CAIE A-Level Physics 17.3.2 Types of Damping
Practise distinguishing light, critical and heavy damping, sketching displacement-time graphs and relating damping to continuing or decaying oscillations.
- Syllabus
- 2028–2030
- Course
- Physics 9702
- Level
- A2
Exam points
- distinguish light, critical and heavy damping
- sketch or interpret displacement–time graphs for the three damping conditions
- relate damping type to whether oscillations continue, return fastest or decay without oscillating
17.3.2—The terms light, critical and heavy damping and sketch displacement–time question 1
An object is suspended from a vertical spring as shown in Fig. 3.1.
Fig. 3.1
The object is displaced vertically and then released so that it oscillates, undergoing simple harmonic motion.
Fig. 3.2 shows the variation with displacement x of the energy E of the oscillations.
Fig. 3.2
The kinetic energy, the potential energy and the total energy of the oscillations are each represented by one of the lines P, Q and R .
State, with a reason, the type of damping that the card introduces into the system.
All question bank results loaded