept. Calculate and record the values of T2 in Calculations Table 4. Perform a
linear least square fit with T2 as the vertical axis and M as the horizontal axis. Record
the values of the slope, intercept, and r in Calculations Table 4.
t1: Time 1 t2: Time 2 t3: Time 3 tav = Average Time

T = period [tav / 10]

Table 3 Period Computation

Mass t1 t2 tav T
0.1 6.76 6.89 6.83 0.683
0.15 7.81 7.86 7.84 0.784
0.2 9.02 8.97 9.00 0.900
0.25 10.17 10.16 10.17 1.017
0.3 11.27 11.26 11.27 1.127
Mass: 0.037 kg
y-variable = Period squared [T2] x-variable = Mass [M]
Table 4 Computing Slope and Constant [Part 2]
Id M T2 xi – 𝒙
̅ yi – 𝒚
̅ (xi – 𝒙
̅)2 (xi – 𝒙
̅) (yi – 𝒚
̅)
1 0.1 0.466 -0.1 -0.372 0.01 0.0372
2 0.15 0.614 -0.05 -0.224 0.0025 0.0112
3 0.2 0.81 0 -0.028 0 0
4 0.25 1.03 0.05 0.192 0.0025 0.0096
5 0.3 1.27 0.1 0.432 0.01 0.0432
Sum 1 4.19 0 0.000 0.025 0.1012
Mean 0.2 0.838

Slope
∑𝑛𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ )2 = 0.025 Kg2 ∑𝑛𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥̅ ) (𝑦𝑖 − 𝑦̅) = 0.1012 s2Kg
∑𝑛 ̅)
𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 −𝑥̅ ) (𝑦𝑖 −𝑦 0.1012 s2 Kg
Slope = ∑𝑛 2
= = 4.0 seconds squared per kilogram (s2Kg-1)
𝑖=1(𝑥𝑖 −𝑥̅ ) 0.025 Kg2

Intercept = 𝑦̅ − (𝑠𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒 x 𝑥̅ ) = 0.838 – (4.0 x 0.2) = 0.038 s2

Straight Line Equation: T2 = 4 (M) + 0.038
Table 5 Computing Correlation Coefficient [Part 2]
Id M T2 xi2 yi2 xiyi
1 0.1 0.466 0.01 0.217156 0.0466
2 0.15 0.614 0.0225 0.376996 0.0921
3 0.2 0.81 0.04 0.6561 0.162
4 0.25 1.03 0.0625 1.0609 0.2575
5 0.3 1.27 0.09 1.6129 0.381
Sum 1 4.19 0.225 3.924052 0.9392

𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖2 = 5 x 0.225 = 1.125 𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖2 = 5 x 3.924052 = 19.6203

∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 = 1 x 4.19 = 4.19 𝑛 ∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 𝑦𝑖 = 5 x 0.9392 = 4.696

2 2
(∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ) = 12 = 1 (∑𝑛𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 ) = 4.192 = 17.5561

𝑛 ∑𝑛 𝑛 𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 𝑦𝑖 − ∑𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖
𝑟=
2 2
√[𝑛 ∑𝑛 2 𝑛 𝑛 2 𝑛
𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 − (∑𝑖=1 𝑥𝑖 ) ][(𝑛 ∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 − (∑𝑖=1 𝑦𝑖 ) ]

4.696 − 4.19
𝑟=
√[1.125− 12 ][(19.6203 − 4.192 ]
0.506
𝑟= = 0.9961
√0.25802

4. Equate the value of the slope determined in Step 4 to 4π2/k and solve for the value of k
in the resulting equation.
4𝜋 2
Slope = 𝑘
4𝜋 2 4𝜋 2
K = 𝑆𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑒 = 4𝑠2 /𝑘𝑔 = 9.88 Kgs-2

5. Calculate the percentage difference between the value of k determined in Step 4 and the
value of k determined earlier.

|𝐾1 −𝐾2 | |9.37−9.88| |0.51|

Percentage difference = 1 x 100 = = 1 x 100 = x 100
(𝐾1 + 𝐾2 ) (9.37+ 9.88) (9.625)
2 2
Percentage difference = 0.053 x 100 = 5.3%

K1 = 9.37
K2 = 9.88
 6. Equate the value of the intercept determined in Step 4 to 4π2Cms/k and solve for the
value of C in the resulting equation. In the equation, use the value of k determined in
Step 5. Record the value C in Calculations Table 2.
4π2 m s k Intercept 9.88 x 0.038
C = Intercept = = = 0.2568
4π2 ms 4π2 0.037

ms = 0.037 Kg
Intercept = 0.038 s2
K = 9.88
Graphs
1. Graph the data from Calculations Table 1 for force Mg versus displacement y with Mg
as the vertical axis and y as the horizontal axis. Show on the graph the straight line
obtained from the fit to the data.
3.500

3.000 y = 9.2027x + 1.0397

R² = 0.9954
2.500

2.000
Force

1.500

1.000

0.500

0.000
0.000 0.050 0.100 0.150 0.200 0.250
Displacement

Figure 1 Force against Displacement

2. Graph T2 versus M with T2 as the vertical axis and M as the horizontal axis. Also show
on the graph the straight line obtained from the linear least squares fit to the data.

1.4
y = 4.048x + 0.0284
1.2 R² = 0.9923
Period Squared (s2)

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3 0.35
Mass (Kg)

Figure 2 Period squared against Mass

R2 = Coefficient of determination. The square root of the coefficient of determination gives
the correlation efficient which will have the sign that the slope possess. For instance:

Correlation coefficient (r) = √𝑅 2 = √0.9923 = 0.9961 [Similar to what we have already

calculated]