Second Year Laboratory

The Accurate Measurement of g

Using Kater's Pendulum

G1
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Health and Safety Instructions.

Always replace the guard on the knife edge suspension when the compound
pendulum is not in use.
Do not let the blade on the end of Katers pendulum strike the electronic timing
gate, especially in part 4 when the amplitude of oscillations is large,
Take care when transferring the Katers pendulum to the cathetometer on
account of its weight and length,
Do not climb on the laboratory stools; instead demount the Katers pendulum in
order to alter the position of the adjustable weight.

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22-10-07
 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

1. Aims
The aims of this experiment are (1) to investigate the properties of the compound pendulum
including the variation of periodic time with length and (2) use Katers pendulum to obtain
an accurate determination of the value of g at Sheffield .

2. Apparatus
Compound pendulum with support and fulcrum,
Digital stopwatch,
Katers pendulum with electronic timing,
Metre rule,
Retort stand,
Cathetometer at central station.

3. Background
(a) General

Everyone should be familiar with the simple pendulum (below) which consists of a massive
weight attached to the end of a light inextensible string of length l.

l
Weightless
string
c

Finite mass

Figure 1: Simple Pendulum. Figure 2: Compound Pendulum.

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 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

The periodic time T is T = 2 l / g for small oscillations, sin (in radians).

The simple pendulum is, however, not very useful for accurate measurements of g. This is
because the assumptions of a weightless string and a heavy mass cannot be achieved in
practice. In addition to this, the swing of the pendulum bob is not perfect, as the suspension
thread slackens when approaching the limits of the swing. This introduces a complication to
the motion and hence limiting the accuracy of the experiment. For these reasons the
compound pendulum is preferred.

(b) The Compound Pendulum.

A compound pendulum is any rigid body swinging in a vertical plane about any horizontal
axis passing through the body. The resultant force acts through the centre of mass c. The
periodic time of the compound pendulum is related to the moment of inertia I about the point
of suspension (see Appendix A).

I
T = 2 . (1)
mgl

I can be expressed in terms of the moment of inertia about the centre of mass c,
2
I = mk0 + ml 2 , (2)

giving,

( )
1
l 2 + k0 2 2
T = 2 , (3)
gl

where l is the distance between the suspension point and the centre of gravity of the
pendulum and k0 is the radius of gyration (see Appendix A) about a parallel axis through the
centre of gravity. If different values of l are taken, and the corresponding values of T found
and plotted, then the graph will be as shown in Figure 3.

The minimum period Tmin of oscillation is obtained when the body is suspended from the two
points at distances lo from the centre of gravity. By differentiating equation (3), it can be
shown that

lo = k0 (4)

At this point, the compound pendulum behaves like a simple pendulum. This can be seen by
substituting lo = k0 back into equation (3).

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 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

Figure 3. Period time T=T(l) for compound pendulum

(c) Kater's Pendulum

It is sometimes difficult to determine the distance l in equation (3) with sufficient accuracy
and this limits even the use of the complex pendulum. However in 1817 Kater realised that
by using a compound pendulum and suspending it from each end in turn this problem could
be resolved. He made a very accurate measurement of g at London. The version of Kater's
reversible pendulum used in this experiment has a knife-edge for suspension at either end:
thus there are two distances, l1 and l2, and two periods T1 and T2. Using these and equation
(1) it is possible to derive the following expression for g:
2 2 2 2
8 2 T1 + T2 T T2
= + 1 . (5)
g (l1 + l 2 ) (l1 l 2 )

As it is simply the distance between the knife-edges, the quantity L = l1 + l2 is measured

directly. On the other hand, it is more difficult to measure the quantity l1 - l2 directly since it
is not easy to determine the centre of gravity accurately. However if the period T1 and T2 is
made to be the same then the term T1 2 T2 2 goes to zero and the value of l1 - l2 is not
important.

(d) Variation of Period with Amplitude.

Equation (1) was derived on the assumption of infinitely small angular amplitude. Only under
these conditions will the motion be truly simple harmonic.

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 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

It can be shown that

1
To = T1 1 + sin 2 , (6)
4 2

where To is the observed period for an angular amplitude , and T1 is the period for infinitely
small amplitude ( see Appendix B).

4. Experiment
Compound Pendulum: Measuring k

1. Take the compound pendulum, which is in the form of a square metal bar. Suspend it
from the pivot at each of the holes in turn and measure the time for 25 oscillations
using a stopwatch. Plot the graph of the variation of period time T with the position
of the pivot.

2. Differentiate equation (3) (Hint: use quotient rule for differentiation) and show that
the minimum period occurs for a value lo = k0. At this point the pendulum behaves
like a simple pendulum of length 2k, that is

2k0
Tmin = 2 . (7)
g

3. Determine the value of k0 from equation (7) and your Tmin.from your graph. Compare
the value you have obtained with that obtained from the calculation given in
Appendix A.

Katers Pendulum: Measuring g

4. Take the Katers Pendulum. Measure L, the distance between knife-edges, using the
cathetometer, which is the large travelling microscope arrangement on the separate
bench.

5. Use Katers Pendulum it to measure the periods T1 and T2 (equation 5). The main task
is to adjust the weight of the threaded part of the rod so that T1 and T2 are sufficiently
close to equality. Note that there is a systematic way of identifying the position of
equality, which is better than just a trial and error approach. Then make an accurate
measurement of the periods and their errors. Note that the electronic timer allows you
to time one swing, or 2, 4, 8 etc. Carefully consider which setting is most appropriate,
making test measurements if necessary. In this case it is not necessary to estimate the
error, since it can be derived directly by repeating the measurement a sufficient
number of times.

6. Estimate the experimental error involved in the measurement of T1, T2, L and l1 - l2,
and calculate the contribution of each to the final error on g.

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Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

7. Use equation (5) to calculate the value of g. Consider carefully and scientifically
whether you can neglect the second term in the equation or not., given the values of
T1 and T2 you have obtained. Justify your conclusion. Compare your value with that
quoted in Kaye and Laby, using the equation that gives the appropriate correction for
the latitude of Sheffield and the height of the laboratory above sea level:

( )
g = g e 1 + 1 sin 2 2 sin 2 2 3.086 10 6 h ms-2,

ge = 9.7803184 ms-2, 1 = 0.0053024, 2 = 0.0000059,

where is the geographical latitude and h is the height in metres above sea-level. ge
is the value of g in ms-2 at sea-level at the equator.
Note that the first term of this correction multiplies the value of ge and the second is a
subtractive correction. Your experimental value and this calculated value should of
course, both be close to the accepted value g = 9.81 ms-2 which incidentally, is given
in the table of constants in all our exam papers.

The latitude of Sheffield is = 53023 North.

The height of the Second Year Lab. above sea level is h = 125m.

8. Investigate the effect of the finite magnitude of the angular amplitude on the period of
oscillation. The pendulum should be set in motion with the largest possible angular
amplitude.* This will mean that it continues to swing for quite a significant fraction of
the laboratory period before eventually coming to rest. The period T should be
measured accurately at regular intervals in the laboratory period with the normal
electronic timing gate. The angular amplitude can be found by using the length of
the pendulum and by placing the metre rule horizontally in front of the pendulum and
estimating the amplitude of the oscillations for each measurement of T. Plot the
values of T against elapsed time t and against . Finally present your results in such a
way as to make a direct comparison with the predictions of equation (6).

* If the motion is started from rest with large angular amplitude the blade may strike
the optical sensor. It is usually best to begin with small swings and increase the
amplitude by gently touching the pendulum in phase with the motion (i.e. resonance).

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 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

Appendix A: Moments of Inertia and Radius of Gyration.

In many cases, the value of I, the moment of inertia may be found by simple integration. Let
dm represent a small part of the whole mass situated a distance l from the axis of rotation.
The moment of inertia is then given by

I = l 2 dm .

The limits of the integral are chosen to cover the whole body concerned. Consider, as an
example, a rod of length L and uniformly distributed mass m. The moment of inertia of an
element of length dl, having mass m/L dl a distance l from an axis passing through the centre
of gravity and perpendicular to its length, is m/L l2dl. The moment of inertia of the whole
body, I, is then given by
L

2
m2 mL2 2
I= l dl = = mk0 ,
L L 12
2

where m is the total mass of the rod and k0 is defined below.

The moment of inertia can be expressed in the form mk2 where m is the total mass of the body
and k is a quantity depending on the size and shape of the body. It is called the radius of
gyration of the body about a given axis. Its significance may be understood by assuming that
the mass is distributed uniformly in a ring of radius k, whose centre lies on the axis, the plane
of the ring being perpendicular to this axis. In other words, the radius or gyration indicates
the influence of the mass distribution on the moment of inertia. The radius of gyration for
rotation about the centre of gravity is denoted by k0.

Appendix B: Variation of the Periodic Time, T, with the Amplitude of

Oscillation.
Equation (1) was obtained on the assumption of vanishingly small amplitude, and only in
these circumstances will the motion be simple harmonic. It is therefore necessary to
investigate the effect of finite amplitude on the period of oscillation.

The energy equation of motion may be written in the form:

2
d
(k +l
2 2
)
= 2 gl (cos cos ) ,
dt

where is the angular displacement at time t. Integrating gives

t0

4
2 gl d
dt = .
k + l2
2
0 0
cos cos

Where T0 is the period, so that

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 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield Second Year Laboratory

T0 gl d
k + l 2 0
= ,

2
2
sin 2
sin 2

2 2

the integral can be solved by the substitution, sin = sin sin ,
2 2

2 2 sin cos .d
T0 gl 2
k + l 2 0
= ,
2 2

cos sin cos
2 2

or

k +l
2 2 2
d
T0 = 4
gl
0 1 sin 2 sin 2
2

k2 + l2 2
1 1 3
=4 1 + 2 sin sin 2 + . sin 4 + ...d
2

gl 0
2 2 4
k2 + l2 1
2
1.3 4
=4 . 1 + sin 2 + sin + ...
gl 2 2 2 2.4 2

That is, to a close approximation,

1
T0 = T1 1 + sin 2 ,
4 2

where T1 is the expression for the period for an infinitely small angular amplitude, and T0 is
the observed period for an amplitude .