Virtual experiments of Physics using Scilab

Abstract

There are certain areas of Physics where different experimental phenomena are 
explained using some theoretical concepts. It is often said that a certain theory is able to 
reproduce experimental results. Some of them can be verified easily, but some theories have very 
complex computations that cannot be solved easily, and so end results are shown directly by 
graphs, final values, etc. But as Richard P. Feynman[1] said „What I cannot create, I do not 
understand‟, here we have tried to design experiments using theoretical concepts by writing 
simple programs, that allow students to observe the results and finally verify them by the 
available results. All this has been done using Scilab, which is open-source scientific 
computation software that can be used to perform numerical computations. It is easy to use even 
for people that have no previous programming experience. 
In this paper we have explained one such virtual experiment which is related to the study 
of the linear harmonic oscillator in which the student is able to observe the variation produced 
in the oscillation when mass and spring constant is varied and damping is introduced. Students 
can visualize each variation produced and interpret the result in a very easy manner. Several 
other experiments can also be designed by students themselves and make concept learning 
easier.