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Physics Demonstrations and Equipment

Physics Demonstrations and Equipment

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Globe-painted basketball with a multicolored striped elastic loop stretched around it, one end hooked to a bench clamp rod on the right and pulled by hand on the left, showing tidal distortion

Tidal Distortion

Demonstrates how the Moon's differential gravitational pull creates two tidal bulges on opposite sides of Earth. Students see that tides arise from gravitational gradients, not uniform attraction. Extend the discussion …

Instructor seated in a wooden-framed chair, suspended several feet above the lecture hall stage by a block-and-tackle system, pulling on the rope; projection screen behind shows a pulley diagram

Pulley Hoist

Sit in a chair and lift yourself using a threefold-purchase tackle (MA = 6). The pulling force is one-sixth your weight, but you must pull seven times as much rope …

Glass beaker filled with coiled ball chain sitting at the edge of a gray surface, with the chain end draped over the rim and hanging down

Chain Siphon

A ball chain self-evacuates from a beaker, forming a striking arc above the rim that appears to defy gravity. Demonstrates energy conversion, momentum transfer in linked systems, and the role …

Agilent dual-channel function generator (left) and Agilent InfiniiVision digital oscilloscope (right) displaying a blue Lissajous figure in XY mode, connected by two BNC cables

Lissajous Figures

Displays Lissajous figures on an oscilloscope in XY mode to show how frequency ratios and phase differences between two sinusoidal signals produce characteristic closed-curve patterns. Students learn to read frequency …

Projection electroscope with built-in lamp and lens (left) and projected image of the electroscope leaf on screen (right)

Projection Electroscope

Demonstrates charge detection and polarity using a projection electroscope visible to the entire lecture hall. Students observe leaf deflection in response to charged objects, illustrating charging by contact, charging by …

Hand holding inflated purple balloon above a watch glass containing small white foam confetti pieces

Balloon and Confetti

A charged balloon attracts neutral paper confetti via polarization and picks up oppositely charged foam confetti via Coulomb attraction. Deflating the balloon while maintaining its charge increases surface charge density, …

Glass jar containing blue copper sulfate solution with copper plates at the bottom and a zinc electrode at the top, connected to a yellow BK Test Bench 388A multimeter reading 0.980 volts

Gravity Cell (Crow's Foot Cell)

A gravity cell (Daniell-type cell) generates ~1.08 V from copper and zinc electrodes in density-stratified electrolyte solutions. Demonstrates how chemical reactions produce a stable EMF and how gravity keeps the …

Front panel of 3W Demo Multimeter U21100 with large red LED display reading 1.517 V; hand holds a battery against the test leads

Lecture Multimeter

A large-format LED multimeter (3W Demo Multimeter U21100) displays voltage, current, and resistance in 2-inch digits visible across a lecture hall. Front and rear displays let the instructor read measurements …

Phosphorescent Discraft Ultra-Star disc glowing green under UV light, partially shadowed by glass plate blocking part of the UV

Short & Long Wave UV

Glass transmits longwave UV but blocks shortwave UV, demonstrated using a phosphorescent disc as a visible indicator. A plastic container with CFL phosphor fragments shows a similar blocking effect. Students …

Large octagonal Fresnel lens propped upright and smaller square Fresnel lens lying flat, with a wooden ruler and small white cube for scale

Fresnel Lens

Show how Fresnel lenses use concentric grooves to achieve the focusing power of a conventional thick lens with drastically reduced thickness and weight. Students examine the groove structure and verify …

$Projected slit with red, green, and blue color filter sections separated by white gaps, with diffracted rainbow spectra visible on either side against a dark background$

Color Spectra

Shows how a diffraction grating decomposes white light into its spectrum, and how color filters selectively transmit only certain wavelengths. Demonstrates that filters subtract wavelengths from white light rather than …

Desk lamp illuminating a solar cell panel connected by wires to a toy oil rig with beam pump mechanism on a wooden base

Solar Oil Rig

Demonstrates photovoltaic energy conversion using a solar cell to power a toy oil rig from a lamp. Students observe the conversion chain from light to electrical to mechanical energy. The …

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Black and gold tassel on a metal rod atop a Van de Graaff dome, with strands splayed radially outward due to electrostatic repulsion

Tassel

A tassel on a Van de Graaff generator spreads dramatically as the strands acquire like charges and repel each other. Students see a vivid illustration of electrostatic repulsion and can …

Four 5-gallon buckets on a concrete floor: two white buckets with blue rims in front filled with yellow-green and orange tennis balls, one empty orange bucket and one empty white bucket behind them

Heat Transfer Comparison

Uses student volunteers and tennis balls to physically model the difference between conduction (passing balls down a stationary line) and convection (carrying balls between buckets). Makes the abstract distinction between …

Loop track apparatus: metal channel track in a rectangular frame, with a long ramp descending from the left into a circular loop, then a short exit ramp on the right

Loop Track

Demonstrates conservation of mechanical energy using a loop track. A ball released from a given height cannot exceed that height on the opposite side. By varying release height, students see …

Hydraulic jack mounted in a frame with two vertical guide rods, a hand pump lever on the right, a pressure gauge (0–5000 psi) on the front, and a piece of 2x2 wood positioned between the piston and the upper compression plate

Pascal's Law, Hydraulic Press

Students observe Pascal's Law in action as a hand-pumped hydraulic jack crushes a section of 2x2 lumber. The dramatic fracture demonstrates how hydraulic systems transmit pressure through incompressible fluid to …

Black bowling ball suspended by a thin green cable with carabiner, hanging at seat height next to a gray metal stool in a lecture hall

Bowling Ball Pendulum

A bowling ball pendulum released from a volunteer's chin swings away and returns to exactly its release height, dramatically demonstrating conservation of mechanical energy. The volunteer's safety depends entirely on …

Tesla coil with red secondary winding and metal toroid on a cart, positioned next to a person-sized wooden-framed Faraday cage with metal mesh containing a life-size Darth Vader standee

Faraday Cage and Tesla Coil

A person stands safely inside a Faraday cage while a Tesla coil hurls dramatic sparks at the exterior, demonstrating that a conducting enclosure shields its interior from external electric fields. …

Aluminum pie plate tilting off the chrome dome of a Van de Graaff generator, caught mid-flight as electrostatic repulsion launches it upward

Repulsion from a Van de Graaff

Lightweight objects on a Van de Graaff generator acquire charge and fly off dramatically, illustrating that like charges repel and that electrostatic forces can easily overcome gravity.

Aluminum 3/4 ring (open at top) with a multicolored glass marble sitting at center, on a green lab bench surface

Marble in Open Ring

A marble rolling inside a 3/4 ring exits through the gap in a straight line tangent to the circle, demonstrating Newton's First Law. Directly addresses the common misconception that objects …

Wooden inclined plane tilted at an angle with a block and binder-clipped masses on top, a large brass protractor at the base, assorted wooden blocks with different surfaces, and black hooked masses on a wooden platform

Block on Inclined Plane

Shows that the critical angle for sliding on an incline depends only on the coefficient of friction, not on mass. Adding weight to a block does not change the angle …

Two hollow metal density balls -- one matte and one polished -- photographed on a dark surface

Density Balls

A density ball sinks in plain water but floats after adding salt, directly showing that an object's buoyancy depends on the relative densities of object and fluid. By carefully controlling …

White plastic bucket with wire handle and rope threaded through it, looped around a person's wrist and hand for secure grip

Whirling Bucket

A bucket of water swung in a vertical circle stays dry — even when inverted — because the centripetal acceleration exceeds at the top. Illustrates circular motion dynamics and addresses …

Free fall apparatus with a horizontal brass rod holding two steel balls on a green and black base, spring-loaded launch mechanism on one end, vertical trigger lever hanging below

Vertical, Projectile Free Fall

Demonstrates that horizontal and vertical motion are independent. One ball is launched horizontally while an identical ball is dropped simultaneously — both hit the ground at the same time, showing …