ANALYSIS OF

EXPERIMENTAL DATA
lab Session

Outline

Objective
Accuracy & Precision
Error Analysis

OBJECTIVE
Performing the experiment and collecting data is only the
beginning of the process of completing an experiment in
science
Understanding the results of any given experiment.
Presenting those results in a clear concise manner completes
the experiment by saying "This is what I did and this is what I
learned."

QUALITY
The quality of the experiment is considered through two important
aspects:
When you repeat the measurement
how close would new results be to the old,
how reproducible is the measurement? Scientists refer to this as the
precision of the measurement.

A measurement is considered good if it agrees with the true value. This

is known as the accuracy of the measurement. But there is a potential
problem in that one needs to know the true value to determine the
accuracy.

Accuracy & Precision

Error: the deviation of a reading from a known input.
Accuracy: the max. deviation of a reading from a
known input

 Precision ( Repeatability ) : the ability to reproduce a certain

reading with a given accuracy.
Ex. Thermometer immersed in boiling water reads 105 c, 103 c,
104 c. [boiling temp. 100 c ] .
The accuracy is better than 5 % while the precision is 1 % [ mean
reading 104 scatter from mean = 1 c, precision = ]
Note: Accuracy can be improved by calibration but not less than
precision.

Accuracy (max. error) > precision (max. deviation from mean).

Uncertainty: if the input reading is not known (as it is the case in
most experiments) but there is a confidence that the instrument
is within a certain range of the true value, the deviation is then
named uncertainty.

HOW CAN YOU DETERMINE

ACCURACY & PRECISION ??

one can gain some knowledge of the precision simply by

taking a number of measurements and comparing them
Because, precision is a measure of how reproducible a
measurement is

If the true value is not known, the accuracy of a

measurement is more difficult to know.

TYPES OF ERRORS
Errors may arise from three sources:
Gross blunders (very clear) in instruments. This type must be
eliminated by repairing the instrument or readjusting it.
A tape reading of 38.23m may be recorded as 38.32m in
the field book, The thermometer may be misread
Measurement may be made between the wrong
pegs..
Reading a tape incorrectly
Incorrectly marking
Wrong or inappropriate use of instruments,
Forgetting the reading or observations,
Unnecessary approximation.

Gross blunders
In practice there are variety of ways that can be employed to
reduced gross errors (Mikhail, 1974)
Taking multiple reading and checking for reasonable consistency
Careful checking of both pointing and recording
Using simple and quick technique for verification
Applying logic and common sense
Checking and verifying the performance of equipment, particularly
those with automatic readout
Repeating the experiment with perhaps slightly different technique
Increasing redundancy of the observation used in a model

TYPES OF ERRORS
Random errors: may be caused by personal or human errors, electronic fluctuations,
and influence of friction. Random errors follow a certain statistical distribution ((but not
always)).
Human errors (imperfection in vision and other senses especially touch) Negligible errors in
instruments Changing atmospheric conditions

Fixed errors: cause repeated readings to be in error by almost the same amount for
known or unknown reasons. They are called Systematic or Bias errors. Fixed errors may
be calculated. Thus, the readings can be corrected (correction factor). The measuring
tape expands in length with increase in temperature. It in neither possible to always
conduct the survey on the temperature the tape is designed for nor it is feasible to
invent a tape that is compatible in all temperatures.
Example: Measure temp. of hot gases in a furnace while the sensing element is exposed to
the flame radiation.
Example: A long thermometer used for measuring gas temp. in a tank. Heat losses from the
stem affect the reading.

Calibration:
Calibration is a comparison between the instrument readings and
a known standard and thus reduces the errors and improves the
accuracy.
The comparison is made with:
Primary Standard: chosen by Bureau of standards.
Secondary Standard: another instrument with better accuracy.
Known input source.

Example: Temp. [Hg thermometer, alcohol thermo, thermocouple,

thermistor, resistance thermo.]
Calibration is the process that establishes the uncertainty of an
instrument.

Frequency of calibration
Usually, instruments are factory-calibrated. However, frequent
Calibrations are required.
The frequency of calibration depends on :
The instrument itself
The environment of usage (materials, electronics, mechanical
linkages, dust, humidity, high temp., magnetic fields,..)

Measuring System characteristics

Readability of an instrument: the closeness and easiness with
which the scale of the instrument may be read. [Thermometer
with 0-50 c range: 20 cm long is more readable than 10 cm].
Least Count: the smallest difference between two successive
marks on the scale.
For digital instruments; Readability and Least count has no
meaning.

 Sensitivity: the ratio of the linear movement of the pointer of

an instrument to the change in the measured variable causing
this motion.

Ex. A vertical water manometer:

Low pressure: inclined water manometer:

 Transient measurement:
The transient effect is exponential as

Response time is the time at which the instrument

has responded to 63.2% of the step input.
Time rise: is the time required to achieve a
response of 90 % of the step input.
Importance: you need to know the response time
to choose proper instrument for a certain
application.

 For digital instruments, Sens. Has a different meaning. Usually, it

is given as the min. reading can be read (say 1 kpa for 1000
kpa scale range). Digital instruments have different scales with
different sensitivities.
Hysteresis: difference in a reading depending on whether it is
measured by approaching from below or above (increasing or
decreasing).
Hysteresis is due to mechanical friction, magnetic effects,
elastic deformation, and thermal effects.

Data analysis
Data analysis means understanding what your results mean. When
analyzing your data, try to think through the physical processes which are
occurring. Write your train of thought down. Ultimately, the goal is for you
to understand physics and the world a bit better. Your understanding of
your results probably occurs in stages, with each stage being a refinement
and possibly more mathematical than the previous stage
Data analysis should NOT be delayed until all of the data is recorded. Take
a low point, a high point and maybe a middle point, and do a quick
analysis and plot. This will help one avoid the problem of spending an
entire class collecting bad data because of a mistake in experimental
procedure or an equipment failure.

Error Analysis

Error Propagation

Statistical Analysis of Exp. data:

When we use an instrument to measure a fixed quantity more
than one time, the reading will vary from each other.
The scientist is concerned with the mean value (xm), the
deviation of each of each reading from the mean (di), the
average of the absolute value of deviations , the standard
deviation ( ), and the variance ( ).