Expansion Blocks - Physics Demonstrations - Expansion Blocks | Physics Undergraduate Labs

Purpose

Wooden blocks that stack together show how surface area scales as $$n^2$$ and volume as $$n^3$$ when linear dimensions scale by $$n$$ . Place additional blocks on the faces of the base cube to visualize the added surface area when the cube is doubled in size.

White painted wooden blocks assembled into a cube with additional flat slabs placed on the visible faces, showing the extra surface area needed when scaling up

White wooden flat square slab lying flat with a narrow rectangular bar beside it

Small white wooden unit cube next to a long rectangular bar of the same cross-section

White painted wooden rectangular block viewed from an angle, showing it is assembled from multiple pieces

All white wooden expansion block pieces arranged by size: two large square slabs standing upright in back, smaller slabs and bars in front, with the unit cube at lower right

Figure 1: Blocks assembled into a scaled-up cube with slabs on the faces showing the additional surface area required when linear dimensions are doubled.

Figure 2: A square face slab and a rectangular edge bar, two of the component pieces used to build up the scaled cube.

Figure 3: The unit cube beside a bar of the same cross-section, illustrating how length scales linearly while cross-sectional area remains constant.

Figure 4: A larger block assembled from component pieces, representing a scaled-up volume.

Figure 5: Complete set of expansion block pieces arranged by size, from unit cube to large face slabs.