Millikan's Oil Drop Experiment: Charge on the Electron
Obj: Simulate Millikan's Oil Drop Exp. with a mass analogy.
Materials: Unknown "q" (marbles) in sealed containers, balance
Methods
1. Determine the
mass of a "charged oil droplet" container obtained randomly
from the central storage box and record this value.
Mass to the nearest 0.1 gram
2. Return the
"droplet" to the storage box via the RandomizerJ tube.
Repeat Step 1at least 25 times.
Analysis
1. Determine the smallest
mass increment that is >2 g from your data, then plot a
graph of the actual mass vs. the increment increase (1,2,3...)
where the smallest mass is the first increment.
If the next incremental mass is absent, skip an increment
on the x-axis.
2. Calculate the
slope. What does the
slope represent? (Hint:
look at the units.)
3. Compare this
lab's mass analogy with Millikan's oil drop experiment.
Back to the Brockport High School Science Department