LRC Ringing Circuit

DCS Code: 5J30.20 Last Updated: March 27, 2026
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Purpose

Demonstrates underdamped oscillations in a series RLC circuit driven by a square wave. Students observe the "ringing" waveform — damped sinusoidal oscillations at the circuit's natural frequency — and connect it to the second-order differential equation governing the system.

LRC ringing circuit board on wooden base with inductor coil, capacitors, and red banana plug leads, connected to an Agilent function generator (left) and Agilent digital oscilloscope (right) displaying square wave input and damped oscillation output
Figure 1: The LRC ringing circuit board with 46-turn Leybold inductor coil, connected to an Agilent function generator and oscilloscope showing the damped oscillation response to a 400 Hz square wave.
Demo Apparatus