Oscillations of a spring–magnet system damped by a conductive plate

We study the motion of a spring–magnet system that oscillates with very low frequencies above a circular horizontal non-magnetizable conductive plate. The magnet oscillations couple with the plate via the Foucault currents induced therein. We develop a simple theoretical model for this magneto-mechanical oscillator, a model that leads to the equation of a damped harmonic oscillator, whose weak attenuation constant depends upon the system parameters, e.g. the electrical conductivity of the constituent material of the plate and its thickness. We present a set of validating experiments, the results of which are predicted with good accuracy by our analytical model. Additional experiments can be performed with this oscillating system or its variants. This oscillator is simple and low-cost, easy to assemble, and can be used in experiments or project works in physics teaching laboratories at the undergraduate level.