Lab 2: Motion with Uniform Acceleration

University of MichiganPhysics Department

Mechanics and Sound Intro Labs

Uniform Acceleration

Now that you have a better understanding of some of the statistical techniques that you will utilize in the lab, it is time to begin a more concentrated study on physics itself. Motion is usually not something that you think about in your everyday life. However, from the perspective of physics, motion is something to be studied, and thanks to the work of Newton and others, we now can explain the motion of a body in a mathematical manner. There are many types of motion, and in this lab, you will examine motion under constant acceleration in one dimension.

Four equations that can describe the motion of an object with uniform acceleration. There is one quantity that is ignored in each equation. (See your manual)

Today’s lab consists of three experimental exercises: studying the motion of a glider on a tilted track, studying the motion of a glider attached to hanging mass over a pulley, and an exercise in statistical analysis. You will find that you are asked to analyze and understand statistics in many of the labs from this point onward, so if you have any questions, consult chapter one of your lab manual, or ask your GSI.

Basic schematics for the lab setups.

The apparatus that you will use in this lab is an air track with a sonic ranger attached to one end. The air track is designed to simulate a one-dimensional, frictionless environment. To study motion on an air track, you must make use of special air track carts. These carts have a blue “sail” on them that allows the sonic ranger to track their position.

The basic air track set-up

For the first experiment, you will release the air cart on a tilted track. You have been provided with spacer blocks that you will place under the air track to raise the end of the track. The second experiment requires you to attach a hanging mass to the cart over a pulley. String and masses are provided for this purpose.

^ a glider with string attached and hanging over the pulley

The data collection software works in exactly the same way as before, so click collect on LoggerPro® when you are ready to collect data, wait for the program to initialize, and release the cart. You can then begin your analysis. At the end of this lab, you should have a better understanding of motion, velocity, and acceleration, and you should be able to model motion under constant acceleration. You will then be ready to tackle the more interesting case of motion under non-uniform acceleration.

See you in th

e

Lab!