🌊College Physics II – Mechanics, Sound, Oscillations, and Waves Unit 2 – Vectors in Physics

What Are Vectors?

• Vectors are mathematical objects that have both magnitude and direction
• Represented graphically as arrows, with the length of the arrow indicating the magnitude and the arrowhead pointing in the direction of the vector
• Commonly used to represent physical quantities such as displacement, velocity, acceleration, and force
• Denoted by boldface letters (e.g., $\vec{a}$) or letters with arrows above them (e.g., $\overrightarrow{AB}$)
• Vectors are essential for describing and analyzing motion in multiple dimensions
• Scalar quantities, in contrast, have only magnitude and no direction (temperature, mass, time)
• Vectors can be added, subtracted, and multiplied by scalars, but these operations differ from those of scalar quantities

Vector Operations

• Vector addition follows the parallelogram law or the head-to-tail method
  • Parallelogram law: Place the vectors tail-to-tail, and the resultant is the diagonal of the parallelogram formed
  • Head-to-tail method: Place the tail of the second vector at the head of the first, and the resultant is the vector from the tail of the first to the head of the second
• Vector subtraction is performed by adding the negative of the vector being subtracted (e.g., $\vec{A} - \vec{B} = \vec{A} + (-\vec{B})$)
• Scalar multiplication: Multiplying a vector by a scalar changes its magnitude but not its direction
  • Positive scalar factors maintain the vector's direction, while negative factors reverse it
• Vector multiplication: Dot product and cross product are two types of vector multiplication
  • Dot product results in a scalar and measures the projection of one vector onto another
  • Cross product results in a new vector perpendicular to the plane containing the two original vectors

Vectors in Physics Problems

• Vectors are used to represent and solve problems involving motion, forces, and fields
• Displacement is a vector quantity representing the change in position of an object
  • Displacement = final position - initial position
• Velocity is a vector quantity representing the rate of change of displacement with respect to time
  • Average velocity = displacement / time interval
• Acceleration is a vector quantity representing the rate of change of velocity with respect to time
  • Average acceleration = change in velocity / time interval
• Force is a vector quantity that can cause an object to accelerate or deform
  • Newton's second law: $\vec{F} = m\vec{a}$, where $\vec{F}$ is the net force, $m$ is the mass, and $\vec{a}$ is the acceleration
• Electric and magnetic fields are vector quantities that describe the force experienced by charged particles

Vector Components

• Any vector can be expressed as the sum of its components along perpendicular axes (2D or 3D coordinate systems)
• In a 2D coordinate system, a vector $\vec{A}$ can be written as $\vec{A} = A_x\hat{i} + A_y\hat{j}$, where $A_x$ and $A_y$ are the x and y components, and $\hat{i}$ and $\hat{j}$ are the unit vectors along the x and y axes
• The magnitude of a vector is the square root of the sum of the squares of its components (Pythagorean theorem)
  • $|\vec{A}| = \sqrt{A_x^2 + A_y^2}$ in 2D
  • $|\vec{A}| = \sqrt{A_x^2 + A_y^2 + A_z^2}$ in 3D
• The direction of a vector can be described using the angle it makes with the positive x-axis (2D) or with the coordinate planes (3D)
  • In 2D, $\tan\theta = A_y / A_x$, where $\theta$ is the angle with the positive x-axis
• Vector components are useful for solving problems involving motion and forces in multiple dimensions

Unit Vectors

• Unit vectors are vectors with a magnitude of 1 and are used to indicate direction
• In a Cartesian coordinate system, the standard unit vectors are $\hat{i}$ (along the x-axis), $\hat{j}$ (along the y-axis), and $\hat{k}$ (along the z-axis)
• Any vector can be expressed as a linear combination of unit vectors scaled by the vector's components
  • $\vec{A} = A_x\hat{i} + A_y\hat{j} + A_z\hat{k}$
• Unit vectors simplify vector algebra and help in solving problems involving vector components
• The dot product of two unit vectors is 1 if they are the same, 0 if they are perpendicular, and -1 if they are opposite
• The cross product of two different unit vectors results in the third unit vector (e.g., $\hat{i} \times \hat{j} = \hat{k}$), with the direction determined by the right-hand rule

Vector Applications in Mechanics

• Vectors are essential for describing and analyzing motion, forces, and equilibrium in mechanics
• Displacement, velocity, and acceleration vectors are used to describe the motion of objects in 1D, 2D, or 3D
  • Projectile motion involves analyzing the horizontal and vertical components of velocity and acceleration separately
• Force vectors, such as weight, normal force, tension, and friction, are used to analyze the net force acting on an object
  • Free body diagrams represent all the forces acting on an object as vectors
• Equilibrium occurs when the net force and net torque acting on an object are both zero
  • Static equilibrium: object at rest
  • Dynamic equilibrium: object moving with constant velocity
• Work is the dot product of the force and displacement vectors ($W = \vec{F} \cdot \vec{d}$)
• Momentum is a vector quantity defined as the product of an object's mass and velocity ($\vec{p} = m\vec{v}$)

Common Mistakes with Vectors

• Confusing scalar and vector quantities (speed vs. velocity, distance vs. displacement)
• Incorrectly adding or subtracting vectors by adding/subtracting magnitudes without considering direction
• Forgetting to consider all components of a vector when solving problems (e.g., neglecting the vertical component of velocity in projectile motion)
• Misusing the dot product and cross product (dot product results in a scalar, cross product results in a vector)
• Incorrectly applying the right-hand rule for cross products
• Misinterpreting the signs of vector components (e.g., a negative component does not always mean the vector is pointing in the negative direction)
• Failing to draw clear and labeled diagrams (free body diagrams, vector addition diagrams) to visualize the problem

Practice Problems

1. A boat travels 3 km east and then 4 km north. Find the magnitude and direction of the boat's displacement vector.
2. Two forces, $\vec{F_1} = 2\hat{i} + 3\hat{j}$ N and $\vec{F_2} = -\hat{i} + 2\hat{j}$ N, act on an object. Find the magnitude and direction of the resultant force.
3. A projectile is launched with an initial velocity of 50 m/s at an angle of 30° above the horizontal. Find the horizontal and vertical components of the initial velocity.
4. An object weighing 100 N is suspended by two cables that make angles of 30° and 45° with the horizontal. Find the tension in each cable.
5. A 2 kg object is moving with a velocity of $\vec{v} = 3\hat{i} - 2\hat{j}$ m/s. Find the object's momentum vector.
6. Two vectors, $\vec{A} = 2\hat{i} - 3\hat{j} + \hat{k}$ and $\vec{B} = -\hat{i} + 2\hat{j} + 3\hat{k}$, are given. Find the dot product and cross product of these vectors.
7. A force of $\vec{F} = 5\hat{i} + 2\hat{j}$ N acts on an object, causing it to move along the displacement vector $\vec{d} = 3\hat{i} + 4\hat{j}$ m. Calculate the work done by the force.