Eastern Kentucky University
The Dynamics of the Double Pendulum
Institution
Eastern Kentucky University
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Christopher Kulp
Abstract
The double pendulum is a classic example of a physical system which can display chaotic behavior. In this study we investigate the motion of a double pendulum through a numerical simulation as well as data taken directly from the pendulum during its motion. We attempt to compute the Lyapunov exponent for our system using some methods of nonlinear time series analysis on the data taken from the pendulum. We compare the Lyapunov exponent measured from the experiment to the one measured from the numerical simulations.
The Dynamics of the Double Pendulum
The double pendulum is a classic example of a physical system which can display chaotic behavior. In this study we investigate the motion of a double pendulum through a numerical simulation as well as data taken directly from the pendulum during its motion. We attempt to compute the Lyapunov exponent for our system using some methods of nonlinear time series analysis on the data taken from the pendulum. We compare the Lyapunov exponent measured from the experiment to the one measured from the numerical simulations.