NAME: .................................................................................

PHYSICS GROUP: ..........................................................

DATE: ..................................................................................

A level Physics required practical No 4

COMPENTENCY TO ASSESS
CPAC 1a CPAC 2a CPAC 2b CPAC 2c CPAC 2d CPAC3a CPAC 3b CPAC 4a CPAC 4b CPAC 5a CPAC 5b

X X

Determination of the Young Modulus by a simple method

Materials and equipment
You are provided with the following equipment

• G clamp and wooden blocks to clamp the test wire and Vernier scale
• metre rule
• test wire
• set of 100g and 50g slotted masses and mass hanger
• bench pulley
• micrometer screw gauge
• Vernier scale to measure the extension of wire.
• Cardboard.

Equipment setup

Vernier Scale

Risk Assessment
• Write a risk assessment for this practical.
Method
• Set up the apparatus as shown in the diagram. Ensure all the G clamps are fully tightened.
• Measure the initial length of the test wire, l, with the metre ruler.
• Attach a 0.3 kg mass hanger to the wire, to ensure the wire is initially stretched taught.
• Take the initial scale reading, using the Vernier scale to read to 0.1mm.
• Add an additional 50g mass to the test wire and take the new scale reading using the Vernier. Work
out the extension.
• Repeat the process, adding an extra 50g mass mass each time, take the new scale reading and
calculate the corresponding extension. Record your extension readings in a suitable table.
• With the wire fully loaded (1.0kg) remove a 50g mass and take the scale reading.
• Continue to unload the wire, 50g at a time, taking the scale reading each time.
• The extension of the wire for each mass during the unloading process can then be calculated. If the
extension during unloading is greater than during loading, the elastic limit for the wire might have
been exceeded. If the extension values are similar a mean extension for loading /unloading can be
calculated for each mass.
• Measure the diameter of the wire at several places using a micrometer screw gauge.
• Plot a graph of mean extension, e, on the y-axis against load, mg. (where g = 9.81 N/kg)
• The Young Modulus for the material of the wire (e.g. nichrome) can be calculated using the gradient
of the graph.
• Use a graphical method to estimate the overall uncertainty in the value obtained for Youngs
Modulus.

Theory
tensile stress mg/A mgL L
Young modulus E = tensile strain
= e/L
= Ae
= A x gradient

A = cross sectional area of wire, L = initial length of wire