Dynamics of the looping pendulum: theory, simulation, and experiment

Abstract

The looping pendulum is a simple physical system consisting of two masses connected by a string that passes over a rod. We derive equations of motion for the looping pendulum using Newtonian mechanics, and show that these equations can be solved numerically to give a good description of the system’s dynamics. The numerical solution captures complex aspects of the looping pendulum’s behavior, and is in good agreement with the experimental results.