Some Static Properties of Slinky

TL;DR

This paper uses a discrete model to analyze static properties of Slinky, deriving relations for different configurations and proposing simple demonstrations suitable for physics education.

Contribution

It introduces a discrete modeling approach to analyze Slinky's static properties and provides educational demonstrations for physics classes.

Findings

Derived relations for vertically and U-shaped suspended Slinkies

Proposed simple physics demonstrations based on the model

Enhanced understanding of Slinky's static behavior

Abstract

In this paper we use a simple discrete model for Slinky to explore some of its static properties. We derive some relations for vertically and U-shaped suspended Slinkies, based on which, some demonstrations are proposed that can be simply done in freshmen physics classes.