If a simple pendulum is displaced an angle [itex]\theta[/itex] from the vertical, then the force acting on the bob at any angle is given by:
[tex]F=-mgsin\theta[/tex]
Where m is the mass of the bob and g is the acceleration due to gravity.
This means that the torque is given by:
[tex]\tau =-mgLsin\theta[/tex]
Where L is the length of the string.
Since [itex]\tau = I\alpha[/itex] (where [itex]I[/itex] is the moment of inertia and [itex]\alpha[/itex] is the angular acceleration):
[tex]I\alpha =-mgLsin\theta[/tex]
At small angles, [itex]sin\theta\approx \theta[/itex]. This gives the approximate equation:
[tex]I\alpha =-mgL\theta[/tex]
The moment of inertia for a point mass system is: [itex]I=mr^2[/itex]. In this case, [itex]r=L[/itex]. This simplifies the equation to:
[tex]\alpha +\frac{g}{L}\theta =0[/tex]
Since the angular acceleration is the second derivative of the angle with respect to time, this yields the differential equation:
[tex]\frac{d^2\theta}{dt^2} +\frac{g}{L}\theta =0[/tex]
The solution to this differential equation is:
[tex]\theta=\theta_0cos(\omega t+\phi)[/tex]
Where [itex]\theta_0[/itex] is the initial angular displacement (amplitude), [itex]\phi[/itex] is the phase shift, and [itex]\omega = \sqrt{\frac{g}{L}}[/itex]
The period of this function is given by:
[tex]T=\frac{2\pi }{\omega}=2\pi \sqrt{\frac{L}{g}}[/tex]
Solving for [itex]g[/itex], we obtain:
[tex]g=\frac{4\pi^2L}{T^2}[/tex]