Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A small block of mass lies on a rough horizontal turntable. A light spring of force constant and natural length joins the block to the vertical axle of the turntable, along a radius, as shown in the figure. The coefficient of friction between the block and the table is , both for sticking and for sliding. Take .
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Plan. Find the band of distances where spring and friction together can supply the inward force. Then follow the block as the band moves when changes.
Step 1. The condition for rest. The spring pulls the block inwards with (it pushes outwards if ). Circular motion needs an inward force . Friction must make up the difference, and it can be at most either way:
Since here, this gives the band
At the inner end the block is about to slide outwards, and friction pulls it in. At the outer end it is about to slide inwards, and friction pushes it out.
Step 2. Numbers for (a). , and . So
Step 3. Speeding up (b). At the spring does nothing, so friction alone supplies . The block starts to slide when :
As the table speeds up further, the block creeps outwards, always on the point of sliding out. So it stays at the inner end of the band. At that is .
Step 4. Slowing down (c). As falls, the whole band moves inwards. The block, now at , tends to slide inwards. It stays where it is until the outer end of the band comes down to it, when , at . Below that it creeps inwards, staying at the outer end of the band. At :
Answer: (a) . (b) It starts to slide at , and at it is from the axle. (c) It ends from the axle.
Check. At the band is to . On the way up, at this same speed, the block had not yet moved from . On the way down it is at . Friction makes the block remember its history (this is called hysteresis). Even if the table stops completely, the block stays at .
Watch out. "Very slowly" matters. It keeps the block's speed along the radius tiny, so we can ignore the extra sideways friction that a quick change would need.
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