Can Oscilloscope Measurements Show Resistance Impact on RLC Circuit Damping?

[batshwa]

Hello,

I've got to prepare for a practical session and need some help with a problem: how (by what experiments) can you prove that the damping of a series RLC circuit depends on the value of the resistance (without basing oneself on any knowledge of the damping factor \zeta=\frac{R}{2L}).

Thanks in advance!

 

[Andrew Mason]

Hello,

I've got to prepare for a practical session and need some help with a problem: how (by what experiments) can you prove that the damping of a series RLC circuit depends on the value of the resistance (without basing oneself on any knowledge of the damping factor \zeta=\frac{R}{2L}).

Thanks in advance!

Think in terms of energy. What is the energy loss of a current, I, passing through a resistance, R?

AM

 

[batshwa]

Thanks a lot for your answer!

The energy loss is \Delta E=Ri^2\Delta t, right? But is there another way (based more on experiments) to show that \zeta\propto R ?

I forgot to mention, that we dispose of an oscilloscope. Would it be then correct to say that the damping depends on the resistance, because the difference between two peak values of the current (measured with the oscilloscope) depends on the resistance?