Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-physics-a-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2014/paper-2/section-b/b6/solution
Past exam of the physics A course of the University of Cambridge 2014 Paper 2 Section B B6 Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
For pendulum length , small angular displacement gives and horizontal restoring force . Thus andFor , the complementary solution and a sinusoidal particular solution giveInitial rest at the origin fixes and , givingAt exact resonance the corresponding limit is ; unrestricted initial conditions add the complementary solution.
For , set . Then : the period is in , zeros are at integer multiples of , and the first extrema are and . Both initial displacement and slope vanish.
Substitution of the damped complex ansatz gives . HenceFor the near-resonant mechanical susceptibility, put and , and neglect and near resonance:Thus , with angular-frequency full width . The displacement lags the force by at .
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