Systematic Errors

In our everyday life, errors keep happening all the time. So, it is very much important for a person to minimise the errors while experimenting. Errors can be of many types, be it random, systematic, gross, observational, environment, constant, and whatnot. Most measurement errors can be divided into two components: Systematic errors and Random errors. Systematic errors are mainly focused on in this article. The article also tries to come up with various types of sources, types of these systematic errors, and ways to eliminate them eventually. In our daily lives, we keep measuring things and keep altering things, so errors happen.

Systematic errors Definition

Systematic errors are those kinds of errors that are inclined towards a specific direction: either positive or negative. 

Sources

Based on the sources of errors, systematic errors are divided into the following subcategories where we could find some of the most realistic ways to determine systematic errors:

1. Constructional Error: Any of our everyday things that are manufactured are never going to meet the expectations of exact specifications and constraints. So manufacturers always clarify some percentage of errors in their instruments. So this error is dependent on the manufacturers and what we can do as participants. We can hope the manufacturers of the companies to better come up with a solution and better manufacturing types of equipment.

2. Errors of reading or Observation: Systematic errors are made when there is inefficiency in reading or observations.

• Construction of the scale: The scale is not being uniform and clear. 
• Straightness and fitness of the pointer: If the pointer is neither straight nor fine, it’s always prone to error.
• Parallax: An individual’s carelessness eg. without a mirror under a pointer prone to parallax. 
• The aptness of the observer: In most cases, the error happens due to the aptness of the observer.

3. Determination Error: Imperfection in experimental techniques and procedures leads to determination error and these systematic errors are entirely dependent on person to person. So it’s obvious that one person’s determination error is different from the others.   

4.Temperature Variation: Let’s take a scenario where someone wants to measure his temperature via a thermometer and external temperature variation systematically affects the measurement. To prevent this, we really need to be in a controlled environment where everything is sorted as per the guidelines.

5. Effect of time on instruments: There lies a sheer possibility of calibration error in the instrument with the change of time. This is sometimes referred to as the ageing of the instrument. So we need to change instruments on a regular interval and come up with advanced types of pieces of equipment.

6. External Electrostatic and Magnetic Fields: Various experimental standard procedures go through some of the highly functional operations through which electrostatic and magnetic fields do change at different times. This is one of the few reasons there lies systematic errors.

7. Mechanical Error: Friction between the moving and non-moving parts in various instruments such as Screw gauges, and vernier callipers do come up with another type of systematic error ie. mechanical error. With good instruments comes less mechanical error.

8.Least count error: Least count is the smallest possible value that can be measured by some measuring instrument and the error due to this measurement is called the least count error. This can be removed by using a high-precision instrument. To do an experiment we always have to come up with an instrument where we could find less least count error. 

Ways to Eliminate

As their different types of systematic errors lie, each of the techniques includes its own set of rules to eliminate errors. As for resolving the construction error, the organisation needs to come up with better manufacturing, for observational error one has to be apt and careful while reading error. For resolving mechanical as well as least count errors we need to come up with high precision instruments. These are some of the recognized techniques altogether. Although there are some other factors like temperature variation, and changing electric and magnetic fields which are not in our control, we can try to be in an environment where every condition can be well prepared and satisfied.

Conclusion

Systematic errors are one of the types of fundamental errors for which we have to come up with a minimised error-prone environment, remove personal bias, and select better instruments as far as possible. In our everyday life, errors keep happening all the time. So, it is very much important for a person to minimise the errors while experimenting. This is one of the primary conditions we must check before doing any of the tests. For a given set-up, these systematic errors are estimated to a certain extent and there is always a scope to make possible changes and corrections to the readings.