Lab 3: Speed of Transverse Wave s

Purpose:

In this lab we will determine the frequency and wavelength of an oscillating spring and validate the equation:  v = λƒ

Method:

To attain our objective, we will be recording three sets of data from three oscillating spring with distinct wavelengths. The period and frequency of the three sets of waves will be measured and a graph of frequency vs. wavelength will be plotted to validate the inverse relationship between  λ and ƒ.

Figure 1: Oscillating spring.

Data and Analysis:

Figure 2: Recorded period of the waves.

Table 1: Wavelength, time, period, frequency and velocity of the three sets of oscillating spring.

λ(m)	t (s)	T (s)	ƒ (Hz)	v (m/s)
6.0 ± 0.01	9.30 ± 0.1	0.930 ± 0.001	1.08 ± 0.006	6.48 ± 0.047
3.0 ± 0.01	4.40 ± 0.1	0.440 ± 0.001	2.27 ± 0.002	6.81 ± 0.029
2.0 ± 0.01	2.56 ± 0.1	0.256 ± 0.001	3.91 ± 0.019	7.82 ± 0.077

Figure 3: Equation in this lab.

Figure 4: Frequency vs. Wavelength plot

• The above graph validates the equation  v = λƒ by showing the inverse relationship between wavelength and frequency through the inverse trend line.

Table 2: Relationship of frequency wavelength graph.

Theoretical Power of x	Experimental Power of x	Percent Error (%)
-1	-1.16	16

Conclusion:

In this lab we have examine the validity of the frequency wavelength equation by analyzing the wave properties of an oscillating spring. We find that the frequency and wavelength exhibits an inverse relationship that corresponds to the equation. Although the relation shows a 16% error we find that this is acceptable due to the minimal set of points available to fit the trend line. We also think that the measurement of time can be more precise to increase the accuracy of the graph. In addition we have also determine the uncertainty of the calculations by determining the range between the maximum and minimum value.