Lecture 03

Vectors
PHY-433
Vectors
Vector quantities
Physical quantities that have both numerical and directional
properties
Mathematical operations of vectors
Addition
Subtraction
Coordinate Systems
Used to describe the position of a point in space
Common coordinate systems are:
Cartesian
Polar
Cartesian Coordinate System
Also called rectangular
coordinate system
x- and y- axes intersect at the
origin
Points are labeled (x,y)
Polar Coordinate System
Origin and reference line are
noted
Point is distance r from the
origin in the direction of
angle , counter-clockwise
from reference line
The reference line is often the
x-axis.
Points are labeled (r, )
Polar to Cartesian Coordinates
Based on forming a right triangle
from r and 
x = r cos 
y = r sin 
If the Cartesian coordinates are
known:
Example 1
The Cartesian coordinates of a point in the xy plane are (x, y) = (-3.50,-
2.50) m, as shown in the figure.
Find the polar coordinates of this point.
Example 2
Two points in the xy plane have Cartesian coordinates (2.00, -4.00) m
and (-3.00, 3.00) m. Determine:
(a) the distance between these points
(b) their polar coordinates.
Vectors and Scalars
A scalar quantity is completely specified by a single value with an
appropriate unit and has no direction.
Many are always positive
Some may be positive or negative
Rules for ordinary arithmetic are used to manipulate scalar
quantities.
A vector quantity is completely described by a number and
appropriate units plus a direction.
Vector Example
A particle travels from A to B
along the path shown by the
broken line.
This is the distance traveled
and is a scalar.
The displacement is the solid
line from A to B
The displacement is
independent of the path
taken between the two
points.
Displacement is a vector.
Vector Notation
Text uses bold with arrow to denote a vector:
Also used for printing is simple bold print:
When dealing with just the magnitude of a vector in print, an italic
letter will be used: or
The magnitude of the vector has physical units.
The magnitude of a vector is always a positive number.
When handwritten, use an arrow:
Equality of Two Vectors
Two vectors are equal if
they have the same
magnitude and the same
direction.
if A = B and they point
along parallel lines
All of the vectors shown
are equal.
Allows a vector to be
moved to a position
parallel to itself
Adding Vectors
Vector addition is very different from adding scalar quantities.
When adding vectors, their directions must be taken into account.
Units must be the same
Graphical Methods
Use scale drawings
Algebraic Methods
More convenient
Adding Vectors Graphically
Choose a scale.
Draw the first vector, , with the appropriate length and in the direction
specified, with respect to a coordinate system.
Draw the next vector with the appropriate length and in the direction
specified, with respect to a coordinate system whose origin is the end
of vector and parallel to the coordinate system used for .
Adding Vectors Graphically
Continue drawing the vectors “tip-to- tail” or “head-to-tail”.
The resultant is drawn from the origin of the first vector to the end of
the last vector.
Measure the length of the resultant and its angle.
Use the scale factor to convert length to actual magnitude.
Adding Vectors Graphically
When you have many vectors,
just keep repeating the process
until all are included.
The resultant is still drawn from
the tail of the first vector to the
tip of the last vector.
Adding Vectors, Rules
When two vectors are
added, the sum is
independent of the order
of the addition.
This is the Commutative
Law of Addition.
Adding Vectors, Rules
When adding three or more vectors, their sum is independent of the
way in which the individual vectors are grouped.
This is called the Associative Property of Addition.
Adding Vectors, Rules
When adding vectors, all of the vectors must have the same units.
All of the vectors must be of the same type of quantity.
For example, you cannot add a displacement to a velocity.
Negative of a Vector
The negative of a vector is defined as the vector that, when added to
the original vector, gives a resultant of zero.
Represented as

The negative of the vector will have the same magnitude, but point in
the opposite direction
Subtracting Vectors
Special case of vector
addition:

Continue with
standard vector
addition procedure.
Subtracting Vectors
Another way to look at
subtraction is to find the
vector that, added to the
second vector gives you
the first vector.

As shown, the resultant

vector points from the tip
of the second to the tip of
the first.
Multiplying or Dividing a Vector by a Scalar
The result of the multiplication or division of a vector by a scalar is a
vector.
The magnitude of the vector is multiplied or divided by the scalar.
If the scalar is positive, the direction of the result is the same as of the
original vector.
If the scalar is negative, the direction of the result is opposite that of
the original vector
Component Method of Adding Vectors
Graphical addition is not recommended when:
High accuracy is required
If you have a three-dimensional problem
Component method is an alternative method
It uses projections of vectors along coordinate axes
Components of a Vector
A component is a projection
of a vector along an axis.
Any vector can be
completely described
by its components.
It is useful to use
rectangular components.
These are the
projections of the
vector along the x- and
y-axes.
Vector Component Terminology
and are the component vectors of .
They are vectors and follow all the rules for vectors.
Ax and Ay are scalars, and will be referred to as the components of
A
Components of a Vector
Assume you are given a
vector
It can be expressed in terms
of two other vectors, and

These three vectors form a

right triangle.
Components of a Vector
The y-component is moved to
the end of the x-component.
This is due to the fact that any
vector can be moved parallel to
itself without being affected.
This completes the triangle.
Components of a Vector
The x-component of a vector is the projection along the x-axis.

The y-component of a vector is the projection along the y-axis.

This assumes the angle θ is measured with respect to the x-axis.

If not, do not use these equations, use the sides of the triangle
directly
Components of a Vector
The components are the legs of the right triangle whose hypotenuse is
the length of A.

May still have to find θ with respect to the positive x-axis

In a problem, a vector may be specified by its components or its
magnitude and direction.
Components of a Vector
The components can
be positive or
negative and will
have the same units
as the original vector.
The signs of the
components will
depend on the angle.
Example 3
A car travels 20.0 km due north
and then 35.0 km in a direction
60.0° west of north as shown in
the figure.
Find the magnitude and direction
of the car’s resultant
displacement.
Example 4
The eye of the hurricane in the chapter photo is 200 km from Miami
on a bearing of 30 south of east. Suppose a reconnaissance aircraft is
initially 100 km due north of Miami.
What displacement vector will bring the aircraft to the eye of the
hurricane?
Example 5
A hiker begins a trip by first walking 25.0 km southeast from her car.
She stops and sets up her tent for the night. On the second day, she
walks 40.0 km in a direction 60.0 north of east, at which point she
discovers a forest ranger’s tower.
Determine the components of the hiker’s displacement for each day.
Determine the components of the hiker’s resultant displacement for the
trip.
Motion in Two Dimensions
Projectile Motion
An object may move in both the x and y directions simultaneously.
The form of two-dimensional motion we will deal with is called
projectile motion.
Assumptions of Projectile Motion
The free-fall acceleration is constant over the range of motion.
It is directed downward.
This is the same as assuming a flat Earth over the range of the
motion.
It is reasonable as long as the range is small compared to the
radius of the Earth.
The effect of air friction is negligible.
With these assumptions, an object in projectile motion will follow a
parabolic path.
This path is called the trajectory.
Projectile Motion Diagram
Acceleration at the Highest Point
The vertical velocity is zero at the top.
The acceleration is not zero anywhere along the trajectory.
If the projectile experienced zero acceleration at the highest point,
its velocity at the point would not change.
The projectile would move with a constant horizontal velocity
from that point on.
Analyzing Projectile Motion
Consider the motion as the superposition of the motions in the x- and y-
directions.
The actual position at any time is given by:

The initial velocity can be expressed in terms of its components.

and
The x-direction has constant velocity.

The y-direction is free fall.

Projectile Motion Vectors

The final position is the

vector sum of the initial
position, the position
resulting from the initial
velocity and the position
resulting from the
acceleration.
Range and Maximum Height of a Projectile
When analyzing projectile
motion, two characteristics are of
special interes.t
The range, R, is the horizontal
distance of the projectile.
The maximum height the
projectile reaches is h.
Height of a Projectile equation
The maximum height of the projectile can be found in terms of the
initial velocity vector:

This equation is valid only for symmetric motion.

Range of a Projectile equation
The range of a projectile can be expressed in terms of the initial
velocity vector:

This is valid only for symmetric trajectory.

More About the Range of a Projectile
Range of a Projectile
The maximum range occurs at .
Complementary angles will produce the same range.
The maximum height will be different for the two angles.
The times of the flight will be different for the two angles.
Projectile Motion – Problem Solving Hints
Conceptualize
Establish the mental representation of the projectile moving along
its trajectory.
Categorize
Confirm air resistance is neglected.
Select a coordinate system with x in the horizontal and y in the
vertical direction.
Analyze
If the initial velocity is given, resolve it into x and y components.
Treat the horizontal and vertical motions independently.
Projectile Motion – Problem Solving Hints
Analysis
Analyze the horizontal motion with the particle-under-constant-
velocity model.
Analyze the vertical motion with the particle-under-constant-
acceleration model.
Remember that both directions share the same time.
Finalize
Check to see if your answers are consistent with the mental and
pictorial representations.
Check to see if your results are realistic.
Non-Symmetric Projectile Motion
Follow the general rules for
projectile motion.
Break the y-direction into parts.
up and down or
symmetrical back to initial
height and then the rest of the
height
Apply the problem-solving
process to determine and solve the
necessary equations.
May be non-symmetric in other
ways
Example 2
A long jumper leaves the ground at an angle of 20.0 above the
horizontal and at a speed of 11.0 m/s.
How far does he jump in the horizontal direction?
What is the maximum height reached?
Example 3
A stunt man drives a car off a 10.0-m-high cliff at a speed of 20.0 m/s.
How far does the car land from the base of the cliff?
Example 4
Frogs, with their long, strong legs, are excellent jumpers. And thanks
to the good folks of Calaveras County, California, who have a jumping
frog contest every year in honor of a Mark Twain story, we have very
good data on how far a determined frog can jump. High-speed cameras
show that a good jumper goes into a crouch, then rapidly extends his
legs by typically 15 cm during a 65 ms push off, leaving the ground at
a 30 angle.
How far does this frog leap?
Example 5
A stone is thrown from the top of a
building upward at an angle of 30.0
to the horizontal with an initial speed
of 20.0 m/s as shown in the figure.
The height from which the stone is
thrown is 45.0 m above the ground.
How long does it take the stone to
reach the ground?
What is the speed of the stone just
before it strikes the ground?