After reading these notes, test your knowledge with free interactive questions on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

Hooke's Law - Extending Springs

A force acting on an object may change its size or shape. For example, squashing or twisting an object can change its shape.

Hooke's Law

Hooke's Law

  • When a spring is stretched, the increase in the length of the spring is called its “extension”.
  • Hooke’s Law tells us that the extension of a spring is directly proportional to the force applied to the spring:
              force = spring constant x extension.
Limit of proportionality

Limit of proportionality

  • Think of the spring constant as the stiffness of the spring. This is different for different objects.
  • The higher the spring constant, the “stiffer” the spring and the more force is needed to stretch it.
  • The limit of proportionality is the point where Hooke’s law breaks down.
  • If a spring is stretched too much, it will not return to its original length when the force stops acting on the spring.
Jump to other topics
1

Forces & Motion

1.1

Basics of Motion

1.2

Forces

1.3

Effects of Forces

1.4

Stopping Distance

1.5

Forces & Elasticity

2

Electricity

3

Waves

4

Energy Resources & Energy Transfers

5

Solids, Liquids & Gases

6

Magnetism & Electromagnetism

7

Radioactivity & Particles

8

Astrophysics

Practice questions on Hooke's Law

Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
Answer all questions on Hooke's Law

Unlock your full potential with Seneca Premium

  • Unlimited access to 10,000+ open-ended exam questions

  • Mini-mock exams based on your study history

  • Unlock 800+ premium courses & e-books

Get started with Seneca Premium