Connection Between Circular Motion and Harmonic Motion JavaScript Simulation Applet HTML5
Circular motion is a concept familiar to most physics students. Take a mass and rotate it around a circular path at a constant speed, and you get uniform circular motion.
Simple harmonic motion is a similar concept, defined as the motion of a mass on a straight line as it accelerates towards a fixed point on the line, with the magnitude being proportional to the distance from the fixed point.
A system that demonstrates both uniform circular motion and simple harmonic motion is a spring-mass system. When the displacement of the mass in each system is plotted out against time, both will output a sinusoidal wave. The period will be the same if both masses are equal.
Simple harmonic motion is a similar concept, defined as the motion of a mass on a straight line as it accelerates towards a fixed point on the line, with the magnitude being proportional to the distance from the fixed point.
A system that demonstrates both uniform circular motion and simple harmonic motion is a spring-mass system. When the displacement of the mass in each system is plotted out against time, both will output a sinusoidal wave. The period will be the same if both masses are equal.
In this simulation (link here), you can use the combo box on the top left corner to make the circular motion rotate either clockwise or anti-clockwise. The sliders at the top can be adjusted to change the mass (kg) and the spring constant (N/m) of the mass corresponding to the colour.
