Vincent Asante
Qin Li
Physics LAB 111A-107
September 15, 2015
Title
Lab 109: One-Dimensional Motion – Velocity as a Function of Time and Distance at Constant Acceleration
Introduction
In this lab, we are determining the acceleration and velocity of an object in motion using a calculated distance and time. We are using Capstone software and 850 Universal Interface in order to collect the experimental data.
Equation: v=v+at and v2=v2+2a(x-x)
Experimental Procedure
1. Air track placed on wooden block
2. Two photogates placed 30 to 50 centimeters from air track
3. Diameter of cylindrical object gets measured (1.18cm)
4. Glider gets placed on air track
5. Connect the USB cable of 850 Universal interface to a USB port on the computer
6. Open Lab 109 One Dimensional Motion
7. Attempt experiment several times
8. Record data
Data & Results
Acceleration: 0.502±0.070
Position of the first photogate
[m]
Position of the second photogate
[m]
Distance between the two photogates
(=xaxis)
[m]
Time at photogate 1
T1[s]
Time between photogates 1 and 2
Time in photogate 2
T2 [s]
Velocity at photogate 1
V1=D/T1
[m/s]
Velocity at photogate 2
V2=D/T2
[m/s]
Acceleration
[m2/s]
0.3
0.5
0.025218
0.3798
0.0181
0.4679
0.6529
0.487
0.2
0.3
0.75
0.025217
0.7506
0.0141
0.4679
0.8362
0.491
0.45
0.3
1
0.025200
1.0428
0.0120
0.4683
0.9793
0.49003
0.7
0.3
1.25
0.025167
1.2911
0.0107
0.4689
1.1012
0.48974
0.95
0.3
1.5
0.025182
1.5271
0.0097
0.4686
1.2156
0.48916
1.2
0.3
1.75
0.025117
1.7295
0.0090
0.4698
1.3145
0.4884
1.45
Discussion
My measured acceleration is consistent with the theoretical value though it is an error. Some factors that could have caused the error is the record button being pressed before the release of the glider; vice versa. There also, could have been problems with the computer.
Conclusion
During this lab we used sensors to determine the acceleration of an...