The Pendulum

A Case Study in Physics

GREGORY L. BAKER
Bryn Athyn College of the New Church,
Pennsylvania, USA

and
JAMES A. BLACKBURN
Wilfrid Laurier University,
Ontario, Canada

OXFORD
UNIVERSITY PRESS
Contents

1 Introduction

Pendulums somewhat simple 8

2.1 The beginning 8
2.2 The simple pendulum 9
2.3 Some analogs of the linearized pendulum 13
2.3.1 The spring 13
2.3.2 Resonant electrical circuit 15
2.3.3 The pendulum and the earth 16
2.3.4 The military pendulum 19
2.3.5 Compound pendulum 20
2.3.6 Kater's pendulum 21
2.4 Some connections 23
2.5 Exercises 24

Pendulums less simple 27

3.1 O Botafumeiro 27
3.2 The linearized pendulum with complications 29
3.2.1 Energy lossfriction 29
3.2.2 Energy gainforcing 34
3.2.3 Parametric forcing 42
3.3 The nonlinearized pendulum 45
3.3.1 Amplitude dependent period 45
3.3.2 Phase space revisited 51
3.3.3 An electronic "Pendulum" 53
3.3.4 Parametric forcing revisited 56
3.4 A pendulum of horror 63
3.5 Exercises 64

The Foucault pendulum 67

4.1 What is a Foucault pendulum? 67
4.2 Frames of reference 71
4.3 Public physics 74
4.4 A quantitative approach 75
4.4.1 Starting the pendulum 78
4.5 A darker side 85
4.6 Toward a better Foucault pendulum 86
4.7 A final note 89
4.8 Exercises 91
Contents

The torsion pendulum

5.1 Elasticity of the fiber
5.2 Statics and dynamics
5.2.1 Free oscillations without external forces
5.2.2 Free oscillations with external forces
5.2.3 Damping
5.3 Two historical achievements
5.3.1 Coulomb and the electrostatic force
5.3.2 Cavendish and the gravitational force
5.3.3 Scaling the apparatus
5.4 Modern applications
5.4.1 Ballistic galvanometer
5.4.2 Universal gravitational constant
5.4.3 Universality of free fall: Equivalence of
gravitational and inertial mass
5.4.4 Viscosity measurements and granular media
5.5 Exercises

The chaotic pendulum

6.1 Introduction and history
6.2 The dimensionless equation of motion
6.3 Geometric representations
6.3.1 Time series, phase portraits, and Poincare sections
6.3.2 Spectral analysis
6.3.3 Bifurcation diagrams
6.4 Characterization of chaos
6.4.1 Fractals
6.4.2 Lyapunov exponents
6.4.3 Dynamics, Lyapunov exponents, and
fractal dimension
6.4.4 Information and prediction
6.4.5 Inverting chaos
6.5 Exercises

Coupled pendulums
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Chaotic coupled pendulums
7.2.1 Two-state model (all or nothing)
7.2.2 Other models
7.3 Applications
7.3.1 Synchronization machine
7.3.2 Secure communication
7.3.3 Control of the chaotic pendulum
7.3.4 A final weirdness
7.4 Exercises
Contents xi

8 The quantum pendulum 189

8.1 A little knowledge might be better than none 189
8.2 The linearized quantum pendulum 192
8.3 Where is the pendulum?uncertainty 196
8.4 The nonlinear quantum pendulum 200
8.5 Mathieu equation 201
8.6 Microscopic pendulums 203
8.6.1 Ethanealmost free 204
8.6.2 Potassium hexachloroplatinatealmost never free 206
8.7 The macroscopic quantum pendulum and
phase space 208
8.8 Exercises 209

9 Superconductivity and the pendulum 211

9.1 Superconductivity 211
9.2 The flux quantum 214
9.3 Tunneling 215
9.4 The Josephson effect 216
9.5 Josephson junctions and pendulums 220
9.5.1 Single junction: RSJC model 220
9.5.2 Single junction in a superconducting loop 224
9.5.3 Two junctions in a superconducting loop 226
9.5.4 Coupled josephson junctions 228
9.6 Remarks 230
9.7 Exercises 230

10 pendulum
The p e n d u l u m clock 233
10.1 Clocks before the pendulum 233
10.2 Development of the pendulum clock 235
10.2.1 Galileo (1564-1642) 235
10.2.2 Huygens (1629-1695) 235
10.2.3 The seconds pendulum and the meter:
An historical note 244
10.2.4 Escapements 246
10.2.5 Temperature compensation 249
10.2.6 The most accurate pendulum clock ever made 252
10.3 Reflections 255
10.4 Exercises 255

A Pendulum Q 258
A.I Free pendulum 258
A.2 Resonance 259
A. 3 Some numbers from the real world 261

B The i n v e r t e d p e n d u l u m 263
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C The double pendulum 267

D The cradle pendulum 270
E The Longnow clock 273
F The Blackburn pendulum 275

Bibliography 276
Index 286