Scribd
Upload
126 views2 pages

Dirac Delta Function

This document discusses how to represent the Dirac delta function in curvilinear coordinate systems. It provides expressions for the Dirac delta in spherical polar, cylindrical, and azimuthally symmetric spherical coordinates. Examples are given of charge densities using the Dirac delta, such as for a spherical shell of charge and a ring of charge in cylindrical coordinates.

Uploaded by

Saikat Payra
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
126 views2 pages

Dirac Delta Function

This document discusses how to represent the Dirac delta function in curvilinear coordinate systems. It provides expressions for the Dirac delta in spherical polar, cylindrical, and azimuthally symmetric spherical coordinates. Examples are given of charge densities using the Dirac delta, such as for a spherical shell of charge and a ring of charge in cylindrical coordinates.

Uploaded by

Saikat Payra
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

The Dirac Delta in Curvilinear Coordinates

The Dirac delta is often defined by the property



Z
f (r0 ) if P0 (x0 , y0 , z0 ) is in V
f (r)(r r0 ) dv =
0
if P0 (x0 , y0 , z0 ) is not in V
V
There is no restriction in the number of dimensions involved and f (r) can be a scalar function or a
vector function. However, it is rather obvious that f (r) must be defined at the point P0 (x0 , y0 , z0 ). If
the function f (r) is a constant, e.g., unity, then one sees that the delta is normalized. As a result, it is
customary to speak of the delta as a symbolic representation for a unit source. However, the source is of
a unit magnitude in the sense that the integral of the delta over the coordinates involved is unity. If we
consider a three dimensional orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system with coordinates (1 , 2 , 3 ) and
scale factors
"
2 
2 
2 #1/2
y
z
x
+
+
hi =
i
i
i
then one expresses the Dirac delta (r r0 ) as follows:
(r r0 )

(1 10 ) (2 20 ) (3 30 )
h1
h2
h3

In spherical polar coordinates: 1 = r, 2 = , 3 = , we have


x = r sin cos , y = r sin sin , z = r cos ,
and
h1 = 1, h2 = r, h3 = r sin , dv = r2 sin drdd,
and the corresponding Dirac delta is given by
(r r0 ) =

r2

1
(r r0 ) ( 0 ) ( 0 )
sin

If one considers spherical coordinates with azimuthal symmetry, the integral must be projected out,
and the denominator becomes
Z
2

r2 sin d = 2r2 sin ,

and consequently
1
(r r0 ) ( 0 )
2r2 sin
If the problem involves spherical coordinates, but with no dependence on either or , the denominator
becomes
Z
Z
(r r0 ) =

d r2 sin = 4r2 ,

d
0

and one has


(r r0 ) =

1
(r r0 )
4r2

Similarly, in cylindrical coordinates we have 1 = %, 2 = , 3 = z, we have


h1 = 1, h2 = %, h3 = 1, dv = %d%ddz,
and the corresponding forms for the Dirac delta are given by
(r r0 )

=
=
=

1
(% %0 ) ( 0 ) (z z0 )
%
1
(% %0 ) (z z0 )
2%
1
(% %0 )
2%

examples:
The charge density due to a spherical shell with uniform charge Q is given by
(r) =

Q (r r0 )
4r2

Consider a ring of charge Q and radius a oriented to lie in the xy plane with its centre coincident with
the origin.
. The charge density function expressed in cylindrical coordinates is
(r) =

Q ( a) (z)
2

. In spherical coordinates the charge density is


(r) =

Q ( a) ( /2)
2r2 sin

To find the electric potential at an on-axis point: r = z


z, one refers to the expression
Z
1
dv 0 (r0 )
(r) =
40
| r r0 |
Using spherical coordinates, and setting
dv 0
r0

= r0 2 sin 0 dr0 d0 d0
+ r0 sin 0 sin 0 y
+ r0 cos 0 z

= r0 sin 0 cos 0 x

one obtains
(r) =

40

Q
+ z 2 )1/2

(a2

You might also like