The rate at which a damped, driven oscillator does work

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a damped oscillator driven by a periodic force, focusing on the rate of work done by the force and its average over complete cycles. The participants are exploring the relationships between the driving frequency, natural frequency, and the resulting power and energy loss in the system.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to calculate the average power done by the driving force using integration but encounters difficulties in matching their result to the expected expression. Other participants suggest incorporating phase differences and relationships between amplitude and frequency into the setup.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants questioning the setup of the integral and the mathematical steps taken. Some guidance has been offered regarding the incorporation of phase differences and the need to express amplitude and phase in terms of the natural and driving frequencies.

Contextual Notes

Participants are working under the constraints of a homework assignment, which may impose specific requirements for the setup and calculations. There is an emphasis on ensuring that the mathematical expressions align with physical interpretations of the system.

cowey19
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Homework Statement



Consider a damped oscillator, with natural frequency ω_naut and damping constant both fixed, that is driven by a force F(t)=F_naut*cos(ωt).

a) Find the rate P(t) at which F(t) does work and show that the average (P)avg over any number of complete cycles is mβω2A2. b) Verify that this is the same as the average rate at which energy is lost to the resistive force. c) Show that as ω is varied, (P)avg is maximum when ω=ω_naut; that is, the resonance of the power occurs at ω=ω_naut (exactly).

Homework Equations



(P)avg= 1/τ ∫ Fv dt
F= F_naut*cos(ωt)
x(t)= A*cos(ωt)
v(t)= -Aωsin(ωt)
ω= √[(ω_naut)2 - β2 ]

The Attempt at a Solution



I plugged in the equation for F(t) and v(t) in the integral ( P(t) = ∫Fv ) and used u substitution, making cos(ωt) the "u" and -ωsin(ωt)dt the "du".

So I then had ∫(F_naut)Au du

After integrating and plugging cos(ωt) back in for u, I had:

(P)avg = (1/2τ)*(F_naut)A*cos2(ωt), integrated from -τ/2 to τ/2.

This is where I hit a problem. My work doesn't seem like it will be equal to mβω2A2. Because I can't solve this, I can't figure out the next two parts either. Did I make a mathematical error in integrating, or did I set up the integral wrong? Thank you!
 
Last edited:
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cowey19 said:

Homework Equations



(P)avg= 1/τ ∫ Fv dt
F= F_naut*cos(ωt)
x(t)= A*cos(ωt)
v(t)= -Aωsin(ωt)
ω= √[(ω_naut)2 - β2 ]

If the oscillator is driven by F=Fo cos(ωt) the oscillator will move with the frequency of the driving force, but with a phase difference, x(t)=A(cosωt+θ)
Both the phase difference θ and the amplitude A depend on the natural frequency and the driving frequency.

ehild
 
Yes, but how can I incorporate that into my set up?
 
x(t)=A(cosωt+θ). v(t)= -Aωsin(ωt+θ). Find A and θ in terms of ω_naut, ω and F_naut, and calculate the integral 1/τ ∫ Fv dt.

ehild
 

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