Past exam of the physics A course of the University of Cambridge 2011 Paper 1 Section B B6 Solution 2026-10-20
The restoring, damping and electric forces on the electron give . Dividing by gives a Lorentz oscillator model withFor the convention, substitute . Then andThe time-averaged dissipated power isFor positive frequency the squared term is minimized to zero only at . Thus the power maximum is exactly at the undamped natural frequency, even though the displacement maximum is slightly shifted. Here . The half-power equation is , whose two positive roots areThis is the absorbed-power bandwidth of a viscously damped oscillator, exact within the model. Near resonance the profile is approximately a Lorentzian line shape. With ,For this wavelength linewidth of a damped-oscillator power resonance we used . The half-power wavelength endpoints are not exactly symmetric around , although that distinction is tiny here.
In a constant field the settled displacement is . On sudden removal, with zero initial velocity, the free motion isThe electron oscillates about its original equilibrium, losing the previously stored spring energy. The period is , the amplitude decay time is , and the cycle-averaged energy decay time is . This is the effective classical model supplied, not a prediction of the full hydrogen line radiation spectrum.
The Q factor measures stored energy relative to loss: , or in the weak-loss limit. For viscous damping , write , and . The conventional oscillator parameter isIn free ringdown, fit the amplitude envelope . Its decay time is , whereas the cycle-averaged energy envelope decays on ; thus . Equivalently the logarithmic decrement between same-sign peaks is . It gives for weak damping, or the exact parameter relation . Fit multiple peaks above the noise floor, measure the damped period, and verify an exponential envelope rather than assuming all amplitude loss is viscous.
For a driven measurement, allow transients to settle and scan frequency at fixed force amplitude. Near resonance and at high , the response is Lorentzian in displacement power, with half-power points at displacement amplitudes of the maximum. Their angular-frequency separation gives . Halving the amplitude is not a half-power criterion.
The absorbed-power bandwidth of a viscously damped oscillator can be found exactly. Sinceits maximum is at , and the half-power frequencies satisfy . HenceFor broad resonances, displacement and absorbed-power peaks differ, so the measured observable must be specified. Frequency-dependent drive, backgrounds or several overlapping modes can otherwise masquerade as a changed Q factor.
