As the temperature is increased, the time period of a pendulum
Correct Answer :
increases as its effective length increases even though its centre of mass still remains at the center of the bob.
Solution :
To understand how the time period of a pendulum changes with temperature, we can analyze the physical changes that occur in the system step-by-step:
1. Thermal Expansion:
When the temperature increases, the material of the pendulum rod or wire undergoes linear thermal expansion. The relationship between the length and temperature is given by the formula:
where:
- is the new length of the pendulum,
- is the initial length,
- is the coefficient of linear expansion of the material, and
- is the increase in temperature.
As a result of this expansion, the physical length of the pendulum increases.
2. Time Period of a Pendulum:
The time period () of a simple pendulum is the time taken to complete one full oscillation and is given by the formula:
where is the effective length and is the acceleration due to gravity. From this formula, we can see that the time period is directly proportional to the square root of the effective length:
Therefore, as the effective length () increases due to the rise in temperature, the time period () of the pendulum must also increase.
3. Position of the Center of Mass:
The effective length of a pendulum is measured from the point of suspension to the center of mass of the bob. Because the bob expands uniformly in all directions as the temperature rises, its center of mass does not shift relative to its shape and remains precisely at the geometric center of the bob. Thus, the increase in the effective length is entirely due to the expansion of the supporting rod, while the center of mass of the bob itself remains at its center.
Consequently, the time period of the pendulum increases as its effective length increases, even though its center of mass still remains at the center of the bob.
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