1

KOLEJ MATRIKULASI PERAK

1.1 Physical Quantities
and Units


1.2 Scalars and Vectors


3
At the end of this chapter, students should be able to:
State basic quantities and their respective SI units: length
(m), time (s), mass (kg), electrical current (A), temperature
(K), amount of substance (mol) and luminosity (cd).

State derived quantities and their respective units and
symbols: velocity (m s
-1
), acceleration (m s
-2
), work (J),
force (N), pressure (Pa), energy (J), power (W) and
frequency (Hz).

State and convert units with common SI prefixes.
1.1 Physical Quantities and Units (1 hours)
How fast does light travel ? How much do you weigh ?
What is the radius of the Earth?
What temperature does ice melt at?
We can find the answers to all of these
questions by measurement.
Speed, mass, length and temperature are
all examples of physical quantities.
Measurement of physical quantities is an essential part of Physics.
1.1 Physical Quantities and Units
Physical Quantities
- Quantities that are measurable with instruments in laboratory or can be
derived from these measured quantities.
- consists of a precise numerical value & a unit.
- categorized into 2:
1. Base Quantities
2. Derived Quantities
- are standards for measurement of physical quantities that need clear
definitions to be useful.
Physical Unit
- ex: metre (m) unit for length
second (s) unit for time
Kelvin (K) unit for temperature
SI Unit
- International System of Units

- has been agreed internationally.
Base Quantities & units
- fundamental quantity that can not be derived in terms of other physics
quantities.
candela
mole
kelvin
ampere
second
kilogram
meter
Name of SI unit
K Temperature, T
m Length , l
kg Mass, m
s Time, t
cd Luminous intensity
mol Amount of substance, n
A Electric current, I
Unit symbol
Base
Quantity
Derived Quantities & units
- Are the physical quantities other than the base quantities.
- Are derived from base quantities according to a defining equation.
Q = It
W = Fs
P = F / A
F = ma
f = 1 / T
= m / V
v = s / t
Defining equation
A s
kg m
2
s
2

kg m
1
s
2
kg m s
2
s
1
kg m
3
m s
1
SI unit
Pa (Pascal) Pressure
-- Velocity
-- Density
Hz (Hertz) Frequency
C (Coulomb) Charge
J (Joule) Work
N (Newton) Force
Special
name
Physical Quantity
11
Unit is defined as a standard size of
measurement of physical quantities.
Examples :
1 second is defined as the time required for
9,192,631,770 vibrations of radiation emitted by
a caesium-133 atom.
1 kilogram is defined as the mass of a platinum-
iridium cylinder kept at International Bureau of
Weights and Measures Paris.
1 meter is defined as the length of the path
travelled by light in vacuum during a time
interval of
s
, , 458 792 299
1
Prefixes
- can be added to SI base & derived units to
make larger or smaller units
- Some physical quantities have no units.
- Example:
refractive index, strain
Multiple
Prefix ( &
symbol)
10
12
tera- (T)
10
9
giga- (G)
10
6
mega- (M)
10
3
kilo- (k)
10
2
hecto- (h)
10
1
deci- (d)
10
2
centi- (c)
10
3
milli- (m)
10
6
micro- ()
10
9
nano- (n)
10
12
pico- (p)
10
15
femto- (f)
Unit Conversions
- SI unit system is predominant throughout the world.
- another metric system that has been used:
(a) cgs system ( centimeter gram second )
(b) British Engineering system ( foot slug second )
- Units in different systems or different
units in the same system can
express the same quantity.
- Is necessary to change from one
set of units to another.
15
Solve the following problems of unit conversion.
a. 30 mm
2
= ? m
2
b. 865 km h
-1
= ? m s
-1

c. 300 g cm
-3
= ? kg m
-3
d. 17 cm = ? in
e. 24 mi h
-1
= ? km s
-1

Solution :
a. 30 mm
2
= ? m
2





b. 865 km h
-1
= ? m s
-1
1
st
method :




|
|
.
|

\
|

=

h 1
m 10 865
h km 865
3
1
Example 1 :
|
|
.
|

\
|

=

s 3600
m 10 865
h km 865
3
1
1 1
s m 240 h km 865

=
( ) ( )
2
3
2
m 10 mm 1

=
2 6 2
m 10 mm 1

=
2 5 2 6 2
m 10 3.0 or m 10 30 mm 30

=
16
2
nd
method :







c. 300 g cm
-3
= ? kg m
-3

|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
=

s 3600
h 1
km 1
m 1000
h 1
km 865
h km 865
1
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
=

s 3600
h 1
km 1
m 1000
h 1
km 865
h km 865
1
1 1
s m 240 h km 865

=
( )
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
3
3
2 -
3 3 -
3
3 -
m 10
cm 1
g 1
kg 10
cm 1
g 300
cm g 300
-3 5 3
m kg 10 3.0 cm g 300 =

17
d. 17 cm = ? in




e. 24 mi h
-1
= ? km s
-1

( )
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
cm 1
in
cm 17 cm 17
2.54
1
in 6.69 cm 17 =
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
s 3600
h 1
mi 1
km 1.609
h 1
mi 24
h mi 24
1 -
-1 -2 1
s km 10 1.07 h mi 24 =

18
At the end of this chapter, students should be able to:
Define scalar and vector quantities.

Perform vector addition and subtraction operations
graphically.

Resolve vector into two perpendicular components (2-D) :
Components in the x and y axes.

Components in the unit vectors in Cartesian
coordinate.
1.2 Scalars and Vectors (2 hours)
19
At the end of this topic, students should be able to:
Define and use dot (scalar) product;


Define and use cross (vector) product;


Direction of cross product is determined by corkscrew
method or right hand rule.





1.2 Scalars and Vectors (2 hours)
( ) ( ) A B B A B A cos cos = = -

( ) ( ) A B B A B A sin sin = =

Scalar Quantity
- Quantity which has only magnitude.
- Example: mass, distance, speed, work.
Vector Quantity
- Quantity which has both magnitude and direction.
- Example: displacement, velocity, force, momentum
- Magnitude of the vector is written as |A| A

- Symbols for vectors : A or

A

- A vector can be represented by an arrow. The length of the arrow indicates

its magnitude & arrow head shows the direction.
A

Representing vectors
Head of vector
Tail of
vector
A

magnitude
direction
Equality of two vectors
- 2 vectors & are equal if they have the same magnitude and point in
the same direction.
A

Negative Vector
- Negative vector is a vector with the same magnitude as
but points in opposite direction.
A

Vector Addition & Subtraction

Addition
- The addition of 2 vector, and result in a third vector called
resultant vector.
A

- Resultant vector is a single vector that will have the same effect as 2 or
more vectors.
- 2 methods of vector addition:

(1) Drawing / Graphical method - tail to head & Parallelogram

(2) Mathematic Calculation unit vector & trigonometry
(1) vectors in the same directions
(2) vectors in the opposite directions
The direction of
resultant vector R is in
the direction of the
bigger vector
Adding Parallel Vectors
N A 3 =

N B 7 =

N R 10 Resultant, =

N A 3 =

N B 7 =

N R 4 Resultant, =

Resultant = 9 N East
Resultant = 40 N East
(a) Tail to head method
Two equivalent ways to add vectors graphically: the tail-to-head method and
the parallelogram method.
Placing the tail of B so that it meets the head of A
The Resultant, R=( A + B), is the vector from the tail of A to the head of B
A
B
Placing the tail of each successive arrow at the head of the
previous one. The resultant vector is the arrow drawn from the tail
of the first vector to the head of the last vector.
A

+ + +
= ?
How to add vector A, B, C and D ?
D C B A R

+ + + =
A

Tail of first
vector
Head of last vector
(b) Parallelogram method
Resultant vector, : diagonal of a parallelogram formed with & as
two of its 4 sides.
R

A
B
Vectors Subtraction
is done by adding negative vector.
) ( B A B A

+ =
A

B A

Resolving vector into 2 perpendicular compoments (2D)

A vector may be expressed in terms of its components.
A
A
x
A
y
x

y


with the aid of trigonometry:
2 2
| | y x A A A + =
A
Ax
= u cos u cos A Ax =
A
Ay
= u sin
u sin A Ay =
Magnitude of vector A :
Direction of vector A :
x
y
A
A
= u tan

* is always
measured from +x
axis.
Unit vectors
A unit vector is a vector that has a magnitude of 1 with no units.
Are use to specify a given direction in space.
, & is used to represent unit vectors
pointing in the positive x, y & z directions.
i

| | = | | = | | = 1
i

j A i A A y x

+ =

The vector can also written in unit vector form:

A

Example
A force of 800 N is exerted on a bolt A as shown in Fig. below. Determine the
horizontal and vertical components of the force.
x
y
y F
x F
Solution
with the aid of trigonometry:
u cos F Fx =
= 35 cos 800
N Fx 655 =
u sin F Fy =
= 35 sin 800
N Fy 459 =
We may write in the unit vector form
F

j N i N F

) 459 (

) 655 ( + =

Example
The magnitudes of the 3 displacement vectors shown in drawing. Determine the
resultant value when these vectors are added together.
B
y

= 5 sin 30


B
x
= 5 cos 30

A
x
=10 sin 45
A
y
= 10 cos 45

1.57 2.74 Resultant
R
8 0 C
5 sin 30 = 2.50 5 cos 30 = 4.33 B
10 cos 45 = 7.07 10 sin 45 = 7.07 A
Component y Component x Vector
2 2
y x R R R + =

m 16 . 3
) 57 . 1 ( ) 74 . 2 (
2 2
=
+ =
Magnitude of resultant vector
74 . 2 = x R

57 . 1 = y R

x
y
R
R
= u tan 573 . 0
74 . 2
57 . 1
= =
x above 81 . 29 + = u
Direction of resultant vector
Or can write in unit vector form
j m i m R

) 57 . 1 (

) 74 . 2 ( + + =

Resultant vector , R = 3.16 m at 29.81 above +x

Example
Let :
j i b
j i a

2
=
+ =

Find : (a)
(b)
(c)
b a

+
b a

3 2
| 2 | a

Solution
)

5 ( )

2 ( j i j i b a + + = +

(a)
j i

2

7 + =
To find the magnitude of , 1
st
we have to calculate
(b)
)

5 ( 3 )

2 ( 2 3 2 j i j i b a + =

j i j i

9

15

10

4 + + =
j i

19

11 + =
(c) | 2 | a

2
)

2 ( 2 2 j i a + =

10

4 j i + =
2 2
10 4 | 2 | + = a

77 . 10 =
Multiplying a vector by a vector
Dot Product ( )
B A

-
u cos | | | | B A B A = -

where |A| : magnitude of vector
|B|: magnitude of vector
: angle between &
A

0 180
is the magnitude of multiplied by
the component of parallel to .
B A

-
A

B cos
u cos | | | | B A B A = -

= zero when = 90 because cos 90 = 0
B A

-
= maximum value when = 0 because cos 0 = 1 B A

-
Commutative law applied to dot product :
A B B A

- = -
Example of physical quantity :
s F W

- =
Dot product Calculation
Given 2 vector :
k B j B i B B
k A j A i A A
z y x
z y x

+ + =
+ + =

How to perform ?
B A

-
z z y y x x B A B A B A B A + + = -

Remember :






0 90 cos ) 1 )( 1 (

1 0 cos ) 1 )( 1 (


= = - = - = -
= = - = - = -
k j k i j i
k k j j i i
)

( )

( k B j B i B k A j A i A B A z y x z y x + + - + + = -

Example
Given 2 vectors :
) 2 8 5 (
) 4 2 3 (
k j i B
k j i A
+ =
+ =

Calculate
(a) the value of
(b) the angle between 2 vectors
B A

-
Solution
) 2 8 5 ( ) 4 2 3 ( k j i k j i B A + - + = -

) 2 )( 4 ( ) 8 )( 2 ( ) 5 )( 3 ( + + =
9 = - B A

(a)
produces a scalar
:
(b)
| || |
cos
B A
B A

-
= u
) 64 . 9 )( 39 . 5 (
9
=
u cos : from B A B A = -

= 03 . 80 u
2 2 2
) ( ) ( ) ( | | z y x A A A A + + =
2 2 2
) ( ) ( ) ( | | z y x B B B B + + =
39 . 5 ) 4 ( ) 2 ( ) 3 (
2 2 2
= + + =
64 . 9 ) 2 ( ) 8 ( ) 5 (
2 2 2
= + + =
Example
Find the scalar product of the two vectors in figure. The
magnitude of the vectors are A = 4.0 N and B = 5.0 m
B A

-
A

130
53
Answer : 4.50
Cross Product ( )
B A

u sin | | | | | | B A B A =

- produce a third vector, which is perpendicular to both of the
original vectors.
- The magnitude of the cross product is given by:
0 180
- Also called vector product.
A

B A

u
is equals the magnitude of multiplied by the
component of perpendicular to .
| | B A

u sin B
u
-- if is parallel @ anti parallel ( =0 @ 180 )
B A

&
0 | | = B A

-- if is 90 max | | = B A

B A

&
Example of physical quantity :
B v q Fm

=
Force acting on a charge moving in magnetic field
0 0 sin | | | | | | = = B A B A

AB B A B A = = 90 sin | | | | | |

1
0
B A

- the direction of new vector ( ) is normal to the plane that contain vector
& given by Right Hand Rule
B A

B A

u
Directed
upwards
A

A B

u
Directed
downwards
) ( A B B A

=
Cross product Calculation
z y x
z y x
B B B
A A A
k j i
B A

=

j A B B A i A B B A z x z x z y z y

] [

] [ =
k A B B A y x y x

] [ +
Keep In mind (RHR) :






0


= = = k k j j i i
k
B B
A A
j
B B
A A
i
B B
A A
y x
y x
z x
z x
z y
z y

+ =
j k i j i k

= =
k i j k j i

= =
i j k i k j

= =
Fig. (a)
Fig. (b)
Example
Given 2 vector :





Calculate : (a)
(b)
) 0 8 5 (
) 4 2 3 (
k j i B
k j i A
+ + =
+ =

Solution
) 0 8 5 ( ) 4 2 3 ( k j i k j i B A + + + =

(a)
B A

| | B A

2 2 2
34 20 32 | | + + = B A

0 8 5
4 2 3

=
k j i
B A

i

)] 4 ( 8 ) 0 ( 2 [ =
k j i B A 34 20 32 + + =

79 . 50 =
j

)] 4 )( 5 ( ) 0 ( 3 [
k

)] 2 )( 5 ( ) 8 ( 3 [ +
(b)
produce a vector
l