Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-theoretical-physics-i-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2013/paper-1/1/b/solution
Past exam of the theoretical physics I course of the University of Cambridge 2013 Paper 1 1 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
Put and . Applying the Euler-Lagrange equations to the quadratic Lagrangian givesA nonzero motion satisfying the specified equal-and-opposite initial displacements can have one frequency only if is a normal-mode vector. Its acceleration terms are proportional to , while the restoring terms are proportional to . HenceandThe rods swing oppositely. The hinge mass moves sideways, while the final mass has no first-order displacement: the two horizontal contributions cancel and its vertical change is quadratic in angle. In the corresponding geometric ansatz it moves vertically at twice the small-oscillation frequency to leading nonzero order, but the displayed single-frequency solution is a linearized result. The trivial case imposes no parameter condition.
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