Oscillation of Full and Partial Ring Pendulum: Physics Laboratory Experiment

Abstract

In this study, we construct a piece of equipment and high-speed video analysis technique for the investigation of the ring pendulum in physics laboratory experiment. The five sets of the full and partial ring pendula are investigated and analyzed by using high- speed video at a rate of 120 frames per second and Tracker Video Analysis software. Two experiments are performed from the full ring pendula. They are the calculation of g and the study of the ring’ s moment of inertia using different methods. Another experiment is performed from the partial ring pendula, which is the measuring of the period of the partial ring oscillations, which are compared to the theoretical value. The result verifies that regardless of the length of the circumference, the period is still the same with the full ring pendulum. As a result, this technique can help students and teachers to visualize simple physics phenomena and relate them to the physics principles learned in the classroom.