Section 3
Periodic Motion
By Boundless
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9704/raw/aves-different-frequencies.jpg)
The period is the duration of one cycle in a repeating event, while the frequency is the number of cycles per unit time.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9831/square/figure-17-01-01a.jpeg)
The period of a mass m on a spring of spring constant k can be calculated as
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9857/square/figure-17-03-05a.jpeg)
Simple harmonic motion is a type of periodic motion where the restoring force is directly proportional to the displacement.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9913/raw/uniform-circular-motion.jpg)
Simple harmonic motion is produced by the projection of uniform circular motion onto one of the axes in the x-y plane.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9934/square/figure-17-04-01a.jpeg)
A simple pendulum acts like a harmonic oscillator with a period dependent only on L and g for sufficiently small amplitudes.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9948/square/sp3.gif)
The period of a physical pendulum depends upon its moment of inertia about its pivot point and the distance from its center of mass.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9975/square/figure-17-05-01a.jpeg)
The total energy in a simple harmonic oscillator is the constant sum of the potential and kinetic energies.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/9982/square/figure-17-03-04a.jpeg)
The solutions to the equations of motion of simple harmonic oscillators are always sinusoidal, i.e., sines and cosines.