Oscillations and Waves

Lecture 1/ 4th Oct 2021

defination = Oscillation is defined as the process of repeating variations of any quantity or measure about
its equilibrium value in time.
OR
Oscillation can also be defined as a periodic variation of a matter between two values or
about its central value.
Why is a simple harmonic motion important?
(1) The simplest type of motion. Motions that are even simpler than
SHM are only those with either force being zero or constant.
Examples: Pendulum, swing, etc.

(2) Any periodic or a complicated motion can be described in terms

of combination of SHMs.

(3) SHM can be used in understanding the atomic or molecular

vibrations in solids. The collective excitations in solids such as
sound wave involve simple harmonic motions of atoms or
molecules.

(4) The electric or magnetic field in an electromagnetic wave such

as light performs simple harmonic oscillations.
 Contents
• Spring-mass oscillator
• Equation of motion for SHM
• Motional characteristics of SHM
• The Simple Pendulum
• Damped Oscillations
• Forced Oscillations
 Periodic motion
When an object repeats it’s motion after a fixed interval of time then
the motion is called a periodic motion.

❑ Characteristics of motions such as displacement, velocity,

momentum, energy etc are repeated. Path can be linear,
circular or elliptical etc.

❑ Examples: Tuning fork, a simple pendulum, spring-mass

oscillator, a lightweight object floating on waters etc.

Other examples: (1)The earth’s rotation about it’s axis?

(2) Earth’s movement around the Sun is periodic motion?
(3) Heart’s expansion or contraction during the heart beat is periodic motion?
Lecture 2/ 6th Oct 2021 Oscillations
A periodic motion performed along a curved or straight line
segment is called oscillation.
Or To and fro motion of an object is called oscillation.
The periodic motion of a particle along a quarter circle is oscillatory?
What is the condition for oscillation to occur?
(i) The object should be inside a potential well (one dimensional),
(ii) It should have energy greater than the minimum of potential
but less than the potential barrier (smaller than U1 and U2 )

U(x)

U1 U2

x
With above conditions, oscillations can result even for a complicated potential
 Simple harmonic motion
An oscillatory motion along a straight line within a quadratic
potential well is called simple harmonic motion

Note: All the coefficients of Taylor expansion of a general

potential should vanish except that of 1 and x2

Any periodic motion can be represented by a

combination of various simple harmonic motions

A function of periodicity 2𝜋
Example:
Spring-mass oscillator and periodic motion

The mass and spring system is a standard

example for a periodic motion or an
oscillatory motion or a simple harmonic
motion

The mass m oscillates back and

forth over the same path, each cycle
taking the same amount of time.

Why oscillation?
(I) The spring wants to regain it’s natural length
(II) friction is absent
(III) The energy provided to oscillator
Characteristics of spring-mass oscillations

• Amplitude is the maximum

displacement from equilibrium
position
• A complete cycle is a full to-and-fro
motion
• Period is the time required to
complete one cycle
• Frequency is the number of cycles
completed per second
 Spring Force
Force exerted by the spring on mass

• The minus sign on the force indicates that it is a restoring force—it is

directed to restore the mass to its equilibrium position.
• k is the spring constant

An oscillatory motion in which the force is proportional to the

displacement from equilibrium position in magnitude but opposite in
direction is called simple harmonic motion (SHM)

Question: what if force is proportional to -x3 ? Will the motion be

oscillatory? If yes, then, is it also simple harmonic oscillation?
 Acceleration

Newton’s second law:

F = ma

When the acceleration of an object is proportional to its

displacement from equilibrium position but directed
oppositely, then the motion is called simple harmonic motion
Simple Harmonic Oscillator
(Equation of motion):

The restoring force is

Applying Newton’s second law to the motion of the block :

Points to note:
1. Acceleration (a) has opposite sign of x.
2. When x = 0; a = 0.
3. When x is maximum, a is maximum.
 k
Let us define a new term ω = m ;so that
2

(1)

What kind of solution this differential equation will

admit?
The trigonometric functions sine and cosine or both of
them will be solution of above equation.
 The most general solution to the differential
equation is given by :

Here, A,ω,φ are constants of motion.

Does this solution satisfy equation (1)?

A : Amplitude of the motion. It is simply the maximum
value of the position of the particle in either the positive
or negative x direction.
ω : Angular frequency. It is a measure of how rapidly the
oscillations are occurring.
φ : Phase constant (or initial phase angle). If the particle
is at its maximum position x = A at t = 0, then φ =0.
Angular frequency (ω) is related to period of oscillation (T) :
Question
Two objects of same mass and springs of same spring
constant (k).

How will the time period of two be related?

SHM time period (T) is independent of
Amplitude!!
 Displacement, velocity and acceleration v/s time

What will be maximum value of velocity and acceleration ?

k k
v max= Aω= A Amax= Aω =
2
A
m m
 Two cases with different phase constants
f=0 f = -p/2
Question

Use the time dependent expression of displacement and velocity to

show that the total energy of a simple harmonic oscillator is
constant.
 Energy of the SHM
Total Energy(TE) = Kinetic Energy (KE)+ Potential
energy(PE)

PE = kx = kA cos (ωt+ φ)
1 2 1 2 2 (2)
2 2
KE = mv = mA ω sin2 (ωt+ φ)
1 2 1 2 2

2 2

 KE = kA sin (ωt+ φ)
1 2 2
(3)
2 1
Adding (2) and (3) TE= k A2 [Constant]
2
Question: Is the kinetic energy or potential energy periodic?
What is the periodicity?
• If the mass is at the limits of
its motion, the energy is all
potential.
• If the mass is at the
equilibrium point, the
energy is all kinetic.
• At any point in between, it is
partly KE and partly PE.
 1
PE= k x 2 1
KE= mv 2
2 2

U is PE and K is KE
Calculating velocity when position is given
TE = KE+ PE (Energy conservation)
1 1 1
 kA = mv + kx 2
2 2

2 2 2

 mv 2 = k (A2 - x 2 )

 v = m (A - x 2 )
2 k 2

What will be maximum value of v?

 Question

The mass in the spring-mass oscillator having time

period of 1 second is at a distance of 0.5m from the
equilibrium position. At that point, it is observed to
be moving with a velocity of 1 m/s. Find the
amplitude of oscillation.
 Vertical Spring Oscillator ?

What about gravity?

When a mass-spring system is oriented vertically, it will
exhibit SHM with the same period and frequency as a
horizontally placed system.
The effect of gravity is canceled out.
The Pendulum
We know that

(Tangential force)

x
Comparing equation (4) with

Or

Thus,

The period and frequency of a simple pendulum depend

only on the length of the string and the acceleration due
to gravity.
Lecture 3 (date:10/10/21)

Today we will learn the following:

✓ importance of LC circuit
✓ how to develop a differential equation to describe charge dynamics
in an LC circuit
✓ solutions of differential equation
✓ spot the analogies between the simple-harmonic
oscillator and LC oscillation.
✓ damped oscillations (intro)
LC Oscillator: simple harmonic oscillation?
An LC circuit is an electric circuit consisting of an inductor
and a capacitor. The capacitor and inductor are represented
by the letter C and L, respectively. The circuit is also called
a resonant circuit or tank circuit or tuned circuit.
The capacitor has an initial charge Qmax, and switch is closed at t
= 0. Both the current in the circuit and the charge on the
capacitor oscillate between maximum positive and negative
values. If the resistance of the circuit is zero, no energy is lost as
heat.
An LC circuit will show resonance when driven by an external
source at an angular frequency ω0 at which the inductive and
capacitive reactances are equal in magnitude. The frequency
at which this equality holds for the particular circuit is called
the resonant frequency.
 Applications of LC oscillation

❑ Tuning of radio transmitters and receivers. eg: when

we tune a radio to a particular station, the LC circuits
are set at resonance for that particular carrier
frequency.
❑Voltage magnification and current magnification.
❑LC circuits behave as electronic resonators which are
a key component in many applications: amplifiers,
oscillators, filters, tuners
❑Both parallel and series resonant circuits are used
in induction heating.
 Total energy in the circuit at any time :

Because we have assumed the circuit resistance to

be zero, there is no loss of energy. Therefore, the
total energy of the system must remain constant
in time.

Problem:
How can we obtain time dependent expression
of charge or current in the circuit? What kind of differential
equation is going to govern charge or current dynamics in
the circuit?
Question:
Differentiate the total energy with respect to time
and obtain the differential equation for the charge
on the capacitor.
Differentiating the total energy with respect to time, we obtain
Alternatively, total voltage drop
along the circuit is
Voltage drop across capacitor +voltage
drop across inductor = 0
𝑄 𝑑𝐼
+𝐿 =0
𝐶 𝑑𝑡
𝑄 𝑑2𝑄
+𝐿 2 =0
𝐶 𝑑𝑡

𝑑2𝑄 𝑄
+ =0
𝑑𝑡 2 𝐿𝐶
 Block spring equation :

Solution of above eq. will be

(Notice it is sinusoidal)
(natural/resonance frequency
of oscillation of the LC circuit)
Qmax is the maximum charge of the capacitor.

What is φ ?
Φ is phase angle which can be determined from
initial conditions.

At t = 0, I = 0 or Q = Qmaxwill
give φ = 0

For example

implies φ = 0
Question
Using the time dependent expression of charge
and current, show that total energy is constant
at any time.
Total energy at any time t is :

Total energy of circuit is constant at any time t.

Energy in Capacitor and inductor at any time t

The sum of the two curves is a constant and is

equal to the total energy stored in the circuit.
 Correspondence between mechanical
and electrical oscillator

Q2max
U=
2C

T is the time period

1 2
U L I max
= 2
 Damped Oscillations
Example of damped oscillator: A
mass attached to a spring and
submerged in a viscous liquid.

Damping is wanted:
Automobile, shock absorbers

Damping is unwanted
Clocks and watches

When dissipative forces such as friction or drag are not

negligible, the amplitude of oscillations will decrease
with time. The mechanical energy of the system
diminishes in time, and the motion is said to be damped.
 Differential equation of the damped mechanical oscillator
Retarding force is proportional to the speed of the moving
object and acts in the direction opposite to the velocity of the
object with respect to the medium. It can be expressed as
(where b is a constant called the
damping coefficient)

Applying Newton's second law in this case :

We will consider the case of
linear drag, when the object
is moving slowly and
Reynold number is small.
 Solution of the differential equation of the damped
mechanical oscillator (underdamped case)

Solution of this equation when b is small

(underdamped) will be Note: b is damping constant and
𝑏
is called the damping factor
2𝑚
where ω is given by

where ω0 represents the angular frequency in the absence

of a retarding force (the undamped oscillator) and is
called the natural frequency of the system.
Notice ω is constant in underdamped oscillations.
Lecture 5
13/10/2021
In today’s lecture, we will learn the followings:
▪ Differential equations for damped-mechanical oscillator
▪ Different types of damped motions
▪ Solutions of differential equation for underdamped motion
▪ Damped oscillations in RLC circuit
▪ Relaxation time
▪ Logarithmic decrement
Case 1 : (Underdamped)

When the retarding force is small,

the oscillatory character of the
motion is preserved but the
amplitude decreases in time in
with the result that motion ultimately
ceases.

The dashed blue lines in figure defines the envelope of the

oscillatory curve, represent the exponential factor in eq. (7).
Case 2 : (Critically damped)
Note that in critically damped
❑ The system does not oscillate. or overdamped cases the
solution is not given by Eq (7).

Case 3 : (Overdamped)

❑ The displaced system, when free to move, does

not oscillate but rather simply returns to its
equilibrium position exponentially.

❑ As the damping increases, the time interval

required for the system to approach equilibrium
also increases.
 Critically damped system returns to
equilibrium fastest.

Critically damped Overdamped

Underdamped

Graphs of position versus time for an underdamped

oscillator (blue, curve a), a critically damped oscillator
(red, curve b), and an overdamped oscillator (black,
curve c).
Problem:
Whether a car shock absorber should be
underdamped, overdamped or underdamped?
❑ A car's shock absorbers should be barely underdamped,
i.e, while being underdamped it should be close to the
critical damping. If the car "bounces" once and then
damps to zero, the shock absorbers are good.

❑ If it bounces three or four times or more, the shock

absorbers are too underdamped and dangerous as one
can lose control after a big bump.

❑ If it doesn't bounce up, doesn’t back down at all and

instead slowly moves towards mean position, it is
overdamped. This may be dangerous, as a succession
of sharp bumps could leave the shock absorbers still
compressed and unable to absorb the impact.
 Electric damped system (LCR) circuit

The switch is set to position a, and the capacitor

is charged. The switch is then thrown to position b.
Assume the resistance of the resistor represent all
the resistance in the circuit.
Question
What is the rate of loss of energy due to resistor in this circuit?
Differential equations for charge on the capacitor
The rate of energy loss due to the resistor

The energy in capacitor (C) and inductor (L)

Differential equations for charge on the capacitor
Comparing eq. (9) and (10) :
This is angular frequency for the damped LCR oscillations
Case 1 : (Underdamped)
 Relaxation time

Relaxation time (τ) is defined as time interval in which

amplitude of the oscillator decays to 1/e of initial value.

Problem: show that the relaxation time is given by

𝜏 = 2𝑚/𝑏
According to the definition
𝐴 𝜏 = 𝐴 𝑒 −𝑏𝜏/2𝑚
⇒ 𝐴/𝑒 = 𝐴 𝑒 −𝑏𝜏/2𝑚
⇒ 𝑒 −1 = 𝑒 −𝑏𝜏/2𝑚
⇒ −1 = −𝑏𝜏/2𝑚
⇒ 𝜏 = 2𝑚/𝑏

Relaxation time
Lecture 6
14/10/2021
▪ Logarithmic decrement
▪ Quality factor
▪ Correspondence between damped mechanical and electrical
oscillatior
▪ Eddy currents and applications
▪ Forced oscillations
 Logarithmic decrement
To estimate the extent of damping present in a given system (for
example, one can calculate damping factor)

Underdamped oscillation Let displacements at

time ta and tb are xa
and xb respectively.
And ta and tb differ
by a time period
We can write

Taking their ratio, we have

Further simplification

Finally

We will use this ratio to calculate the

logarithmic decrement on next slide
 Logarithmic decrement ( ) :
Natural log of the ratio of two successive amplitudes is called logarithmic
decrement. For instance if xa and xb are two successive amplitudes then
logarithmic decrement is

This shows that the natural log of ratio of any two

successive amplitudes for an underdamped system is
constant and is a function of the damping only.
Logarithmic decrement of mechanical oscillator( ) :

Logarithmic decrement for LCR ( ) :

 Time dependent amplitude can be
written in three different ways

1 𝐴 𝑡 = 𝐴𝑜 𝑒 −𝑏𝑡/2𝑚
b is damping constant or coefficient

2 𝐴 𝑡 = 𝐴𝑜 𝑒 −𝛾𝑡
g = b/2m is damping factor of
damped mechanical oscillator

3 𝐴 𝑡 = 𝐴𝑜 𝑒 −𝑡/𝜏
t = 1/ g is relaxation time

Note: damping factor g for damped electric oscillator is

g = R/2L.
Relation between logarithmic decrement ,
damping factor g, time period T

 = gT
 Quality Factor (Q)
It is defined to be 2p times the energy stored in the
oscillator, divided by the energy lost in a single oscillation
period.

If the oscillator is weakly damped then the energy lost

per period is relatively small, and Q is therefore much
larger than unity.
Roughly speaking, it is the number of oscillations that
the oscillator typically completes, after being set in
motion, before its amplitude decays to a negligible
value.
Quality Factor (Q)
Damping due to magnetic force on eddy currents

Emf and current are induced in a circuit by

a changing magnetic flux. In the very same
manner, as a metal plate enters the magnetic
field, the changing magnetic field induces
an emf in the plate, causing the free
electrons in the plate to move. Electric
current flows in closed loops which look
like water currents in a whirlpool which is
precisely what is called the eddy currents.

The direction of the eddy currents is such that they create

magnetic fields that oppose the change that causes the
currents (Lenz’s law).
Damping due to magnetic force on eddy currents

❑ Direction of the magnetic force on the induced current is such

that it opposes the motion of the metallic plate.

❑ A compound pendulum made of metallic mass when

performs oscillation in a region with magnetic field,
it is damped.
 Application: Eddy Currents
The electric brake make use of electro-magnetic
induction and eddy currents.
The relative motion of the magnet and disk coaxial with
the wheel induces eddy currents in the disk, and the
direction of these currents produces a huge torque which
opposes the motion.

Disk eddy current brake on 700 Series

Shinkansen, a Japanese bullet train
 Application: Eddy Currents
Induction cooktop
❑Induction cooktop contains
copper coil inside.

❑Changing magnetic field gives

rise to electric field on the top.

❑Eddy currents flow through the

cook ware and it is heated
because of resistance of
cookware (Joule heating).

Note that for the same reason, i.e, due to eddy currents in the core material of
a transformer, a significant part of energy is lost, reducing the efficiency.
 Forced Oscillations
❑ Energy loss in damped oscillator can be compensated by
applying an external force that does positive work on the
system.
❑ The amplitude of motion remains constant if the energy
input per cycle of motion exactly equals the decrease in
mechanical energy in each cycle that results from resistive
forces.
❑ These oscillations are known forced or driven oscillations.The
system oscillates with the driven frequency or the frequency of
the external force
❑ When the natural frequency of oscillator is equal to the
frequency of the external force and damping is small. Then
the resonance occurs and amplitude becomes maximum.
❑ For example if a damped oscillator driven by an
external force F (t) = F0 sin(𝜔𝐷 t) that varies periodically
F0 is constant and ωD is variable.
Equation of motion :
d 2 x = -bv - kx + F sin(𝜔 t)
m 2 0
𝐷
dt
Solution of displacement from the mean position,

With amplitude

A good example of forced oscillations is when a child

uses his feet to move the swing or when someone else
pushes the swing to maintain the oscillations.