Q.A simple pendulum has a time period $T_1$. When its point of suspension is moved vertically upwards according as $y = kt^2$, where $y$ is vertical distance covered and $k = 1\ \mathrm{m\,s^{-2}}$, its time period becomes $T_2$. Then, $T_1^2/T_2^2$ is ($g = 10\ \mathrm{m\,s^{-2}}$) (IIT 2005) a) 5/6 b) 11/10 c) 6/5 d) 5/4

Simple Pendulum in a Lift – First Principles

Imagine you are standing in a lift. When the lift is at rest or moving at constant speed, you feel your normal weight. The moment the lift accelerates upward, you feel heavier — the floor pushes harder against your feet. If it accelerates downward, you feel lighter, as if you are floating a little.

A pendulum is just a mass on a string. Its swing is governed by the restoring force that pulls it back toward the vertical. That force depends on gravity. So if the lift's motion changes how heavy the bob feels, the pendulum will swing differently.

The Core Idea

The period of a simple pendulum is

where $g$ is the acceleration due to gravity. In a lift, the bob experiences an effective gravity $g_{\text{eff}}$ that is the vector sum of actual gravity and the lift's acceleration (with sign). The period becomes

The trick is to find $g_{\text{eff}}$ for each case.

Case 1: Lift accelerating upward

When the lift accelerates upward with acceleration $a$, the floor pushes the bob upward harder. The bob feels heavier. The effective gravity is

The pendulum swings slower (longer period) because the restoring force is stronger — it takes more time to complete one oscillation.

Case 2: Lift accelerating downward

When the lift accelerates downward with acceleration $a$, the bob feels lighter. The effective gravity is

The pendulum swings faster (shorter period). If $a = g$, the bob is in free fall — $g_{\text{eff}} = 0$ — and the pendulum does not oscillate at all (it just floats). If $a > g$, the bob would hit the ceiling; that case is usually not considered in standard problems.

Case 3: Lift moving at constant velocity (up or down)

If the lift moves at constant speed, there is no acceleration. The bob feels its normal weight. So $g_{\text{eff}} = g$, and the period is the same as on ground:

The Intuition in One Sentence

The pendulum's period changes because the lift's acceleration alters the apparent weight of the bob, which changes the restoring force that drives the swing. …