A Low Cost Duffing Oscillator

TL;DR

This paper presents a cost-effective design for a Duffing oscillator suitable for undergraduate experiments, utilizing a video tracking system to demonstrate chaotic behavior within budget constraints during COVID-19.

Contribution

It introduces an inexpensive, practical implementation of a Duffing oscillator emphasizing affordability and accessibility for educational purposes.

Findings

Successful construction of a low-cost Duffing oscillator

Demonstration of chaotic behavior using video tracking

Discussion of theoretical aspects of bi-stability in the system

Abstract

We describe an undergraduate project to build a Duffing oscillator. Although the ultimate goal was to demonstrate chaos, the overriding consideration was cost, as this was during COVID-19, and budgets were frozen. Previous designs used expensive parts that were out of the question in terms of cost. An inexpensive design whose centerpiece is a video tracking system is presented, along with some comments about aspects of the theory concerning the bi-stable case.