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Introduction
Stiffness vs. strength
Experiment - step 1
Experiment - step 2
Experiment - step 3
Graph
Calculation
Questions
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By Bill Mitchell & Andrew Green
The Young Modulus, E
is a material property that describes its stiffness and is therefore one of the most
important properties in engineering design.
Learning outcomes
After completing this section, you should be able to:
 | provide a definition of the Young modulus and give its units; |
| explain the terms tensile force, tensile stress, tensile strain, elastic, strong and
stiff; |
| differentiate between the terms strength and stiffness; |
| determine the Young modulus experimentally by;
 | describing the apparatus; |
| measuring the key dimensions of the test wire; |
| using a vernier scale to measure the extension of the wire; |
| generating a straight-line graph of extension vs. mass; |
| evaluating the gradient of the graph; and |
| calculating the Young modulus by substitution into formulae. |
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Assumed prior knowledge
It is assumed that you have knowledge of the following concepts:
| force and its SI unit, the Newton (N); and |
| the ability to read a vernier scale. |
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