Vibrations and Waves MP205, Assignment 2

Please hand in your solutions before 5pm Monday 22nd February, starred questions will be done
out in tutorial and do not need to be handed up. c
If you have any questions about this assignment, please ask your tutor,

Una
N Ruairc, (uniruairc@thphys.nuim.ie), Office 1.6, Dept. Mathematical Physics.
* 1. Two vibrations along the same line are described by the equations
y1 = A cos(9t)
y2 = A cos(11t)
Find the beat period, and draw a careful sketch of the resultant disturbance over one beat
period.
2. For the following, find the beat period and draw a sketch of the resultant disturbance over
one beat period.



15
y1 = 2 cos 17
4 t , y2 = 2 cos
4 t
* 3. Two vibrations at right angles to one another are described by the equations:
x = 10 cos(5t), y = 10 cos(10t + /3)
Construct the Lissajous figure of the combined motion.
4. Construct the Lissajous figures for the following motions:
(a) x = cos(2t), y = sin(2t).
(b) x = cos(2t), y = cos(2t /4).
(c) x = cos(2t), y = cos(t).
* 5. Verify the following statements:
(a) The acceleration of a system undergoing simple harmonic motion satisfies
a = 2 x
q
k
(b) For an oscillating mass on a spring = m
6. An item of mass 20 g is hung from a spring and set in oscillatory motion. The angular
frequency is given by = 10rads1 .
(a) What is the spring constant?
(b) At t = 0 the displacement is 50 cm, what is the force on the mass at this time?
(c) What is the acceleration of the mass at t = 0?
7. A mass m hangs from a uniform spring of spring constant k.
(a) What is the period of oscillations, T, in the system?
(b) What would it be if the mass m were hung so that: (see Figure below).
(1) It was attached to two identical springs hanging side by side?
(2) It was attached to the lower of two identical springs connected end to end?
Give the new period of oscillations for each system in terms of T from part (a).

k
k

k
(1)
(2)