Physics Labs for Scientists and Engineers

Lab Resources

Laboratory Information
- Safety
  
  Students must follow all posted safety rules and precautions and those announced by the TA...
- Recitation and Lab Schedules
  
  The laboratory associated with this physics course consists of a recitation session (one hour) and a laboratory session (one hour and fifty minutes)...
- Lab Session
  
  Students must be prepared for every lab meeting...
- Lab Report
  
  You will be able to view the lab report template (worksheet) for the experiment you are to do before attending the lab as part of the lab preparation...
- Demo Labs/Exam Review/Problem-Solving Sessions
  
  The lab schedule may list several different types of sessions during the lab meetings...
- Missed Labs
  
  If a student misses a lab (or believes he/she will have to miss a lab due to a university-excused absence), that student should try to find another section during that same week to do the lab experiment...
- Feedback
  
  In order to continue making improvements to this lab manual, feedback from the students is important...
Appendix A: Significant Figures
- 1. Determining the Number of Significant Figures
  
  Most measurements made in the laboratory involve the reading of some scale...
- 2. Significant Figures in Calculations
  
  Although there is generally no difficulty in deciding how many significant figures (s. f.) a measurement should contain, problems can arise when calculations are made using these numbers...
Appendix B: Theory of Errors
- 1. Types of Errors
  
  In order to determine the uncertainty for a measurement, the nature of the errors affecting the experiment must be examined...
- 2. Statistical Methods
  
  When several independent measurements of a quantity are made, an appropriate result to report for that quantity is the average of the measurements...
- 3. Percent Errors
  
  The standard deviation is a measure of the precision of an experiment: the smaller the ΔS, the greater the precision of the best estimate...
Appendix C: Propagation of Errors
- 1. Addition and Subtraction
  
  Suppose two quantities A and B are added...
- 2. Multiplication and Division
  
  Suppose two quantities A and B are multiplied...
- 3. Exponents and Roots
  
  Suppose a calculation involves the use of exponents...
- Examples
  
  The distance between two points on a straight line is found by recording the position of each point on a meterstick...
- Summary
  
  U = A ± B ± C ± D ± ...
Appendix D: Graphical Analysis
- 1. Drawing Graphs
  
  Since a graph is used not merely to display the results of a series of measurements but also to assist in analyzing the data, it should be designed to provide the maximum amount of information possible to a reader...
- 2. Analysis and Interpretation
  
  Once the graph has been constructed, a proper analysis is essential in order to obtain any generalizations or conclusions concernng the experiment...

Lab Manuals

Measurements
- Introduction
  
  Physics is a quantitative, experimental science that relies heavily on the ability to perform accurate, precise measurements...
- Theory
  
  In measuring physical quantities, it is important to use the proper measuring instruments...
- Apparatus
  
  Meterstick, Digital caliper, Triple beam balance, Aluminum block, Aluminum cylinder, Steel ball, Graduated cylinders (filled with liquids)
- Objective
  
  The objective of this laboratory is to familiarize you with the concepts of measurement and measurement errors and how they influence your ability to infer a particular conclusion based on these measurements.
- Procedure
  
  Be sure to include the units and the experimental uncertainty for each measured value, since each measurement will be taken only once, unless you are directed otherwise...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Vector Addition
- Introduction
  
  All measurable quantities may be classified either as vector quantities or as scalar quantities...
- Theory
  
  A vector quantity can be represented graphically by a straight line with an arrowhead at its end...
- Objective
  
  The objective of this laboratory is to find the equilibrant force for one or more known forces using the force table, and to compare this result to those obtained using graphical and analytic methods.
- Apparatus
  
  Ruler protractor, Three pulleys, Slotted mass set, Three mass hangers, Force table with center pin and ring, Bubble level
- Procedure
  
  The force table consists of a horizontally mounted surface that is graduated in degrees along its perimeter...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Motion with Constant Acceleration
- Introduction
  
  Newton's second law describes the acceleration of an object due to an applied net force...
- Theory
  
  When an object is placed on a "frictionless" inclined plane, there are two forces acting on it: the force, W, due to gravity and the normal force, N, exerted on it by the plane...
- Objectives
  
  The objective of this lab experiment is to make simultaneous experimental observations of the position, velocity, and acceleration of a uniformly accelerating object on an inclined plane...
- Apparatus
  
  Computer, LabPro interface box, Logger Pro software, Vernier Motion Detector, PASCO low-friction track with leveling screw, PASCO collision cart with specially designed low-friction wheels, 1-cm and 2-cm spacers, Meterstick, Triple-beam balance (on back tables)
- Procedure - Session 1
  
  Find the motion detector and verify that it is connected to the DIG/SONIC: 2 port on the LabPro interface...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Air Resistance
- Introduction
  
  When you solve physics problems involving free fall, often you are told to ignore air resistance and to assume the acceleration is constant and unending...
- Objectives
  
  The objective of this lab is to observe the effect of air resistance on falling coffee filters and to measure their terminal velocity in free fall...
- Apparatus
  
  Computer, LabPro interface box, Vernier rotation detector, Logger Pro software, 5 basket-style coffee filters, String, Timer
- Preliminary Questions
  
  Hold a single coffee filter in your hand...
- Procedure
  
  Verify that the motion detector is connected to DIG/SONIC 2 of the LabPro interface unit...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Torques and Static Equilibrium
- Introduction
  
  The primary purpose of this lab is to introduce you to the quantity called the torque or, as engineers call it, the moment of a force and show how this quantity behaves in a system in static equilibrium...
- Objectives
  
  The objectives of this experiment are to learn to measure torque due to a force and to adjust the magnitude of one or more forces and their lever arms to produce static equilibrium in a meterstick balanced on a knife-edge...
- Apparatus
  
  Meterstick, Pivot hanger, Mass hangers, Set of masses, Pulley on a stand, String and small beaker, Container of washers, Triple beam balance
- Procedure
  
  You will have a meterstick which has a hanger on it so that it can be balanced on a stand...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Rotational Kinematics: Using an Atwood's Machine
- Introduction
  
  The purpose of this lab is to help you understand angular velocity and angular acceleration. In this lab you will be dealing with rotation about a fixed axis, so some of the complexity associated with these quantities will be avoided...
- Apparatus
  
  Computer, LabPro interface box, Vernier rotation detector, Logger Pro software, 6 large paper clips to be used as additional masses, Two 50 g masses, Meterstick, String with loops at both ends, Timer, Triple beam balance
- Objective
  
  The objective of this experiment is to experimentally verify the relationship between the torque applied to a rigid body and its angular acceleration, its angular velocity, and its angular position as a function of time.
- Overview
  
  You will have a disk mounted on an axle that can rotate almost without friction (see Figure 1)...
- Procedure
  
  In this lab we will be using a new data collecting device with the Logger Pro software that you have used previously...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Elastic Collisions: Conservation of Momentum and Mechanical Energy
- Introduction
  
  When two bodies collide, a small amount of energy is expended due to the deformation of the bodies...
- Conservation of Momentum
  
  In any collision, momentum is always conserved...
- Objectives
  
  In this lab you will perform both "head-on" and "glancing" collisions using two steel spheres...
- Apparatus
  
  Grooved track, Two steel balls, Large sheet of paper (2' x 2'), Carbon paper (2 pieces - 6" x 6"), Meterstick, Protractor, Compass
- Procedure
  
  The elastic collision apparatus consists of a grooved track mounted on a wooden base...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Investigating Springs (Simple Harmonic Motion)
- Introduction
  
  The purpose of this lab is to study the well-known force exerted by a spring...
- Objectives
  
  In this lab, you will investigate the properties of a simple mass-spring system...
- Apparatus
  
  Electronic stop clock, Mass holder, Slotted mass set, Spiral spring, Support rod and base, Ruler (taped to support rod), Balance
- Procedure
  
  Hang the spring from the eye-bolt at the top of the support rod. Hook the mass holder onto the bottom end of the spring and if necessary add enough slotted masses to the mass holder to just separate the coils of the spring...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Simple Pendulum
- Introduction
  
  A swinging pendulum keeps a very regular beat. It is so regular, in fact, that for many years the pendulum was the heart of clocks used in astronomical measurements at the Greenwich Observatory...
- The Pendulum
  
  A simple pendulum is just a mass tied to the end of a string that is fixed to an attachment point so that the mass is free to swing...
- Objectives
  
  To measure the period of a pendulum as a function of the amplitude of its motion...
- Apparatus
  
  Computer, LabPro Interface Box, Logger Pro Software, Vernier/PASCO Rotary Motion Sensor (RMS), String with a small washer to be used to adjust the pendulum length, Hooked masses of 100 g, 200 g, Meterstick
- Procedure
  
  In this experiment, you will use a rotary motion sensor to record the angular motion of a simple pendulum...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...
Waves on a String
- Introduction
  
  Wave motion is the underlying principle for many common phenomena (sound, musical instruments, light, X-rays, etc.) and may be transverse or longitudinal in nature...
- Objectives
  
  The objectives of this lab are to investigate the relationships between the tension in the string, and the frequencies of vibration necessary to produce a "standing wave" on the string...
- Apparatus
  
  Electrically driven vibrator, Two uniform strings, Pulley, Mass holder, Set of slotted masses with small masses (5g (1ea), 2g (2ea), 1g (1ea)) in a plastic dish, Meterstick, Stroboscopic light
- Procedure
  
  One end of a uniform string is attached to a vibrator armature which produces waves along the string at a frequency of 120 vibrations per second...
- Worksheet
  
  You will use a hard copy of this worksheet to enter data as you work through the experiment. Print the worksheet and bring it with you to the lab...