Atwood Machine Newton's Second Lab

An Atwood Machine will be used to prove Newton’s Second Lab. The Atwood Machine is a device that consists of a system of two masses. The two masses are connected via string, and suspended over a pulley. The image below demonstrates the basic structures of an Atwood Machine. The lab will require the construction of an Atwood Machine. This machine is beneficial to this lab because it allows the variables of net force and mass to be easily manipulated, and acceleration to be recorded using photogates. Newton's Second Law consists of two statements: net force and acceleration are directly proportional, and mass and acceleration are inversely proportional. Thus, this lab will be divided into two parts, and the objective of each part is to prove

In this lab, the objects are the masses, and both masses will exert a force on each other. To measure the net force between the two objects it is necessary to calculate the force each object is exerting, and the difference between the two objects is the net force. The Atwood Machine limits the motion of the masses to a up and down direction. It is important to recognize that there is another force acting upon both masses, and that is gravity. The force of gravity accelerates at 9.8m/s2. When an object is being pulled by gravity, it creates another force called weight. The formula for weight is Fwt= mg. Essentially, the weight of each mass is the force they are exerting. To find the net force, simply find the difference of the two weights. The formula for net force is Fnet= (m1-m2)g. All forces are measured in

To successfully complete this part, it is necessary to control the variable of mass. The mass must stay constant because the sole purpose is to measure the effects of varying net force on acceleration, and mass must not be a contributing factor, or else the acceleration will be affected by both changing mass and net force, this would prevent the relationship between net force and acceleration from being found. When speaking of mass, it is referring to the total amount of matter in a system of masses, measured in kilograms. A system of masses consists of two masses on either side of the Atwood Machine. The total mass is calculated by adding the two masses of the Atwood machine together. The formula is Mtotal= M1+M2. Test at least five different systems with the same mass for this part of the lab in order to collect enough data for quantitative analysis. For each system, manipulate the net force so that it will affect the acceleration. It does not matter how the mass is split between the two sides, as long as the sum of the two masses are always the same for each system. It is advised to begin with a large sum of mass on one side, and the minimum amount on the other side, and complete trials, then move some of the mass from the larger side to the smaller side. This would alter the net force but not the mass, because as the weight of each side shifts, the difference (aka the net force)