

However, if the mass is displaced from the equilibrium position, a restoring elastic force which obeys Hooke's law is exerted by the spring. If the system is left at rest at the equilibrium position then there is no net force acting on the mass. (Here the velocity and position axes have been reversed from the standard convention in order to align the two diagrams)Ī simple harmonic oscillator is attached to the spring, and the other end of the spring is connected to a rigid support such as a wall. In Newtonian mechanics, for one-dimensional simple harmonic motion, the equation of motion, which is a second-order linear ordinary differential equation with constant coefficients, can be obtained by means of Newton's 2nd law and Hooke's law for a mass on a spring.Simple harmonic motion shown both in real space and phase space. The area enclosed depends on the amplitude and the maximum momentum. Note if the real space and phase space plot are not co-linear, the phase space motion becomes elliptical. If energy is lost in the system, then the mass exhibits damped oscillation.

Thus simple harmonic motion is a type of periodic motion. A net restoring force then slows it down until its velocity reaches zero, whereupon it is accelerated back to the equilibrium position again.Īs long as the system has no energy loss, the mass continues to oscillate.

Therefore, the mass continues past the equilibrium position, compressing the spring. However, at x = 0, the mass has momentum because of the acceleration that the restoring force has imparted. At the equilibrium position, the net restoring force vanishes. When the mass moves closer to the equilibrium position, the restoring force decreases. As a result, it accelerates and starts going back to the equilibrium position. Once the mass is displaced from its equilibrium position, it experiences a net restoring force.
