Lab 2:

The Permittivity of Free Space

Edited 10/3/14 by Joe Skitka, Stephen Albright, EAG, DGH, WL, & JCH

Figure 8: The electrostatic balance

Objective
An attempt will be made to measure the permittivity of free space as accurately as possible. This
will be computed from the force acting on an electrostatic balance. The results, including
detailed uncertainty analysis, will be written up in a full lab report (see the Lab Report Guide and
the Guide to Uncertainty Analysis on the lab wiki). An additional exercise which involves
mapping electrostatic fields in two dimensions follows the main component of the lab. A write
up is not required for this exercise. Be sure to reserve the last 45 minutes to complete this.

Introduction
The permittivity of free space, also known as the vacuum permittivity and represented with ε0 , is
a constant appearing in Maxwell’s equations which, together with the permeability of free space,
μ0, uniquely determines the speed of light, c, and the relative magnitude of electric and magnetic
fields in vacuum EM radiation. Although most physical constants are already known to many
digits, measuring them to an ever higher degree of precision is of perpetual interest in research
because they can be a limiting factor in other experiments and such precision can be helpful in
building theoretical models beneath those already known. In this lab, the student is challenged to
measure εo with a small, carefully computed uncertainty using a provided electrostatic balance
and associated devices. It should be noted that εo is not considered a fundamental physical
constant; rather, it is a defined quantity and is limited in practice by the precision of definitions
of the units in which it is expressed.
Experimental Details
The vacuum permittivity, ε0, will be measured using the electrostatic repulsion between two
plates held at a specific potential difference by a DC power source. Repulsive forces are
determined using a digital scale. Specific information on this equipment is provided below.
Some of this information is repeated in the procedure for easy reference.

Electrostatic Balance: The electrostatic balance consists of two parallel plates (which are
effectively a parallel plate capacitor) of adjustable plate separation that is mounted to a digital
scale. When a voltage is applied, a charge accumulates and the plates are repulsed, pushing
down on the scale. This apparatus allows for the plate separation and voltage to be adjusted
freely. NOTE: under no circumstances should you take apart the balance. If you need to
measure dimensions, a sample plate is available (ask the TA if it is not in sight). Also, do not
allow the plates within 3mm of each other when the power source is on. This will result in a
short circuit and/or sparking.

Figure 9: The Electrostatic Balance and Experimental Setup

Scale: The digital scale (or balance) can be turned on/off and zeroed/tared (same thing) with a
thin rod located at each experimental setup. The scale is designed to freeze the display once a
reading is stable. This may cause the scale to stop responding. If this happens, turn the voltage
down significantly and restore it or bump the scale surface with the thin rod.

Digital Depth Gauge: The readout should be self-explanatory. Note that the depth gauge locks;
this must be done when making measurements. Also note that all measurements are relative –
the gauge is not necessarily zero when the plates are touching. This will contribute an extra
factor to the uncertainty of any measurement; one for the zero (plates touching) measurement
and one for the non-zero measurement. Instructions for measuring and estimating the
uncertainty of the zero are given directly in the procedure.

Power Source: A direct-current (DC) power supply is used for this lab. Current and voltage
knobs can both be used to vary power flowing through the circuit; however, these are not
independent parameters. As one of these quantities is adjusted, the other will follow according
to ohm’s law at a constant resistance. It is recommended you set the current to a fixed value and
adjust the voltage as needed. There are both coarse and fine adjustment knobs for each of these
parameters. On some of the power sources the potentiometers on the fine adjustment knobs are
finicky and may not allow for precise fine tuning.
Calipers: This device is used to make precision measurements of external and internal
dimensions of small objects. External dimensions (as with the diameter of the circular plate in
this lab) are made by spreading the large jaws and placing them around the object. A
measurement can be made by placing them in contact with the surfaces being measured between.
Internal dimensions can be made by spreading the small jaws on the opposite side of the large
jaws and placing them within the cavity being measured. At the bottom of the caliper handle, a
rod can be used to precisely measured depth. With any type of measurement, be careful to
ensure that the calipers are measuring orthogonal to the surfaces in question. If the object has
measureable surface imperfections, several readings may be taken at different points and
averaged.

Cables: The black and red banana-plug cables used here will become a staple of this lab series.
It is important to note that red and black cables are not a perfect system for indicating the
direction of current flow. Typically, a red cable will be connected to the positive terminal of the
power source and a black to the negative, but beyond this, there can be no useful guidelines for
the general use of solid-colored cables within a circuit. If the cables were ideally made for the
purpose of indicating current flow, they would be red at one end and black on the other, not solid
colors, so be wary of using the colors to interpret a circuit.

Theory
The upper plate exerts a force on the lower plate that is equal to the charge on the lower plate
times the electric field of the upper plate:

F = QE (1)

Since the separation of the plates is sufficiently small, the field lines can be approximated by
those associated with plates with infinite diameter. Therefore, the field lines between the plates
can be thought of as parallel and the following applies:
σ Q
E = 2ε = 2Aε (2)
o o

Because the parallel plates also act as a capacitor, the charge on each plate can be found from the
potential difference, V, and separation, d, as:

ε A ε VA
Q = VC where C= od  Q= o (3)
d
Substituting Equations (2) and (3) into Equation (1) gives:
εo A 2
F= 2V (4)
2d
Since the force has a linear dependence on the potential squared, the slope of the graph of F vs.
V2 can be used to determine the permittivity of a vacuum. Alternatively, a constant voltage can
be maintained while the distance between the plates is varied; a plot of force versus inverse
distance squared will yield a constant slope from which the permittivity of a vacuum can also be
determined.

Procedure
1. To begin, note all of the quantities required to compute the vacuum permittivity in this
experiment (refer to the derived expressions in the theory section): the force on the plate, F,
the area of the plates, A, the separation between the plates, d, and the applied voltage
between the plates, V. Since only one set of plates is used for the whole lab, the area of the
plate and its uncertainty can be determined now and set aside until calculations and analysis
are done later. The treatment of uncertainty is detailed explicitly here in excessive detail for
instructional purposes. The take-home point of all this detail is this is an example of how one
might think about various sources of uncertainty to come up with a good estimate. Please
read the “Guide to Uncertainty Analysis” on the lab wiki, or one of the more formal
introductions referenced.
 Use a digital caliper to measure the diameter, D, of the sample plates which are
located in the middle of the room. Please keep the plates in the center of the room as
students will have to share in order to check multiple plates. To make a good
measurement, place the disk on a flat surface and rotate the jaws across the diameter
to the point of greatest constriction.
 Estimate the uncertainty of this value by considering the following contributions to
uncertainty:
o precision of the measurement devise
o your ability to read its value precisely, if analogue
o the uncertainty in the zero of the caliper reading. Close the caliper so that the
prongs are touching and zero it. Perform the experiment. At the end of the
measurements, put the prongs back together and see what it reads. Even if it
says zero, the contribution must be at least equal to the precision of the
instrument. Note that this uncertainty is bias and will not be reduced by
making multiple measurements.
o variation in diameter between plates. Because you cannot measure the plate
used in the experiment directly, an individual sample plate may not be a
reflection of the plate in your apparatus, so you will need to look at the mean
and variation between multiple plates. The standard deviation should be used
as an estimate for the uncertainty; however, because you do not know the
mean in advance, the first measurement does not give you any information on
the variation, so use a corrected standard deviation with an n-1 in the
definition, which is the Excel command STDEV.S as opposed to STDEV.P.
o deviations in its shape from a perfect circle. This can be determined by taking
several measurements rotating the plate in between each one. The standard
deviation of these measurements can be used as an estimate of the uncertainty
for a single measurement.
o temporal fluctuations in the reading (unlikely to be noticeable here.)
o the diameter’s susceptibility to temperature. Because we do not have a
temperature controlled environment, it is difficult to account for this, but
 could be noticeable if you have temperature swings of a couple degrees during
the experiment.
It turns out that one of these contributions is more than an order of magnitude greater
than the others. When combined with the others via the root-mean square, the
contribution will be dominated by this contribution, equaling the total uncertainty up
to 2 or 3 decimal places. If you can identify the largest contribution, you may neglect
the others, eliminating the need to determine the standard deviation(s) and saving a
bit of time. You may want to confirm with the TA to see if you’ve found the correct
contribution.
 These contributions can be combined by taking their root mean square, or RMS,
which is how contributions of uncertainty, theoretically representing standard
deviations of unspecified probability distribution functions, combine under the
addition of their governing distributions: √∑𝑁
𝑖 (Δ𝐷𝑖 ) . Practically speaking, a single
2

contribution may dominate, in which case very small contributions may be dropped.
 It is important to remember that uncertainty is intended to be an upper bound on the
error at a fixed confidence level, so be careful to round up when necessary.
 Calculate the plate’s area and practice propagating the uncertainty of the area using a
linear expansion around the measurements. Again, the contribution of each
independent parameter combines additively with the RMS, only this time taking into
account a general functional dependence on the parameters via partial derivatives:

𝑁 𝜕𝛹 2
Δ𝛹 = √∑𝑖 (Δ𝜑𝑖 ) , (5)
𝜕𝜑𝑖
where 𝜑𝑖 are all of the parameters on which 𝛹, the value you are propagating to,
depends. This equation can be used to propagate uncertainty in any situation. In this
case, 𝛹 is the area, A, and it is only a function of one parameter, 𝜑1 = 𝐷. When A =
¼ π D2 is plugged in, this looks like:
1
Δ𝐴 = π 𝐷 Δ𝐷, (6)
2
If you have a question about this, be sure to ask the TA. Application of equation 5
will be required repeatedly throughout the lab component of this course.
 Note: DO NOT TAKE THE APPARATUS APART (schematic of apparatus shown
in Figure 9).

2. The remaining experimental parameters will vary as measurements are made. The apparatus
can now be prepared to take measurements. Both the separation between the plates and the
electric potential they are held at could be treated as the free variable in this experiment. The
electric potential will be varied first, but the experiment will be repeated treating the
separation as the free variable to see if one technique is more accurate than the other. Prior
to making measurements of the separation of the plates using the depth gauge, it must be
zeroed by putting the plates in contact.
 Make sure the power supply voltage is set to 0 kV.
 Use the depth gauge to raise the upper plate so that it is not touching the lower plate.
 If the scale is not reading zero, tare it by pressing “tare” or “zero” or powering it on and
off with the wand provided.
  Gently lower the upper plate so it just touches the lower plate - It may be helpful to use
the wheel on the back of the depth gauge.
 When the scale reads between .01g and 5.0g lock the depth gauge, record the scale
reading and zero the depth gauge.
 Note: always remove your hands from the gauge before taking a reading.

3. Use the depth gauge to set the separation between the capacitor plates to ~15 mm. It will
remain at this separation while the voltage is varied independently. The exact value is not
important. What is important is that you record the value and record an estimate of its
uncertainty for later propagation. This will involve contributions similar to the diameter of
the plate (e.g. from the precision of the measurement device) in addition to the uncertainty of
the zero position, which encapsulates geometric imperfections. Use appendix 2 to estimate
this contribution to the uncertainty. Again, these can be combined via their RMS to arrive at
a single uncertainty estimate of the separation.

4. Record balance readings for voltages from 2 kV to 5 kV in 500 V increments. The idea here
is to smooth out any biases which may occur at a specific voltage range by taking many
values at different voltages and combining the data into a single value. Random fluctuations
in the readings will also be smoothed out by taking multiple measurements, but this could
have been addressed by taking repeated measurements without changing the voltage.
 Do not allow the plate separation to be less than ~3mm when the voltage is up –
sparking between the plates may occur.
 The plates are attracted instead of repelled so the scale will give negative readings.
 If the force on the scales does not change for 90 seconds, the scales will shut off. When
this happens, set the voltage to 0 and turn the scale back on. Your tare should be
preserved.
 The scale is designed to freeze the display once a stable reading has been taken. This
may cause the scale to stop responding. When this happens, turn the voltage down
significantly then back to the desired voltage or tap the surface of the scale (gently)
using the rod.
 Periodically confirm that the scale tare has not changed.
 Be sure to estimate the uncertainty of the balance and voltage readings.

5. Use the digital depth gauge to set the separation between the capacitor plates to ~20 mm. If
any biases exist at 15mm and not 20mm, this should provide an indication. Take a set of
measurements at this separation just as was done at ~15mm.

6. A quick way to combine these multiple data points at different voltages is to use a linear fit
and relate the slope to 𝜀𝑜 .
 Plot the force F versus the potential squared V2 for both separations.
 Use Appendix 1 to find the slope of the least squares best fit line where x is V2 and y is F.
 Find the uncertainty in the slope using the same appendix.

7. Derive the permittivity of a vacuum from the slope, m, of the graph F vs. V2.
 𝜀𝑜 𝐴
m= 2 (7)
2𝑑
8. Once again, use a linear expansion, equation (5), to find the error in the measured
permittivity:
𝜕𝛹 2
Δ𝛹 = √∑𝑁
𝑖 (Δ𝜑𝑖 𝜕𝜑 ) , (8)
𝑖

which ends up looking like:

4m𝑑 2 2𝑑2 2 2𝑚𝑑2 2
Δ𝜀𝑜 = √(∆𝑑 ) + (∆𝑚 ) + (∆𝐴 ) (9)
A A 𝐴2

9. Next, the plate separation will be varied independently.

 Set the potential to 3.0 kV and measure the force for several different separations
between 10 mm and 20 mm.
 Note: Do not allow the plate separation to be less than ~3mm when the voltage is up – sparking
between the plates may occur.
1
10. Plot F vs. for all separations. We recommend you use Kaleidagraph, available on the
𝑑2
lab computers or as a free trial download. See Appendix 3.
1
 Find the slope of the least squares best fit line where x is 2 and y is F.
𝑑
 Record this slope.
 Derive the uncertainty in the slope (again, see Appendix 1.)

1
11. Derive the permittivity of a vacuum from the slope of the graph, F vs.
𝑑2
2
𝜀𝑜 𝐴𝑉
m= 2
(10)

12. Calculate the uncertainty in the permittivity using the techniques demonstrated in step 8. For
reference, the accepted value is 𝜀𝑜 = 8.85418782 × 10-12 m-3 kg-1 s2 C2.
 Additional Exercise:
Mapping Electrostatic Fields
Edited 8/14/14 by Joe Skitka, Stephen Albright, EAG, DGH, WL, & JCH

Figure 1: Equipotentials (red dotted lines) and electric field lines (black vectors) for dipole
system

Objective
The purpose of this exercise is to visualize static electric fields and corresponding equipotential
surfaces. While most electric fields one encounters are 3-dimensional, to maximize
comprehension and simplify the necessary procedure, approximately 2-dimensional fields are
used instead. This is accomplished by confining the electric field to a conducting sheet.
Although charges flow through the conducting sheet when an electric potential is applied across
it, the resulting field is static and a good approximation of that of a 2-dimensional vacuum to the
extent that the conductor is an infinite sheet and uniform. NOTE: This exercise does not require
a written assignment. Rather, each group will check out with the TA before or at the end of the
lab to answer questions and demonstrate an understanding of the concepts involved.

Introduction
A conductor used to establish electrical contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit is called an
electrode. Charged electrodes generate an electric field in the space around them. The size and
shape of this field is dependent on the shape of the electrodes and their geometric configuration
relative to each other.
This experiment explores these fields using copper electrodes painted onto graphite-impregnated
conducting paper. By connecting the electrodes to a power supply, an electric field is produced
in the plane of the paper. A small current flows through the paper generating a potential gradient
across the paper. The potential difference (voltage) between any two points on the paper can be
measured by touching the paper with the metal probes of an electrometer - this device draws
virtually zero current so it does not affect the measurements. If these two probes are secured
together at a fixed separation, they can be used to measure the direction and magnitude of the
electric field vector. By these means, the relationship between the equipotential curves and the
electric field vectors can be investigated for electrodes of various shapes and configurations.
Non-conducting, colored pencils will be used to map the equipotential curves and field lines on
the paper.

Theory
While electric fields are innately 3-dimensional, the electric field maps created in this experiment
are approximately 2-dimensional. 2D fields and geometries can be thought of as flat systems
extending to infinity in both directions along a third dimension. In this case the system is the
graphite sheet confined to the horizontal plane. The electrodes would then be infinite vertical
line charges in a vacuum. If this geometry could be realized, there would be no need for graphite
conducting paper and the field could be measured in air (an approximate vacuum). Using the
conducting graphite sheet allows this ideal setup to be conveniently approximated.

Electric field lines indicate the direction a positive charge would accelerate if placed on the line
(see Figure 1). Equipotentials are a region in space where all points have the same potential.
Like contour lines on a map which trace lines of equal altitude, equipotential curves trace points
of equal voltage (in 3-D, these would be equipotential surfaces). For a 3D system, equipotentials
are 2D surfaces. In 2D systems (as in this exercise), equipotentials are 1D lines. Movement
along an equipotential surface requires no work. Can you convince yourself why?

Procedure
13. Secure the paper to the corkboard with pushpins.

14. To ensure a good electrical connection with the paper, screw a coffee hook into each of the
electrodes (paint spots) until the base of the hook presses against the paint on the paper (see
Figures 2.a and 2.b). Attach the power supply to the coffee hooks using red and black cables
for the positive and negative/ground terminals respectively. These connections will
established the desired electric field.

Figure 2.a: Correct Figure 2.b: Incorrect

15. An RCA plug will act as a movable voltage probe on the graphite paper. To measure the
electric potential, the voltage must be measured from the negative (ground) electrode, so a
second, fixed probe will be attached to that part of the circuit. In practice, this need not be
directly attached to the electrode and can instead be attached directly to the ground terminal
of the power source, which is at the same potential as the negative electrode because it is
connected to it with a conducting cable of much less resistance than the paper. To set this
up:
 Connect the black banana lead of the long thin BNC/shielded Banana cable to the
“COM” terminal of the multimeter
 Connect the red banana lead to the “V, Ω, µA” terminal of the multimeter.
 Plug the BNC to RCA adapter in the other end of this cable. (see Figures 3.a and 3.b).
 ATTENTION: Connect the negative terminal of the power supply to the COM terminal
of the voltmeter with a banana cable.
 Set the multimeter to DC Volts and the Range to 0.00V

Figure 3.a: BNC to shielded Banana cable Figure 3.b: BNC to RCA adapter

16. Set the power supply to 25 volts (see Figures 4.a and 4.b).

Figure 4.a Figure 4.b

17. Map out at least three equipotential curves on the graphite paper.
 Readings of the electric potential can be taken by touching the protruding lead of the
RCA adapter (positive probe) to the paper at the position of interest. To precisely define
the gauge and sign of this reading, if the above instructions were followed exactly, this
 measurement is the electric potential of the chosen point on the paper minus the electric
potential of the ground terminal. Does the sign of the readings make sense?
 To find an equipotential line, start by making a measurement somewhere between the
two electrodes (coffee hooks).
 Record the voltage and mark the position with a colored pencil.
 Find several other points on the sheet which are at the same potential, marking each of
them.
 When there are enough individual points, connect the dots.
 It is recommended that you start at a variety of positions between the electrodes, closer
to the positive electrode than the negative, as the fields should be symmetrical. Try at
least one rather close to the positive electrode so that the curve forms a closed loop.

18. Measuring the electric field, E, can most easily be accomplished indirectly from the electric
potential. The electric field (a vector field) is the negative gradient of the electric potential (a
scalar field). The gradient can be approximated by maximizing the voltage difference
between two very close points on the graphite paper as a function of direction. This will
require two probes separated by a constant distance. To set this up:
 Remove the banana cable connecting the negative terminal of the power supply to the
COM terminal of the voltmeter.
 Replace the BNC to RCA adapter with the BNC to mini banana adapter (see Figure 5).
19. Draw 2-3 electric field lines:
 Touch the positive probe to a point. Start on an equipotential curve, but you may need to
check points elsewhere to connect the lines.
 Keep the positive probe in place and trace a small circle around it with the negative
probe whilst keeping it in contact with the paper.
 At the orientation of maximum positive voltage, using a different color from the
equipotential lines, draw an arrow on the paper from the positive (+) to the negative (-)
probe.
 This arrow represents the direction of E.
 Sketch in the continuous electric field line by connecting a few arrows. No need to be
overly precise here – this is meant to be qualitative.

Figure 5: BNC to mini banana adapter

 Figure 6: Configuration 2.

20. Switch to the other provided graphite sheet. Draw equipotential curves and electric field
vectors for a point charge in the presence of a conducting “plane” (figure 6). Here, the
“plane” is just a horizontal line; however, it can be thought of as extending infinitely in the
vertical direction to form a surface. Refer back to steps 13 through 19 for instruction as
needed.

21. [Optional] The observed fields of these 2-dimensional configurations can be compared with
simulated fields. To do this, go to the Electrostatics Simulation Applet:
http://www.falstad.com/emstatic/. Set up the first 2 scenarios (Figures 4.a and 6) on the
simulation to check if you correctly measured the equipotentials and electric field vectors.
(Use Dipole Charge for the first scenario, Charge + Plane for second).
22. Check in with the TA before proceeding to the main part of the lab.

Questions
1. Compare and contrast the two electric fields and equipotentials mapped. What symmetries
do you observe? Why does the second configuration (with the conducting “plane”) look
different?

2. What might the field map of figure 4.a look like if there were a square cut out between the
electrodes?
 APPENDIX 1

Least Squares Fitting

Although there are many programs which will do least squares fitting, it is instructive to know
how the software is working. Here we give the exact formulas for the linear equation y = Bx + A
(see Reference 1, Chapter 8 for more details). For N data points (xi, yi) the least squares fitting
algorithm gives the following formulas for A and B:

N N N N

x y x x y
2
i i i i i
A i i i i
2
N
 N 
N  xi    xi 
2

i  i 

N N N
N  xi y i   xi  y i
B i i i
2
N
 N 
N  xi    xi 
2

i  i 
If the different values are assumed to follow a Gaussian distribution around the mean, the
uncertainties ΔA and ΔB can be computed without estimating the uncertainty of a given
measurement, which is what you can do here. These are given by:

𝑁 𝑁 2
1 ∑ 𝑖 𝑥𝑖
Δ𝐴 = √ ∑(𝑦𝑖 − 𝐴 − 𝐵𝑥𝑖 )2 √ 2
𝑁−2 𝑁 ∑𝑁 𝑥𝑖 2 − (∑𝑁 𝑥𝑖 )
𝑖 𝑖 𝑖

𝑁
1 𝑁
Δ𝐵 = √ ∑(𝑦𝑖 − 𝐴 − 𝐵𝑥𝑖 )2 √ 2
𝑁−2 𝑁 ∑𝑁 𝑥𝑖 2 − (∑𝑁 𝑥𝑖 )
𝑖 𝑖 𝑖

This technique will not capture biases or varying uncertainties for each data point. A general,
more rigorous approach to combining all of this data would be using an uncertainty-weighted
average.
 APPENDIX 2

Finding the Error in the Separation

In step 2, the separation between the plates was zeroed when the scale read between .01 and 5.0
grams. Ideally the scale would read zero while the plates are just barely touching - a very
difficult setting at attain with this apparatus. To find the impact of this error, with the voltage off:

1. Gently lower the upper plate onto the lower plate until the scale reads 10-30 grams.

2. Lock the depth gauge and remove your hands. Record the scale and depth gauge readings.

3. Gently raise the upper plate until the scale reads several grams less than it did.

4. Lock the depth gauge and remove your hands. Record the scale and depth gauge readings.

5. Divide the difference in depth by the difference in mass.

6. Multiply this ratio by the mass recorded when the depth gauge was zeroed. This is the
contribution to the uncertainty in the separation of the plates from the zero measurement.

APPENDIX 3

Kaleidagraph
Kaleidagraph is a super-quick solution to data analysis, but it is also more versatile than Word (at
least for the untrained user.) The biggest advantage, besides its efficiency, is that it will provide
uncertainty in fit parameters, both linear and non-linear. Kaleidagraph is available on the lab
computers, but is generally not installed on other campus computers. The software should be
available for download from http://www.brown.edu/information-technology/software/ , but if
not, then a free trial may be downloaded from www.synergy.com. Here are a few key things you
need to know to utilize the software:
 Don’t label columns in the top-most cell with text. Rather there are specific title boxes,
initially labeled A, B, C, etc. If you do enter text in a box, the column will format for text
entry and will throw an error when you try to plot. (To fix this, go to column formatting
under the data menu. Format the column for “float”.)
 Simply enter columns of data for the independent and dependent variables you wish to
plot.
 To manipulate data, press the up/down wedges/arrows at the top right of the page to
expand the column labels for reference. A “formula entry” window should be floating
around the screen somewhere. Columns can be edited with simple commands. For
 instance, if you put your Voltage data in column c1 and wish to use voltage squared,
simply type: “c2 = c1^2” in the formula entry. Press “Run” and you will see the voltage
squared has its own column.
 You may wish to input a column of uncertainties for later use as error bars.
 To plot: select the Gallery dropdown menu. Select the Linear menu. Select a Scatter
plot. Choose one column for your independent variable, and one or more for your
dependent variable.
 To fit: select the Curve Fit dropdown menu. The presets like “linear” may be used for a
quick fit, but they will not give you uncertainty on the fitting parameters. To do this,
select General. If you’d like a linear fit, fit1 should be set to this be default. Upon
clicking it, a box should come up. Select Define to double check the form of the fit. It
should read:
m1 + m2 * M0; m1 = 1; m2 = 1
Here, {m1, m2, m3…} are the fit parameters and M0 is the independent variable. Clearly
this is just a linear fit. If you, for instance, wanted to make this a quadratic fit instead,
you would write:
m1 + m2 * M0 + m3 * M0^2; m1 = 1; m2 = 1; m3 = 1
The values on the right are initial guesses and must be provided for each parameter.
When you are done, select OK. Check the box of the dependent variable you would like
to fit. Then select OK. The uncertainty in the fit parameter is listed in the Error column
in the plot
 To generate error bars, right click on the plot and select Error bars. Error bars can be
added as a percent of the value (in either variable) or from a different column of data.

REFERENCES
1.) John R. Taylor, An Introduction to Error Analysis 2nd ed. University Science Books. 1997.