Hooke's Law - Explanation and Application of the law
Channel: Physics Partner
Date: 16/07/2022

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Hooke’s Law is named for 17th century British physicist, Robert Hooke. Hooke sought to demonstrate the relationship between the forces applied to a spring and its elasticity. Hooke’s Law states that the extension of a spring is proportional to the load that is applied to it. A variety of materials obey this law as long as the load does not exceed the material’s elastic limit.

Hooke’s Law Equation

The length of a spring always changes by the same amount when it is pushed or pulled. In the case of a linear spring being pushed or pulled in one direction, the mathematical representation of Hooke’s Law is as follows:

F = kx

“F” being the amount of push or pull is on the spring

“k” being a constant, indicating the stiffness of the spring

“x” being the distance the spring was pushed or pulled

Elasticity and Restoring Force

Elasticity is the property of an object that causes it to return to its original shape after it has been manipulated in some way. Hooke’s law is considered to be the earliest explanation of this concept.

Restoring force enables the spring to return to its original shape after undergoing manipulation.  In the context of Hooke’s Law, the restoring force is usually proportional to the amount of stretch experienced.

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