Damped harmonic motion: The amplitude of a lightly damped harmonic oscillator decreases from 60.0 cm to 40.0 cm in 10.0 s. What will be the amplitude of the harmonic oscillator after another 10.0 s passes?
A) 20.0 cm
B) 167 cm
C) 30.0 cm
D) 0.00 cm
E) 26.7 cm

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The amplitude of a damped harmonic oscillator decreases exponentially over time. Given that the amplitude decreases from 60.0 cm to 40.0 cm in 10 seconds, it means that after another 10 seconds, the amplitude will decrease by the same factor, which is 40.0/60.0 = 2/3. Therefore, after another 10 seconds, the amplitude will be 2/3 of 40.0 cm, which is approximately 26.7 cm.

Damped Harmonic Motion: the Amplitude of a Lightly Damped Harmonic