a) Start by drawing a separate free body diagram for each body in the system. Remember that you show only the forces acting on the mass and that you show any acceleration quite separately from the forces.
b) For each mass, create a coordinate system. It is an excellent idea to make one of the axes parallel to any acceleration.
c) Resolve the forces in two perpendicular directions and write two FNet=ma equations, one in each direction.
(Note that if you make one of the directions parallel to the acceleration then the equation for that direction will be FNet=ma and the perpendicular equation will be FNet=0.)
d) You now have a set of simultaneous equations that you have to solve.
Remember that the angle in radians is defined by the eqation s=r×θ where r is the radius of a circle and s the distance measured round the perimeter of the circle.
When a particle travels in a circular path of radius r at speed v then we say that it has an angular velocity ω (pronounced omega) such that v=r×ω. Angular velocity has the units of radians/second.
When a particle travels in a circular path of radius r at linear speed v, angular speed ω, then it undergoes a centripetal acceleration of magnitude
ac=v2/r=r×ω2
The acceleration is directed from the particle to the center of the circle.