Physical Model

Identifying Model Parameters

The mass attached to the spring
The spring constant which characterizes the stiffness of the spring. A stiff spring has a large value of k
The unstretched spring length; a constant
The static spring stretch.
Why is this a constant?
The dynamic spring stretch
The angle of displacement from the vertical axis



The mass attached to the spring
The spring constant which characterizes the stiffness of the spring. A stiff spring has a large value of k
The length of the spring at equilibrium
The horizontal component of the displacement from equilibrium
The vertical component of the displacement from equilibrium
The angular frequency of the pendulum-like oscillation
The angular frequency of the spring-like oscillation

Click here for help on using Hooke's law to find k


Copyright © 1999 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. All Rights Reserved.