An object in simple harmonic motion is isochronous, meaning that the period of
its oscillations is independent of their amplitude. (Contrary to a common
assertion, the operation of a pendulum clock is not based on this principle. A
pendulum clock operates at fixed, finite amplitude. The gearing of the clock
compensates for the anharmonicity of the pendulum.) Consider an oscillator of
mass \(m\) in one-dimensional motion, with a restoring force \(F(x)=-c x^{3}\)
where \(x\) is the displacement from equilibrium and \(c\) is a constant with
appropriate units. The motion of this ascillator is periodic but not
isochronous.
a) Write an expression for the period of the undamped oscillations of this
oscillator. If your expression involves an integral, it should be a definite
integral. You do not need to evaluate the expression.
b) Using the expression of part (a), determine the dependence of the period of
oscillation on the amplitude.
c) Generalize the results of parts (a) and (b) to an oscillator of mass \(m\) in
one-dimensional motion with a restoring force corresponding to the potential
energy \(U(x)=\gamma|x| / \alpha\), where \(\alpha\) is any positive value and
\(\gamma\) is a constant