Experiment To Show The Effect’s Of Length Of A Pendulum To The Frequency Of Oscillation

* One complete oscillation of the pendulum is the time taken for the pendulum to swing across and back.

* An equation linking the length of the pendulum to the period is:

Period (T) = 2 ????Length

Gravity

The Length (in metres) is divided by the forces of gravity, which on earth is 10N/Kg. The square root of this total is multiplied by two pie (6.283) to calculate the period in seconds.

* We carried out a short experiment that showed that the height from the table and the weight are not variables.

Variables:

* The length of the pendulum (this is our controlled variable)

* The material the pendulum is made from (we will keep this a constant and use string through out the whole experiment

Predictions:

If the length of the pendulum increases the period will increase therefore the frequency will decrease (see equation for calculating frequency/period in background knowledge). If the length of the pendulum decreases the period will decrease therefore the frequency will increase.

Apparatus:

* Masses

* G-Clamp

* String

* Retort Stand

* Timer

Diagram:

Method:

. Set up apparatus as shown in diagram

2. Swing pendulum and give time to let a steady amplitude form

3. Time how long it takes to make 30 complete oscillations at 5cm

4. Time how long it takes to make 30 complete oscillations at 10cm, etc.

5. Repeat three times for greater accuracy

6. Divide results by 90 to find the average period for one oscillation

Safety:

* Wear goggles

* Clamp to Table

Results:

Conclusion:

As I said in my predictions, if the length of the pendulum increases the period will increase therefore the frequency will decrease. If the length of the pendulum decreases the period will decrease therefore the frequency will increase.

I will see can I use my results to determine how long the pendulum of a clock must be for it to oscillate every second.

T (Period) = 2 ????????Length

Gravity

Therefore when the period =1 and gravity = 10

1 L ??????????2 ?? 10

Therefore

Therefore

So the length of a pendulum would need to be 25.33cm