PHYSICS 1: MECHANICS

Phan Hiền Vũ
Department of Physics IU VNU-HCM
Office: A1.503
Email: phvu@hcmiu.edu.vn
CHAPTER 1. BASES OF KINEMATICS
1. 1. Motion in One Dimension
1.1.1. Position, Velocity, and Acceleration
1.1.2. One-Dimensional Motion with Constant Acceleration
1.1.3. Freely Falling Objects
1. 2. Motion in Two Dimensions
1.2.1. The Position, Velocity, and Acceleration Vectors
1.2.2. Two-Dimensional Motion with Constant Acceleration.
Projectile Motion
1.2.3. Circular Motion. Tangential and Radial Acceleration
1.2.4. Relative Velocity and Relative Acceleration

2
Vectors:
1. Vectors and scalars:
• A vector has magnitude and direction; vectors follow certain rules of
combination.
• Some physical quantities that are vector quantities are displacement,
velocity, and acceleration.
• Some physical quantities that does not
involve direction are temperature, pressure,
energy, mass, time. We call them scalars.

2. Components of vectors:
• A component of a vector is the projection of
the vector on an axis.
a x = acos a y = asin 
• If we know a vector in component notation
(ax and ay), we determine it in magnitude-
angle notation (a and θ):
ay
a= a a
2
x
2
y
tan  
ax
3
3. Adding vectors:
• Adding vectors geometrically

• Vector subtraction:

• Adding vectors by components:

 
a  a x iˆ  a y ˆj;b  bx iˆ  by ˆj
  
s  a b
s x  a x  bx ;s y  a y  b y
4
 
a  a x iˆ  a y ˆj;b  bx iˆ  by ˆj
  
s  a b
s x  a x  bx ;s y  a y  b y

 
a  b  ab cos 

  
c  a b
c  ab sin 

5
The direction of is determined by using
the right-hand rule:
Your fingers (right-hand) sweep into
through the smaller angle between them,
your outstretched thumb points in the
direction of .

a  a x iˆ  a y ˆj  a z kˆ

b  b x iˆ  b y ˆj  b z kˆ
  
c  ab

In the right-handed xyz coordinate system:

kˆ  iˆ  ˆj

6
1.2. Motion in Two Dimensions
1.2.1. The Position, Velocity, and Acceleration Vectors
A. Position and Displacement: y
• A particle is located by a position vector:

r  x î  yĵ
and are vector components of
x and y are scalar components of
•
  
Displacement:  r  r2  r1 x

Δ r  (x 2 î  y 2 ĵ)  (x1î  y1 ĵ)

Δ r  (x 2 - x1 ) î  (y 2 - y1 )ĵ  x î  yĵ

• Three dimensions: r  x î  yĵ  zk̂

Δ r  (x 2 - x1 )î  (y 2 - y1 )ĵ  (z 2 - z1 )k̂  x î  yĵ  zk̂

7
B. Average Velocity and Instantaneous Velocity:

displacement
average velocity 
time interval

 r
v avg 
t
• Instantaneous Velocity, Δt->0:

 
 r dr
v  lim 
Δt  0 t dt

• The direction of the instantaneous velocity of a particle is always

tangent to the particle’s path at the particle position.

8
 d dx dy
v  (xî  yĵ)  î  ĵ
dt dt dt

v  v x î  v y ĵ

• The scalar components of v
dx dy
vx  , vy 
dt dt
• Three dimensions:

v  v x î  v y ˆj  v z k̂
dz
vz 
dt
9
C. Average Acceleration and Instantaneous Acceleration:

change in velocit y
average acceleration 
 time interval
 v
a avg 
t
• Instantaneous Acceleration, Δt  0:
 
 v dv
a  lim 
Δt 0 t dt

a  a x î  a y ĵ
 dv x dv y dv z
The scalar components of a ax  , ay  ,az 
dt dt dt

Three dimensions: a  a x î  a y ĵ  a z k̂;
10
1.2.2. Two-Dimensional Motion with Constant Acceleration.
Projectile Motion

Key point: To determine velocity and position, we need to determine x

and y components of velocity and position

Along the x axis:

1 2
v x =v 0x + a x t; x = x 0 + v 0x t + a x t
2
Along the y axis:
1 2
v y  v 0y  a y t; y = y 0 + v 0y t + a y t
2
11
Example: A particle with velocity (m/s) at t=0 undergoes a
constant acceleration of magnitude a = 3.0 m/s2 at an angle  = 1300
from the positive direction of the x axis. What is the particle’s velocity at
t=5.0 s, in unit-vector notation and in magnitude-angle notation?

• Key issues: This is a two-dimensional motion, we must apply

equations of straight-line motion separately for motion parallel
v x  v 0x  a x t; v y  v 0y  a y t
y
v0x=-2.0 (m/s) and v0y=4.0 (m/s)

a a x  a cosθ  3.0  cos(130 0 )  -1.93 (m/s 2 )
θ
a y  a sinθ  3.0  sin(130 0 )  2.30 (m/s 2 )
x
• At t= 5 s: v x  -11.7 (m/s) ; v y  15.5 (m/s)

v  11.7 î  15.5ĵ
•The magnitude and angle of : v v 2x  v 2y  19.4 (m/s)
vy
tan( θ)   1.33  θ  127 0
vx
12
Projectile motion

θ0: launch angle

R: horizontal range

13
Projectile Motion: A particle moves in a vertical plane with some
initial velocity but its acceleration is always the free-fall acceleration, the
motion of this particle is called projectile motion.

• Ox, horizontal motion (no acceleration, ax = 0):

v x  v 0x  v 0 cos 0  constant
x  x 0  v 0xt  x 0  v 0 cos 0 t
• Oy, vertical motion (free fall, ay = -g if the positive y direction is
upward):
v y  v 0y  ay t  v 0sin 0 -gt
1 2
y  y 0  v 0 sinθ 0 t - gt
2
gx 2
•The equation of the path: y  tanθ 0 x -
2v 0 cos θ 0 
2

v 02
•Horizontal range: R  sin2θ 0
g
14
 Example: A projectile is shot from the edge of a cliff 115m above
ground level with an initial speed of 65.0 m/s at an angle of 350 with
the horizontal (see the figure below). Determine:
(a) the maximum height of the projectile above the cliff;
(b) the projectile velocity when it strikes the ground (point P);
(c) point P from the base of the cliff (distance X).

(a) At its maximum height: y

v y  v 0sinθ 0 - gt  0
Hmax
v 0sinθ 0 x
t
g
1 2
y  y 0  v 0 sinθ 0 t - gt
2
v 0 sinθ 0 2
y  H max
2g
H max  70.9 (m)
15
(b) its velocity:

v x  v 0 cosθ 0  53.25 (m/s) Hmax

x
2
vy  2
v 0y  2ay
v 0y  v 0sinθ 0  37.28 (m/s)
2
a  9.8 (m/s )
y  y P  y0  115 (m)
v y  60.36 (m/s)

v  53.25(m/s) î  60.36 (m/s) ˆj
v 0 sin  - v y
(c) Calculate X: v y  v 0 sin   at  t   9.96( s )
g
X  v x t  v 0 cosθ 0t  530.37 (m)

16
Note: for (b), we can solve as follows:
1 2
y  y 0  v 0 sinθ 0 t - gt
2
1 2
gt  v 0sinθ 0 t  y P  0
2
quadratic equation:

4.9t 2  37.28t  115  0

t  9.96 (s)

v y  v 0 sin   at  v 0 sin   gt
v y  60.33 (m/s)
then for (c), use t = 9.96 (s)

17
 Example: Figure below shows a pirate ship 560 m from a fort defending
the harbor entrance of an island. A defense cannon, located at sea level,
fires balls at initial speed v0= 82 m/s. (a) At what angle θ0 from the
horizontal must a ball be fired to hit the ship? (b) How far should the
pirate ship be from the cannon if it is to be beyond the maximum range
of the cannon balls?

(a) v 02
R  sin2θ 0
g
1gR
2θ  sin 2
v0
θ  27 0 or θ  630

v 02 82 2
(b) R max  sin2θ 0  sin( 2  45)  686 (m)
g 9.8
18
1.2.3. Circular Motion. Tangential and Radial Acceleration

A. Uniform Circular Motion:

A particle moves around a circle or a
circular arc at constant speed. The
particle is accelerating with a
centripetal acceleration:

v2
a
r
Where r is the radius of the circle
v the speed of the particle

2r
T
v
(T: period)

19
B. Tangential and radial acceleration:
If the speed is not constant, then there is also a tangential acceleration.

The path of a particle’s motion 

at

ar
  
ar a a


at
  
a  ar  at

Radial (centripetal) acceleration Tangential acceleration

20
 1.2.4. Relative Velocity and Relative Acceleration
A. In one dimension: An is parked, watching a car P speed past; Bao is
driving at constant speed and also watching Phat:
x PA  x PB  x BA
d(x PA ) d(x PB ) d(x BA )
 
dt dt dt
v PA  v PB  v BA

 The velocity vPA of P as measured by A is equal to the velocity vPB of P

as measured by B plus the velocity vBA of B as measured by A.
d(v PA ) d(v PB ) d(v BA )
If car P is moving with an acceleration:  
v BA  a constant : a PA  a PB dt dt dt

 Observers on different frames of reference that move at constant velocity

relative to each other will measure the same acceleration for a moving object.

21
B. In two dimensions:

  
rPA  rPB  rBA
  
v PA  v PB  v BA
  
d(v PA ) d(v PB ) d(v BA )
 
dt dt dt
 
a PA  a PB
Note:

22
Example: A motorboat traveling 4 m/s, East encounters a current
traveling 3.0 m/s, North. What is the resultant velocity of the
motorboat? If the width of the river is 80 meters wide, then how much
time does it take the boat to travel shore to shore? What distance
downstream does the boat reach the opposite shore?

  
v boat/shore  v boat/river  v river/shore
2 2
v boat/shore  v boat/river  v river/shore R
3
R  5 (m/s); tan     36.90
4
23
 3
R  5 (m/s); tan     36.90
4
time to cross the river:
distanceA distanceB distanceC
t  
v boat/river v river/shore v boat/shore

distanceA 80
t   20 (s)
v boat/river 4
distance downstream:
distanceB  v river/shore t  3  20  60 (m)
24
Conclusions:
• Displacement: (in vector notation)
• Average velocity:
• Average acceleration:
• Projectile motion:

• On Ox, ax = 0:

• On Oy, ay = - g if the positive y direction is upward:

• Uniform circular motion:

• A centripetal acceleration:

• Relative velocity:

25
Homework:
Problems: 11, 20, 27, 54, 58, 66, 70, 76 in Chapter 4 Textbook

26