1. A trolley is attached to springs, as shown in Fig 2.1.
When the trolley is displaced and then For
released, the trolley oscillates. Examiner’s Use
stand stand
card light gate
trolley springs springs
Fig. 2.1
A student investigates how the maximum speed v of a trolley varies with the total mass M of the trolley.
The maximum speed is determined using the time t taken for the card to pass through a light gate connected to an electronic timer. The length of the card is 5.0 ± 0.1 cm.
It is suggested that v and M are related by the equation For Examiner’s k Use v=A M where A is the initial displacement and k is the spring constant of the springs.
(a) A graph is plotted of v 2 on the y-axis against 1/M on the x-axis. Determine an expression for the gradient in terms of A and k.
(d) (i) The value of A is 0.200 ± 0.005 m. Using your answer to (c)(iii), determine a value For for k. Include an appropriate unit in your answer. Examiner’s Use
k = ............................................... [2]
(ii) Determine the percentage uncertainty in your value of k.
(e) The experiment is repeated using the same springs and a trolley with total mass 0.75 kg. The initial displacement is 0.100 ± 0.005 m. Determine the maximum speed of the trolley. Include the absolute uncertainty in your answer.
v = ........................................ m s–1 [2]
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