Measuring Gravitational and Inertial Mass

Note: you must design the details for this experiment yourself: it is not a cookbook experiment.

Goal: Determine whether a difference exists between gravitational and inertial mass.

Materials

(Equipment included in the physics kit is noted in square brackets [].)

[Spring scales] or equal arm balance
[Standard masses]
Sample masses [capsules with different contents]
Inertial balance [16" metal ruler] or spring-loaded pan balance of your own construction. An example of an inertial mass scale is shown in this YouTube Inertial Mass Lab video.
The key feature of the inertial mass detection device is that it must be able to vibrate or bounce. One possibility is to fix the 16" metal ruler from your kit to a board using the hole end, with the rest of the ruler extending horizontally and able to bounce up and down, or if repositioned, sideways.

Procedure

Read through this PhysicsLAB's Gravitational vs. Inertial Mass description. Determine how you will measure each type of mass and write up a plan for your procedure.

Data Handling

Plan the table for your gravitational mass data. How will you measure gravitational mass? What units will you use? What data will you collect? What calculations will you need to make?
Plan the table for your inertial mass data. How will you determine inertial mass from the data you collect? What units will you use for your observations? What calculations will you need to make?

Report

Follow best practices to write a full, independently-produced, formal lab report for this lab.

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