PHYSICS LAB MANUAL

PHYS101

Eastern Mediterranean University

Department of Physics
Introduction

You are highly recommended to read this manual very carefully!

1.1 Sources of Error in Measurement

1.1.1 Does Every Measurement Have an Error?

It is noteworthy to mention that not every measurement has an error. Consider the case when
you wish to determine the number of students in the class. This can easily be achieved via
counting, without any error. However, if we wish to determine the number of oxygen molecules
in the room, it is no longer possible to count them. In this case, the number can be estimated
with an uncertainty. This uncertainty determines the measurement accuracy.

1.1.2 Uncertainty versus Error

The concept uncertainty plays a vital rule during practical sessions. Thus, you must make sure
that you understand it well! For this reason, let us start with a simple example. Imagine you are
asked to take a measurement via using a meter ruler. Once you take your data, you must be
confident about how to record it.

3
Assume that you have measured the length to be 25.1 cm. Even though you may ‘somehow’
convince yourself that this is one true measurement, you cannot claim that it is 100% accurate.

You must be aware of the terms uncertainty and error, alongside with their differences. They
may sound like the same thing, but they actually are not! What makes this discussion even
more interesting is once the word mistake is involved within the subject.

Your teaching assistants have been hearing these kind of questions very frequently during the
lab sessions: "I have done no mistakes today, but my percentage error has a non-zero value. I
am sure I have done everything right!!! So is this logical?" The answer is no!! It indeed has no
logical sense. Errors can be thought as a concept that has to exist whenever you are taking a
measurement, no matter whether you wish it to be there or not, whereas the mistakes are
dependent on the individual himself. You are able to control the mistakes; however, the errors
are unavoidable!

And what about the uncertainty? Uncertainty stands for the methodology of manifesting
errors. If you can manage to minimize the errors, it will in turn have an effect on the
uncertainty. As we have already pointed out, errors should not be considered as mistakes. Yet,
they must exist! Reading the list below may help you to understand why it is so.

There are a variety of reasons why errors arise. Some of these are listed below.

Human Error
Whilst taking a measurement, you may all claim you have observed something slightly
different. You are all carrying out the experiments as good as you can, or scientifically
speaking, up to a certain level of accuracy. The measuring techniques may vary from observer
to observer. Therefore, to sum up, this type of error may occur because of being unexperienced
or choosing a less accurate way of taking the concerned measurement.

Instrumental Limitations on the Devices

There exist calibrations of finite width. Each device has its own limitation. It is not possible to
measure the length of a substance and record it as 5.16472847294728947204 cm, by using a
ruler.

4
Errors Due to External Influences
If your system is not isolated well while you are carrying out an experiment to find specific
heat capacity of a substance, some heat will be lost to the surroundings and this will make your
reading less accurate. This is an example of an external influence.

Parallax Error
Just by examining the meaning of the word parallax, we can understand how this error arises.
Parallax means alteration, hence the observations will be dependent on the angle of
observation. This error can be minimized via experience.

The correct position to take the measurement in the figure above is position B. Try to take your
measurements perpendicular to the observation point.

1.2 Significant Figures, Rounding, and Uncertainty

1.2.1 Significant Figures

Basic Rule: Non-zero digits are always significant. Any zeros except for at the beginning are
significant.

Some Examples

26.380  5 significant figures

7.94  3 significant figures
0.00980 3 significant figures

The last number can be stated in scientific notation as 9.80 x 10-3.

5
1.2.2 Rounding Numbers
To keep the correct number of significant figures, numbers must be rounded off. The discarded
digit is called the remainder. There are three rules for rounding:

Rule 1: If the remainder is less than 5, drop the last digit.

Rounding to one decimal place: 5.346→5.3

Rule 2: If the remainder is greater than 5, increase the final digit by 1.

Rounding to one decimal place: 5.798→5.8

Rule 3: If the remainder is exactly 5 then round the last digit to the closest even number. This
is to prevent rounding bias. Remainders from 1 to 5 are rounded down half the time and
remainders from 6 to 10 are rounded up the other half.
Rounding to one decimal place: 3.55→3.6, also 3.65→3.6.

1.2.3 Uncertainty in Measurement

Every measurement apparatus has a limitation in precision. A Voltmeter with 4 digits cannot
measure up to a precision of 5 digits. Other factors, as previously explained, may as well
influence the measurement. The uncertainty of a quantity is denoted by ∆.

Every measurement reading is written together with its uncertainty in the following form.

( ±∆ )

Absolute and Relative Uncertainty

Absolute uncertainty: 3.52 ± 0.03 .

Relative uncertainty: 3.52 ± 1%. Note that relative uncertainty was found via evaluating
0.03/3.52 × 100 %.

Important Remark: You are expected to display uncertainties to two significant figures
during the lab sessions. Having done so, you must adjust your result in such a way to have the
same number of decimal places as the uncertainty.

6
Let us give you an example on how to follow this procedure.

Example
You have taken a measurement for a quantity together with its uncertainty and wrote that

= 3.2
∆ = 0.05 .

How should you record this measurement on your spreadsheet?

Step#1: Rewrite the uncertainty to two significant figures, i.e. ∆ = 0.050 .

Step#2: Quote your result in a way that its decimal places match the one for the uncertainty,
i.e. = 3.200 .

Step#3: Finalize your answer as follows.

= (3.200 ± 0.050)

1.2.4 Practice Questions

Rewrite the following measurements and their uncertainties in the format you are taught
throughout this manual.

1) = 5.0 cm, ∆ = 0.01 .

2) = 10.42 / , ∆ = 1.80 .

3) = 42.30 / , ∆ = 4.3 .

7
1.3 Some Basic Statistics

1.3.1 Mean

Example
If you have repeated a measurement five times and have observed them as 5 cm, 6 cm, 5 cm,
8 cm and 6 cm respectively, the most precise way of representing your measured value is
finding the average value, i.e. the mean value. This can be achieved as follows.

5+6+5+8+6
̅= =6
5

Increasing the number of measurements always provides us with a higher accuracy and our
final result in turn becomes more reliable.

1.3.2 Variance
The variance represents a measure of how the data distributes itself about the mean or the
expected value. While evaluating the variance, there is an important point to be considered.

where and represent population and sample variance, respectively.

1.3.3 Gaussian Distribution

If only random errors affect a measurement, it can be shown mathematically that in the limit
of an infinite number of measurements, the distribution of values follows a normal distribution
(i.e. the bell curve or the Gaussian distribution at the below). This distribution has a peak at the
mean value and a width given by the standard deviation .

8
Obviously, we never take an infinite number of measurements. However, for a large number
of measurements, say, N~10 or more, measurements may be approximately normally
distributed. In that event we use the formulae below:

Most of the time we will be using the formulae for small data sets. However, occasionally we
perform experiments with enough data to compute a meaningful standard deviation. In those
cases, one can take advantage of some computer packages for computing and σ.

1.4 Propagation of Uncertainties1

Oftentimes we combine multiple values, each of which has an uncertainty, into a single
equation. In fact, we do it when we measure something with a ruler. Take, for example,

1 † Reference
for the two tables in this section: University of Pennsylvania, Department of
Physics & Astronomy, Lab Manual for Undergraduates.
Note that throughout the second table provided from this source, the uncertainties are not quoted to 2 significant
figures. However, this will not be the case for us! These examples are only provided for you to understand how
to work on error propagation.

9
measuring the distance from a grasshopper's front legs to his hind legs. For rulers, we will
assume that the uncertainty in all measurements is one-half of the smallest spacing.
The measured distance is m ∆ where 4.63cm 1.0cm 3.63cm. . What is the
uncertainty in ? You might think that it is the sum of the uncertainties in and ; namely:

∆ ∆ ∆ 0.1cm .
However, statistics tells us that if the uncertainties are independent of one another, the
uncertainty in a sum or difference of two numbers is obtained by quadrature:

∆ ∆ ∆ 0.07cm.
The way these uncertainties combine depends on how the measured quantity is related to each
value. Rules for how uncertainties propagate are given below.

10
11
1.5 The Least Squares Line

There are two possible approaches to determine the least squares line. Either we consider the
square of the vertical distance between the measured points and the least square line or we
consider the square perpendicular distance between the measured point and the least square
line.

vertical offsets perpendicular offsets

In this manual, we mainly focus on the sum of the squares of the vertical distances between the
best fit line. It is given by
n
Sx, y  y i  mx i  c 2 ,
i1

where y  mx  c denotes the best fit line. The problem of finding the coefficients m and c
is rather straight forward. We have to minimize the sum of the squares S x, y  with respect to
the coefficients m and c , using the straightforward method we have learned in the course of
Calculus. To this end, we take the derivative of S x, y  with respect to m and c , and in sequel
equate them to 0. This results in

n
S
m
  2 y
i 1
i  mxi  c  xi   0,
n
S
c
  2 y
i 1
i  mxi  c   0.

Now, one must solve the above equations for m and c . After dividing the both equations by
2, we can rewrite the equations as following

n n n
  xi yi  m  xi2  c  xi  0,
i 1 i 1 i 1
n n

y
i 1
i  m  xi  cn  0.
i 1
The above equations can be decoupled in one equation as follows:

12
   in1 xi yi   in1 xi2   in1 xi 
     
 n y   a n x   b n   0,
 i 1 i   i 1 i   
or
 in1 xi2 n
in1 xi  a   i1 xi yi 
     .
 n x
 i1 i n  b    in1 yi 

The solution of the above equation can be obtained by using the Kramer’s rule:

 m 1  n  in1 xi  in1 xi yi 
     ,
  n x in1 xi   in1 yi 
 c  n i1 xi  in1 xi 
n 2 2 2
 i 1 i

which finally gives the deserved results for the slope m and intercept c as follows:

n in1 xi yi  in1 xi in1 yi

m ,
n in1 xi2  in1 xi 
2

2
in1 xi in1 yi  in1 xi in1 xi yi
c .
n in1 xi2  in1 xi 
2

13
 Experiment 1: Force Table

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EQUIPMENT NEEDED: Force Table, 3 pulleys and pulley clamps, 3 mass hangers, mass set, string, metric
ruler, protractor, 2 sheets of paper.

1- PROPOSE
The purpose of this experiment is to use the force table to experimentally determine the force which balances
two other forces. This result is checked by adding the two forces by using their components.

2- THEORY
This experiment finds the resultant of adding two vectors by two methods: experimentally and by components.
(Some general details on adding vectors, specifically forces, will be given by the lab assistant).

Note that in all cases, the force caused by the mass hanging over the pulley is found by multiplying the mass
by the acceleration due to gravity.

A- Experimental Method
Two forces are applied on the force table by hanging masses over pulleys positioned at certain angles. Then
the angle and mass hung over a third pulley are adjusted until it balances the other two forces. This third force
is called the equilibrant (𝑭𝐸 ) since it is the force which establishes equilibrium. The equilibrant is not the same
as the resultant (𝑭𝑅 ). The resultant is the addition of the two forces. While the equilibrant is equal in magnitude
to the resultant, it is in the opposite direction because it balances the resultant (see Figure 1). So, the
equilibrant is the negative of the resultant:

−𝑭𝐸 = 𝑭𝑅 = 𝑭𝐴 + 𝑭𝐵

Figure 1: Equilibrant balances the resultant.

 Figure 2: Components

B- Component Method
Two forces are added together by adding the 𝑥- and 𝑦-components of the forces. First the two forces are
broken into their 𝑥- and 𝑦-components using trigonometry: 𝑭𝐴 = 𝐴𝑥 𝑖̂ + 𝐴𝑦 𝑗̂ and 𝑭𝐵 = 𝐵𝑥 𝑖̂ + 𝐵𝑦 𝑗̂ where 𝐴𝑥 is
the x-component of vector 𝑭𝐴 and 𝑖̂ is the unit vector in the x-direction (see Figure 2). To determine the sum of
𝑭𝐴 and 𝑭𝐵 , the components are added to get the components of the resultant 𝑭𝑅 :

𝑭𝑅 = (𝐴𝑥 + 𝐵𝑥 )𝑖̂ + (𝐴𝑦 + 𝐵𝑦 )𝑗̂ = 𝑅𝑥 𝑖̂ + 𝑅𝑦 𝑗̂.

To complete the analysis, the resultant force must be in the form of a magnitude and a direction (angle). So,
the components of the resultant (𝑅𝑥 and 𝑅𝑦 ) must be combined using the Pythagorean Theorem since the
components are at right angles to each other:

𝐹𝑅 = √𝑅𝑥2 + 𝑅𝑦2
The angle is found with the help of trigonometry:
𝑅𝑦 𝑅
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝜃 = ⟹ 𝜃 = 𝑡𝑎𝑛−1 ( 𝑦 )
𝑅𝑥 𝑅𝑥

3- SETUP

Figure 3: Force table

1) Assemble the force table as shown in the Figure 3. Use three pulleys (two for the forces that will be added
and one for the force that balances the sum of the two forces).

2) Screw the center post up so that it will hold the ring in place when the masses are suspended from the two
pulleys.
3) Hang the following masses on two of the pulleys and clamp the pulleys at the given angles: Force A = 50 g at
0˚ Force B = 100 g at 120˚. You may use the coordinate system shown in Figure 4. (Throughout the experiment
take the magnitude of the gravitational acceleration as 𝒈 = 𝟗. 𝟖 𝒎⁄𝒔𝟐 )

Figure 4: Coordinate system on the force table.

4- ANALYSIS
A) Application of Component Method
Since Force A = 50g at 0˚ Force B = 100g at 120˚ (𝑔 = 9.8 𝑚⁄𝑠 2 ), to determine theoretically what mass
should be suspended from the third pulley and at what angle, first calculate the magnitude and
direction of the equilibrant (𝑭𝐸 ) by using the “component method”. To this end, you should record
the vector components of Force A (𝑭𝐴 )and Force B (𝑭𝐵 ) to the Table 1 and compute the magnitude
and direction of the equilibrant. (Recall that the equilibrant is exactly opposite in direction to the
resultant).

𝑭𝐴 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁) 𝐹𝑅 = √𝑅𝑥2 + 𝑅𝑦2 =?

𝑭𝐵 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁)

𝑭𝑅 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁) 𝐹𝐸 =?

𝑭𝐸 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁) 𝜃𝑅 = 𝜃𝐸 =

Table 1: The components of the force vectors.

B) Application of Experimental Method

• By trial and error, find the angle for the third pulley and the mass which must be suspended from it
that will balance the forces exerted on the strings by the other two masses. The third force is called
the equilibrant (𝑭𝐸 ) since it is the force which establishes equilibrium. Recall that the equilibrant is the
negative of the resultant:

−𝑭𝐸 = 𝑭𝑅 = 𝑭𝐴 + 𝑭𝐵 .
 Ring Method of Finding Equilibrium: The ring should be centered over the post when the system is in
equilibrium. Screw the center post down so that it is flush with the top surface of the force table and no
longer able to hold the ring in position. Pull the ring slightly to one side and let it go. Check to see that
the ring returns to the center. If not, adjust the mass and/or angle of the pulley until the ring always
returns to the center when pulled slightly to one side.

• Record the mass and angle required for the third pulley (i.e., the equilibrant) to put the system into
equilibrium in Table 2. Show all your computations and the forces (𝑭𝐴 , 𝑭𝐵 , 𝑭𝐸 ) on the protractor.

Mass=𝑚 = 𝐹𝐸 =
𝑭𝐸 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁) 𝜃𝐸 =
Table 2: Equilibrant obtained from the experiment.

Compare the results obtained in Table 1 and Table 2:

Method Equilibrant (𝑭𝐸 )

Magnitude Direction (𝜽)
Experimental:
𝐹𝐸 = 𝜃𝐸 =
𝑭𝐸 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁)

Component:
𝐹𝐸 = 𝜃𝐸 =
𝑭𝐸 = − − − − − − 𝑖̂ + − − − − − − 𝑗̂ (𝑁)

Table 3: Comparison of the two methods

Comparing an experimental value to a theoretical value

Percent error is used when comparing an experimental result 𝐸 with a theoretical value 𝑇 that is
accepted as the "correct" value.

|𝑇 − 𝐸|
Δ = 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 (𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒) 𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑟 = × 100%
𝑇

Fractional or relative uncertainty is used to quantitatively express the precision of a measurement.

Δ
𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 (𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒) 𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑦 =
𝐸

Measurement = (measured value ± uncertainty) unit of measurement

1) Determine the percent errors between the experimental value and the theoretical value of the
magnitudes and angles. What are the possible two reasons of those errors?

2) Find the precisions of measurements made for the magnitudes and angles.
NO: NAME&SURNAME: GR:

The protractor on this page is a version of the degree scale on the top surface of the Force Table. It can be dupli-
cated, trimmed, and used as an overlay on the Force Table for drawing and tracing the string positions.

190 180 170

200
21 160
0 0
15
22 0
0 14

0
23

13
0
24

0
12
0

180
200
160
250

22

110
0
0 14
24

0
12
0
260

100
260

100
270

90
280

80
280

80
30

60
0
290

32

70
0 40
340 20
0
30

60
0
31

50
0

32
0 40
33
0 30
340 20
350 0 10

®
 Experiment 2: Projectile Motion

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Figure 1: Experimental set-up

Principle
A ball is fired by a spring at different velocities and at different angles to the horizontal. The
relationships between the range, the height of projection, the angle of inclination, and the firing
velocity are determined.

Equipment

Recording paper; Ballistic Unit; Speed measuring attachment; Two-tier platform support; Balls;
Meter scale; Barrel base expert

Tasks

1. To determine the range as a function of the angle of inclination.

2. To determine the mathematical nature of the projectile motion.
3. To determine the gravitational acceleration 𝑔, using the data collected from the experiment.

1
Theory and evaluation
If a body of mass 𝑚 moves in a constant gravitational field (gravitational force), the motion lies in
a plane (see Fig. 2).

Figure 2: Movement of a mass point under the effect of gravity

𝑑2
If the coordinate system is laid in this plane (Fig. 2) and the equation of motion 𝑚 𝑑𝑡 2 𝒓(𝑡) = 𝑚𝒈
where 𝒓 = 𝑥𝑖̂ + 𝑦𝑗̂ and 𝒈 = −𝑔𝑗̂ is solved with the initial conditions

𝒓(𝟎) = 0𝑖̂ + 0𝑗̂,

𝒗𝟎 = 𝑣0 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜙𝑖̂ + 𝑣0 sin 𝜙𝑗̂

to obtain the coordinates as functions of time given by

𝑥(𝑡) = (𝑣0 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜙)𝑡,

1
𝑦(𝑡) = (𝑣0 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝜙)𝑡 − 𝑔𝑡 2 .
2
From these results, one finds the maximum height ℎ and the maximum range 𝑠 of the projectile
as a function of the angle of projection 𝜙 given by
𝑣02
ℎ= 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 𝜙,
2𝑔
𝑣02
𝑠= sin (2𝜙).
𝑔

Figure 3: Maximum range s as a function of the angle of inclination ∅ for different initial velocity 𝑣0 .

Data in Fig. 3: Curve 1: 𝑣0 = 5.3 𝑚/𝑠, Curve 2: 𝑣0 = 4.1 𝑚/𝑠, Curve 3: 𝑣0 = 3.1 𝑚/𝑠

2
Figure 4: Maximum height of projection ℎ as a function of the angle 𝜙 of inclination for the initial
velocities as in Fig. 1.

The maximum range is reached at an inclination angle of 45° for every initial velocity. Fig. 5 shows
the range for an angle of 45° plotted against different initial velocities 𝑣0 . By choosing a logarithmic
scale, a regression line can be applied to the measured data and used to determine the maximum
range for arbitrary initial velocities.

Note
To ensure an accurate determination of the
initial velocity, the time taken for the ball to
cover the measuring distance must be
considered. Depending on the angle of
inclination, the ball already leaves the light
barrier with a reduced velocity. If 𝑣𝑒𝑥𝑝 is the
experimentally determined initial velocity we
obtain as actual initial velocity:
𝑣0 = √𝑣𝑒𝑥𝑝 2 + 𝑔 𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝜙

where 𝑑 is the distance between the striker

and the center between the light barriers.

Caution:
1) Do not load the launcher while your head
or body is in the line of fire.
2) Do not allow anyone to get hit by the ball.
3) Do not perform any launch unless every
member in your group is aware and ready.
4) Do not load the launcher for the angled
launch unless your instructor is present.
5) You must put the ball in its place, first, and
then load the launcher.
6) Do not put your finger inside the launcher.

Figure 5: Maximum range as a function of the initial

velocity 𝑣0 with a fixed angle of inclination ∅ = 45°.

3
 Procedure (Experimental Method)

Maximum range: Use the ready setup and load the launcher for the minimum initial speed while the initial
angle is variable. For each individual angle (in the Table 1) you launch the wooden ball and record its range
in the Table 1.

Table 1: Range of the ball versus the initial angle with constant initial velocity 𝑣0 .

𝜙 30° 35° 40° 45° 50° 55° 60°

𝑠 (𝑚)
𝑣0
𝑣02 sin (2 𝜙)

Using the Table 1, sketch the graph of the range 𝑠 with respect to the initial angle of the projectile motion
𝜙 in the following graph area.

Figure 6: A graph of s versus ϕ.

4
Measurement of gravitational acceleration
a) Using Table 1, plot the least square line 𝑠(𝑚) versus 𝑣02 sin (2 𝜙) (𝑚2 /𝑠 2 ) in the following graph
area.

5
b) Based on the least square line which you have already plotted, and the equation of the range
𝑣02
of the projectile motion i.e., 𝑠 = sin (2𝜙) , find the experimental value of the gravitational
𝑔
constant 𝒈. This can be done simply by equating the slope of the least square line of the graph and
1
the slope of the equation 𝑠 with respect to 𝑣02 sin (2 𝜙) which is nothing but 𝑚 = 𝑔. Note that to
get reasonable answer from your analysis, you must use the units of the quantities involved in
your calculation correctly.

c) If the theoretical value of the gravitational acceleration is 𝑔 = 9.81 𝑚/𝑠 2 find the
percentage error.

Questions:

1) In the first graph what is the nature of the graph 𝑠 versus 𝜙?

2) What are the possible sources of errors in this experiment? (Show at least two reasons)

3) If one launches the ball vertically i.e., 𝜙 = 90° what will be the maximum height? (Express
your answer in terms of 𝑣0 and 𝑔)

4) If one launches the ball horizontally i.e., 𝜙 = 0° what will be the range? (Express your
answer in terms of 𝑣0 , 𝑔 and height)

6
 Experiment 3: Newton’s Second Law

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Figure 1: Experimental set-up

Theory

Newton's second law is given by

⃗𝑭𝒏𝒆𝒕 = 𝚺𝑭 ⃗ = 𝒎𝒂 ⃗
⃗
where 𝑭𝒏𝒆𝒕 is the total force an object, 𝒎 is the
⃗ stands for the acceleration.
mass, and 𝒂

The way to test this theory is to apply a force to an object and measure its acceleration. In this
experiment, you will learn how to measure the acceleration by using the sonic ranger, getting data
(with Xplorer), and draw its associated graph with Excel. To do this, you will use a setup such as the
one below.

Analyzing this motion may seem difficult, but it is not. By using the Free Body Diagram technique, one
can get the following equations (all the frictional forces are ignored during the computations):
𝑇 − 𝑀2 𝑔 = −𝑀2 𝑎
𝑇 = 𝑀1 𝑎

1
By subtracting the above two equations from each other, we obtain
𝑀2 𝑔 = (𝑀1 + 𝑀2 )𝑎 (1)
In this experiment, you will vary the force, keep the total mass of the system constant, and measure
the corresponding acceleration. 𝑀2 will be the sum of the mass of hanger and the various masses
hanging on it. The mass reduced from 𝑀2 should be placed on 𝑀1 . Thus, the total mass (𝑀1 + 𝑀2 ) will
always be remained constant.

Procedure

•Start with 0.045 𝑘𝑔 for 𝑀2 . This will consist of the hanger (which is 5𝑔 = 0.005 𝑘𝑔), two 10𝑔 and
one 20𝑔 masses: [𝑀2 = (5 + 20 + 10 + 10) × 10−3 𝑘𝑔 = 0.045𝑘𝑔]

• Add two of the 250𝑔 bars on the cart having 𝟐𝟓𝟓𝒈 tare mass.

• To find the acceleration, you will take the data while the cart is moving towards and away from the
sonic ranger. For this aim, you will use the Xplorer GLX device. Thus, you will obtain the following
data tables of “distance versus time and time square”. While doing this, you will reduce the mass on
the hanger (i.e., 𝑀2 ↓) and keep the total mass constant (𝑀1 + 𝑀2 = 800𝑔 = 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡).

2
Fill the following data tables:
Table-1: When 𝑀2 = 45𝑔 and 𝑀1 = 755𝑔
𝑑(𝑚)
𝑡(𝑠)
2 2
𝑡 (𝑠 )

Table-2: When 𝑀2 = 35𝑔 and 𝑀1 = 765𝑔

𝑑(𝑚)
𝑡(𝑠)
2 2
𝑡 (𝑠 )

Table-3: When 𝑀2 = 25𝑔 and 𝑀1 = 775𝑔

𝑑(𝑚)
𝑡(𝑠)
2 2
𝑡 (𝑠 )

Table-4: When 𝑀2 = 15𝑔 and 𝑀1 = 785𝑔

𝑑(𝑚)
𝑡(𝑠)
2 2
𝑡 (𝑠 )

and draw the graph by Excel.

• For each data table, draw the graph of 𝑑 (𝑚) versus 𝑡 2 (𝑠 2 ) by using Excel program.
• Find the slope of the least square line of each 𝑑(𝑚) versus 𝑡 2 (𝑠 2 ) graph and calculate
𝟏
the associated accelerations. (Hint: Recall that 𝒅 = 𝟐 𝒂𝒕𝟐 ).
• Copy the obtained accelerations to the following table:
Table-5:
𝑀2 (𝑘𝑔) 0.045 0.035 0.025 0.015
𝑎(𝑚/𝑠 2 )

Finding Gravitational Acceleration

• By using Excel plot the least square line of 𝑎(𝑚/𝑠 2 ) versus 𝑀2 (𝑘𝑔) graph.

• Find the slope of the least square line of 𝑎(𝑚/𝑠 2 ) versus 𝑀2 (𝑘𝑔) graph.
• Use Eq. (1) to find the experimental value of the magnitude of gravitational acceleration 𝑔:
𝑔𝑒𝑥𝑝 =……………..
𝑚
• If the theoretical value of 𝑔𝑡ℎ = 9.81(𝑠2 ), find the percentage error and the precisions of
measurements made for the magnitude of the gravitational acceleration.
|𝑇 − 𝐸| Δ
Recall that "Δ = 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 (𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒)𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑟 = × 100 & 𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 (𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒) 𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑦 = "
𝑇 𝐸

3
Questions

1. What physical property does the slope of a Force v Acceleration graph represent?

2. In the absence of an external force, a moving object will

a) move with constant velocity.
b) stop immediately.
c) slow down and eventually come to a stop.
d) go faster and faster.

3. You are standing in a moving bus, facing forward, and you suddenly fall forward as the bus comes
to an immediate stop. What force caused you to fall forward?
a) Gravity.
b) Normal force due to your contact with the floor of the bus.
c) Force due to friction between you and the floor of the bus.
d) There is not a force leading to your fall.

4. A 20𝑁 weight and a 5𝑁 weight are dropped simultaneously from the same height. Ignore air
resistance. Compare their accelerations.
a) The 20 N weight accelerates faster because it is heavier.
b) The 20 N weight accelerates faster because it has more inertia.
c) The 5.0 N weight accelerates faster because it has a smaller mass.
d) They both accelerate at the same rate because they have the same weight to mass ratio.

5. Who has a greater weight to mass ratio, a person weighing 400 N or a person weighing 600 N?
a) the person weighing 400 N
b) the person weighing 600 N
c) Neither; their ratios are the same.
d) The question can't be answered; not enough information is given.

4
 Experiment 4: Conservation of Energy

Equipment: Roller Coaster Complete System; Photogate Heads; Smart Timer

Introduction
A car is started from rest on a variety of shapes of tracks and the speeds of the car at various points
along the track are measured using a photogate connected to a Smart Timer. The potential energy
is calculated from the measured height and the kinetic energy is calculated from the speed. The
total energy is calculated for two points on the track and compared.

The height from which the car must be released from rest to just make it over the loop can be
predicted from conservation of energy and the centripetal acceleration. Then the prediction can
be tested on the real roller coaster. Also, if the car is released from the top of the hill so it easily
makes it over the top of the loop, the speed of the car can be measured at the top of the loop and
the centripetal acceleration as well as the apparent weight (normal force) on the car can be
calculated.

Theory

1 2
The total energy (𝐸) of the car is equal to its kinetic energy ( K  mv ) and its potential energy
2
(𝑈 = 𝑚𝑔ℎ), where 𝑚 is the mass of the car and 𝑣 is the speed of the car. 𝑔 is the acceleration due
to gravity and ℎ is the height of the car above the position, where the potential energy is defined
to be zero. If the friction is ignored, the total energy of the car does not change. The Law of
Conservation of Energy is stated as

𝐸 = 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡  Kinitial  U initial  K final  U final

1
A-Step Procedure

Figure 1: Step Configuration

1. Follow the Path-1 seen in Figure 1. 5. Calculate the final total energy of the
car.
2. Place the car (without extra mass
attached on it) to the starting point at 𝐸𝑓 =
the leftmost of the track and measure
the height (ℎ𝑖 ) of the car from the
surface of the table. Note that the
center of mass of the car is 6. How much energy is lost? Where
approximately at the slot where the does it go?
flag is inserted.
(Car’s tare mass is 𝒎 = 𝟒𝟐. 𝟕𝒈). 𝐸𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑡 =
ℎ𝑖 =
3. Place the car at the top and release it
from rest. Use the photogate and
Smart Timer (set on the Speed: One 7. Calculate the percent of total energy
Gate Mode) to measure the speed of lost.
the cart at the bottom of the step.
Elost
% Lost  %  100
4. Calculate the initial total energy of Ei
the car.
𝐸𝑖 = 8. Attach the 50g mass to the car and
repeat steps 2 through 8 above.

𝐸𝑖 = 𝐸𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑡 =
𝐸𝑓 = %𝐿𝑜𝑠𝑡 =
Questions
1. How does increasing the mass of the car change the total energy?

2. How does increasing the mass of the car change the speed of the car at the bottom?

3. Does the car lose a greater percentage of its energy when it has the extra mass or not?

2
B-Loop Procedure

Figure 2: Loop Configuration

1. Follow the Path-2 seen in Figure 2. 5. How much energy is lost? Where does it
go?
2. Place the car (with attached extra 𝐸𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑡 =
mass 50g) to the starting point at the
leftmost of the track. Recall that you
have already measured the height (ℎ𝑖 )
of the car from the surface of the table
in A-2 part. (𝒎 = 𝟗𝟐. 𝟕𝒈) 6. Calculate the percent of total energy
ℎ𝑖 = lost.

3. Calculate the initial total energy of the Elost

% Lost  %  100
car. Ei
𝐸𝑖 =
7. By using the speed of the car at the top
of the loop and the centripetal acceleration
formula, compute the magnitude of the
4. Calculate the final total energy of the car. apparent weight (normal force) on the car.
𝐸𝑓 =

Question

1. Comparing the result of section B with the result obtained in section-A, for the car with 50g
extra mass, which car does have the greater speed at the right end of the track since they have
almost same height difference? How does energy conservation explain your answer?

3
C- Critical Height

h1
R
h2

Figure 3 Figure 4

1. Follow the Path seen in Figure 3.

2. Measure from the center of the loop to the center of mass of the car (without extra mass) at the
top of the loop (see Figure 4), and obtain 𝑅 =?

𝑅=

3. Measure the distance from the center of mass of the car at the top of the loop to the table (ℎ2 =?).

ℎ2 =

4. Using Conservation of Energy, compute the critical height (ℎ1 =?) from which the car can be
released on the left end of the track, so that the car will just lose its contact with the surface at the
top of the loop. At that moment, the critical speed is 𝑣 ≡ 𝑣𝑐 = √𝑅𝑔.
1
(𝐻𝑖𝑛𝑡: 𝑚𝑔ℎ1 ≅ 𝑚𝑣 2 + 𝑚𝑔ℎ2 )
2

5. Place the center of mass of the car at the ℎ1 position and release it from rest.

Question

Does the car make the loop over? Explain why or why not?

4
 Experiment 5: Conservation of Linear Momentum and Kinetic Energy

PURPOSE

In a collision process on an air track to check that linear momentum and total kinetic energy are
conserved.

APPARATUS

Air track, gliders with flags, electronic timers mounted to photogates.

Figure 5.1
THEORY

On an air track, in principle, the friction is reduced to zero. For this reason, it becomes very suitable
to make collision experiments on an air track. For this purpose, we use two gliders with variable
masses on the air track and two photogates to record electronically the time intervals. Each glider
5.1
has a flag on it with a length of 𝑙 = 10 𝑐𝑚. (see Fig. (5.1)). Prior to the collision we denote the
speeds of objects (the gliders) by 𝑣₁ (with mass 𝑀₁) and 𝑣₂ (with mass 𝑀₂). After the collision
these become 𝑣₁′ and 𝑣₂′, respectively. Accordingly, the conservation principle of linear
momentum is expressed by

1
 𝑀1 𝑣⃗1 + 𝑀2 𝑣⃗2 = −𝑀1 𝑣⃗1′ + 𝑀2 𝑣⃗2′ .

Since the air track is a one-dimensional object the process takes place in one-dimension only, say
the 𝑥-axis. Depending on the directions of velocities, the velocities can at most be ± in sign.
Similarly, the conservation principle for the total kinetic energy in an Elastic Collision can be
expressed by

1 1 1 1
𝑀₁𝑣₁² + 2 𝑀₂𝑣₂² = 2 𝑀₁𝑣′₁² + 2 𝑀₂𝑣′₂². 5.2
2

Let us remind that each kinetic energy term is automatically positive. In order to make sure that
no potential energy due to gravity is involved the air track must be perfectly horizontal. This must
be checked in the beginning before the experiment is started. What we aim in this experiment
essentially is to check the validity of Eq. (5.1) and Eq. (5.2).

The most important part of the experiment is to find the speeds correctly. For this purpose, we use
photogates that electronically record time passage for each glider. If the time is recorded by 𝑡₁ and
the length of the flag on the glider is 𝑙1 then, from the relation

𝑙
𝑣1 = 𝑡1 , 5.3
1

we can find the speed 𝑣₁ and similarly the other speeds. In order to make the experiment simpler,
so that we can conduct better measurements we assume throughout the experiment that 𝑣2 = 0 ,
that is one of the objects (𝑀2 ) is at rest initially. This casts our equations of linear momentum and
kinetic energy conservations into the forms

𝑀1 𝑣1 = −𝑀1 𝑣1′ + 𝑀2 𝑣2′ , 5.4

1 1 1
𝑀₁𝑣₁² = 2 𝑀₁𝑣′₁² + 2 𝑀₂𝑣′₂², 5.5
2

so that we have to find only three speeds instead of four.

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

First you have to check that the air track is perfectly horizontal with zero inclination angle. Then,
put the masses provided in the table below, on each glider. Make the arrangement as in Fig. (5.1).

2
One of the gliders (𝑀₂) at rest is between the two photogates while the other one (𝑀₁) lies outside
the photogates. Before we move 𝑀₁ with initial speed 𝑣₁, we turn on the pump of the air track (to
maximum level) so that friction becomes zero.

As 𝑀₁ passes through one of the photogates its time will be recorded. Fill the following table
knowing that the tare masses of the gliders are same and equal to 𝑚𝑔𝑙𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑟 = 0.210𝑘𝑔. The two
gliders will collide and they will pass through different photogates. In this way their times
(𝑡₁, 𝑡₁′ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡₂′) will be recorded and speeds will be found from Eq. (5.3).

RAW DATA

0.10 0.10 0.10

𝑡₁(𝑠) 𝑡₁′(𝑠) 𝑡₂′(𝑠) 𝑣₁ = 𝑣′₁ = 𝑣2 𝑣′2 = 𝑀₁(𝑘𝑔) 𝑀₂(𝑘𝑔)
𝑡₁ 𝑡′₁ 𝑡′2

1 0 0.210 0.310

2 0 0.210 0.410

3 0 0.230 0.310

4 0 0.230 0.410

DATA ANALYSIS

We shall be knowing now, 𝑣₁, 𝑣₁′, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑣₂′ to be substituted into Eqs. (5.4) and (5.5). If Eq. (5.4)
is satisfied this will mean that in the process of collision linear momentum is conserved. Similarly,
Eq. (5.5) will tell us that the total kinetic energy is conserved in the process.

In such an experiment we must admit that a few percent error between the left- and right-hand
sides of Eqs. (5.4) and (5.5) are tolerable. The students must be able to explain about the possible
numerical differences in those equations. For example, is the collision exactly elastic? Is there
some energy loss taking place in the collision process? How?

CAUTION

If the difference between the left- and right-hand sides of Eqs. (5.4) and (5.5) are big, that means
the data taken is not recorded correctly. So, please repeat the experiment and reduce your errors as

3
much as possible. For example, if 𝑀₁ comes to a stop after collision you should increase its initial
speed so that it will gain enough speed to pass through the photogate after the collision.

QUESTIONS

1) What are the differences between elastic, inelastic and completely inelastic collisions?

2) Can you give an example for each different case?