A vertical pole is mounted on a frictionless horizontal floor. A small ring is fixed to the pole at a height
H above the floor. A small block of mass
m slides on the floor in a circle around the pole. It is connected to the ring by a massless spring with spring constant
k and relaxed length
L0.
If the block is made to revolve around the pole with a constant angular velocity
ω, it will slide outward until the spring provides the necessary centripetal force for that radius. At a certain critical angular velocity
ωc, the block just loses contact with the floor. What is
ωc?
Assume that the parameters are such that the block rests on the floor when
ω=0, and lifts off at a finite, non-zero radius.