Introduction to Hooke's Law
What is Hooke's Law?
- Up to now, strings have been modelled as inextensible
- they cannot stretch (inelastic)
- we assume that the tension measured at any point along the string is the same constant value
- Things that stretch (or compress, e.g. springs) are called elastic
- Imagine two elastic strings held taut and at rest, but with one stretched further than the other
- measuring the tension at different points along one string gives the same value,
- but that "value" will be higher for the more stretched string than for the less stretched string
- Hooke's Law tells us that the value of tension, N, depends on how far it's been stretched (the extension, metres) beyond its natural (unstretched) length ( metres)
- The law is
- where is the modulus of elasticity, with units of Newtons,
- it measures the stiffness of the material the string (or spring) is made from,
- the higher is, the stiffer the string / spring is
- Springs can be compressed but elastic strings can't (they'd go slack)
- Hooke's Law works for compression of springs too
- Instead of measuring extension, measures the length of compression (from its natural length)
- just make sure any tension arrows reverse direction to be compression (thrust) arrows!
Exam Tip
- In more algebraic questions, the modulus of elasticity may be given in the form Newtons, where is a constant
Worked example
An elastic string of natural length metres and modulus of elasticity 20 N is stretched to a total length of metres.
Find the tension in the string.