Question: A damped oscillator has a time constant of 3 seconds. What is the damping coefficient if the mass is 1 kg and the spring constant is 4 N/m?
Options:
Correct Answer: 2 kg/s
Solution:
Time constant (τ) = m/c, thus c = m/τ = 1/3 = 0.333 kg/s. Using c = 2ζ√(mk), we find ζ = 0.5.