Understanding Angular Displacement in Weakly Damped Harmonic Oscillators

In summary: I didn't get that part. XD In summary, the equation of angular displacement is dependent on the angular velocity because the phase shift between the driving force and the resultant oscillation is constant.
  • #1
PsychonautQQ
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Hey PF. This isn't a homework question and I'm hoping this is the right place to ask it, sorry if it isn't!

In the case of a weakly damped harmonic oscillator driven by a sinusoidal force of the form Fe^(iwt). The form of the differential force equation of motion is then given by ma + cv +kx = Fe^(iwt).

The solution to this equation is given as x=Ae^i(wt-y) where y is angular displacement (analogous to theta). We then solve for v and a and plug the values into the force equation and proceeding to set the real and imaginary parts of said force equation equal to each other and then diving those equations by one another.

The result, using the supstitution of c = 2um where m is mass and u is a variable that scales proportionally to the drag coefficient (which is c), can take the form of giving y ( angular deplacement) as a function of angular velocity (w). The equation looks like this:

tan(y) = 2uw / (W^2 - w^2) where W is the undamped nondriven angular velocity given by the equation (k/m)^(1/2) and w is the angular velocity term from the driven force and solution to the differential equation.

Okay... I hope I explained that well enough.. Hoping someone out there is smart enough to know what I'm talking about even though I don't know what I'm talking about lol...

Anyhoo, my question is with understanding the equation. why is y (angular displacement) dependent on the angular velocity at all? Wouldn't angular displacement be a stand alone variable? The way we derived the equation of angular displacement as a function of angler velocity was having the angular displacement term originally take the form of the initial displacement. Why is this dependent on w!? How is it not a stand alone variable? Sorry if this was really repetitive trying to be as clear as possible.
 
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  • #2
What you denote by ##y## is the phase shift between the driving force and the resultant oscillation. It is not a variable, because it is constant..
 
  • #3
Oh, duh, thanks.
 

Related to Understanding Angular Displacement in Weakly Damped Harmonic Oscillators

1. What is angular displacement in a weakly damped harmonic oscillator?

Angular displacement in a weakly damped harmonic oscillator refers to the change in the angle of oscillation of an object in simple harmonic motion. It is a measure of the position of the object relative to its equilibrium point.

2. How is angular displacement related to the amplitude and frequency of oscillation?

Angular displacement is directly proportional to the amplitude of the oscillation, meaning that as the amplitude increases, so does the angular displacement. It is also inversely proportional to the frequency of oscillation, meaning that as the frequency increases, the angular displacement decreases.

3. What is the effect of damping on angular displacement in a harmonic oscillator?

Damping in a harmonic oscillator refers to the loss of energy due to external forces, such as friction. In a weakly damped harmonic oscillator, damping causes a gradual decrease in the amplitude and angular displacement of the oscillation over time.

4. How is angular displacement calculated in a weakly damped harmonic oscillator?

The angular displacement in a weakly damped harmonic oscillator can be calculated using the formula θ = A cos(ωt + φ), where θ is the angular displacement, A is the amplitude, ω is the angular frequency, and φ is the phase angle.

5. What are some real-world examples of weakly damped harmonic oscillators?

Some common examples of weakly damped harmonic oscillators include a swinging pendulum, a guitar string, and a car's suspension system. These systems all exhibit simple harmonic motion with a gradual decrease in amplitude and angular displacement due to damping.

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