PHY111: MECHANICS AND THERMAL

PROPERTIES OF MATTER 1

LECTURE 1: MEASUREMENT AND DIMENSION ANALYSIS

Mr. V.M. Peheliwa
WHAT IS PHYSICS?
◼ Physics is the scientific study of matter and energy
and how they interact with each other.

◼ This energy can take the form of motion, light,

electricity, radiation, sound, gravity etc.

◼ Physics provides an understanding of the physical

world through theories based on experiments.
 Measuring Things
▪ Physics is based on measurements, e.g.
▪ Temperature of substance
▪ Time interval between two events
▪ We start by learning how to measure physical quantities
based on the laws of physics.
▪ A physical quantity is a property of matter which is
quantifiable (measurable)
▪ Among these quantities are length, time, mass,
temperature, current, pressure, etc.
 Measuring Things
◼ In physics, words like length and pressure have precise scientific
meanings

◼ There are so many physical quantities that it becomes difficult to

organise them.They are all not independent. e.g speed is the ratio of
length to time.

◼ What we do is to pick out-by international agreement, a small

number of physical quantities and assign them standards. We then
define all other physical quantities in terms of these base
standards.

◼ These base standards must be accessible, invariable and traceable.

 The International System of Units
• In 1971, the 14th general conference on weights and measures picked up
8 quantities as base units forming the basis of the International System
of Units, abbreviated as the SI

Base and derived units

◼ SI Base units are, in general those which can't be expressed in terms
of others.

◼ The newton is a derived unit, because it is defined as the force required

to accelerate 1kg at 1 ms-2.

◼ The SI is founded on SI base units for eight base quantities assumed to

be mutually independent, as given in Table 1.
 Table 1. SI base units
Base quantity SI base unit
Name Symbol
Length meter m
Mass kilogram kg
Time second s
Electric current ampere A
Thermodynamic temperature kelvin K

Amount of substance mole mol

Angle radian rad

Luminous intensity candela cd
 Definition of some base/fundamental units.
meter (m): One meter is equal to the path length
traveled by light in vacuum during a time interval of
1/299,792,458 of a second.

kilogram (kg): One kilogram is the mass of a

Platinum-Iridium cylinder kept at the International
Bureau of Weights and Measures in Paris.

second (s): One second is the time occupied by

9,192,631,770 vibrations of light (of a specified
Kilogram maintained by the
wavelength) emitted by a Cesium-133 atom. General Conference on Weights
and Measures
 The SI derived units

Derived quantity Symbol Derived unit

a) energy joule (J) kg·m2/s2
b) force newton (N) kg·m/s2
c) frequency hertz (Hz) s-1

d) power watt (W) J/s = kg·m2/s3

e) charge coulomb (C) A·s
f) Pressure Pascal (Pa) N/m2 = kg·m-1/s2
 Use of Prefixes
◼ As a convenience, when dealing with very large or
very small numbers, we often use prefixes.

◼ These are listed in the table shown in the next slide.

◼ Thus, we can express a particular electric power

output as;

2.35 x 109 watts = 2.35 gigawatts = 2.35GW

Use of Prefixes
Factor Prefix Symbol
1018 exa- E
1015 peta- P
1012 tera T
109 giga- G
106 mega- M
103 kilo- k
10-3 milli- m
10-6 micro- u
10-9 nano- n
10-12 pico- p
10-15 femto- f
10-18 a
atto
 The Greek Alphabet
◼ As a further convenience, to express very small or large
numbers, we often in physics, use what is called scientific
notation. e.g
3,560,000,000 = 3.56 x 109 m
and 0.000,000,492 s = 4.92 x 10-7 s
i.e A x 10n, where 1≤A<10 and n is +ve or –ve integer.
◼ The parts shown in red are mostly expressed in the greek

alphabet.
◼ The greek alphabet is so important in physics that almost all our

symbols are expressed in this format, hence the need to learn it.
◼ The table in the next slide shows the Greek Alphabet.
The Greek Alphabet
 Estimation of Errors
◼ A scientist takes time making measurements of various
quantities and usually concludes an experiment by quoting a
numerical result.

◼ He/she also gives a quantitative indication of the accuracy or

reliability of his final result by estimating an error.

◼ Without errors, it is not possible to draw significant conclusions

from the experimental result.

◼ It will also help to decide whether certain measurements

will need to be measured more accurately than others.
Estimation of Errors
◼ It is crucial to understand that all measurements of physical quantities
are subject to uncertainties. It is never possible to measure anything
exactly. It is good, of course, to make the error as small as possible but it
is always there.

◼ Take the measurement of a person's height as an example. Assuming

that her height has been determined to be 158.4 cm, how accurate is our
result?

◼ Well, the height of a person depends on how straight she stands,

whether she has her shoes on, and how long her hair is and how it is
made up. These inaccuracies could all be called errors of definition.
Estimation of Errors
◼ A quantity such as height is not exactly defined without
specifying many other circumstances.
◼ Even if you could precisely specify the "circumstances," your
result would still have an error associated with it.
◼ The scale you are using is of limited accuracy; when you read
the scale, you may have to estimate a fraction between the
marks on the scale, etc.
◼ If the result of a measurement is to have meaning it cannot
consist of the measured value alone. An indication of how
accurate the result is must be included also.
Estimation of Errors
◼ Indeed, typically more effort is required to determine the
error or uncertainty in a measurement than to perform the
measurement itself. Thus, the result of any physical
measurement has two essential components: (1) A
numerical value (in a specified system of units) giving the
best estimate possible of the quantity measured, and (2)
the degree of uncertainty associated with this estimated
value. For example, a measurement of the width of a table
would yield a result such as 95.3 +/- 0.1 cm.
Significant Figures
◼ The significant figures of a (measured or calculated) quantity
are the meaningful digits in it.

◼ Any digit that is not zero is significant. Thus 549 has three
significant figures and 1.892 has four significant figures.

◼ Zeros between non zero digits are significant. Thus 4023

has four significant figures.

◼ Zeros to the left of the first non zero digit are not significant.
Thus 0.000034 has only two significant figures. This is more
easily seen if it is written as 3.4x10-5.
Significant Figures
▪ For numbers with decimal points, zeros to the right of a non
zero digit are significant. Thus 2.00 has three significant figures
and 0.050 has two significant figures. For this reason it is
important to keep the trailing zeros to indicate the actual
number of significant figures.
• There are also specific rules for how to consistently express the
uncertainty associated with a number. In general, the last
significant figure in any result should be of the same order of
magnitude (i.e.. in the same decimal position) as the
uncertainty. Also, the uncertainty should be rounded to one or
two significant figures.
Significant Figures
◼ For example,
◼ 9.82 +/- 0.02
10.0 +/- 1.5
4 +/- 1
◼ The following numbers are all incorrect.
◼ 9.82 +/- 0.02385 is wrong but 9.82 +/- 0.02 is
fine
10.0 +/- 2 is wrong but 10.0 +/- 2.0 is
fine 4 +/- 0.5 is wrong but 4.0 +/- 0.5 is
fine
Significant Figures
 Practice Problems
◼ Identify the number of significant
figures:
◼ 1) 3.0800
◼ 2) 0.00418
◼ 3) 7.09 x 10-5
◼ 4) 91,600
◼ 5) 0.003005
◼ 6) 3.200 x 109
◼ 7) 250
◼ 8) 780,000,000
◼ 9) 0.0101
◼ 10) 0.00800
The Idea of Error
 The concept of error needs to be well understood. What is and
what is not meant by "error"? An error is the difference
between the actual value of a quantity and the value obtained
in measurement.
◼ A measurement may be made of a quantity which has an
accepted value which can be looked up in a handbook (e.g.. the
density of brass). The difference between the measurement and
the accepted value is not what is meant by error. Such accepted
values are not "right" answers.
◼ They are just measurements made by other people which have
errors associated with them as well.
 The Idea of Error
◼ Obviously, it cannot be determined exactly how far off
a measurement is to a correct value
◼ Error, then, has to do with uncertainty in measurements
that nothing can be done about. If a measurement is
repeated, the values obtained will differ and none of the
results can be preferred over the others. Although it is
not possible to do anything about such error, it can be
characterized. For instance, the repeated
measurements may cluster tightly together or they may
spread widely and the pattern can be analyzed.
Precision and Accuracy
 There is a certain inherent inaccuracy or variation in
any measurement we make in the laboratory. This
inherent inaccuracy or variation is called experimental
“error” and the word is not meant to imply
incompetence on the part of the experimenter.
◼ Understanding and quantifying measurement error is
important in experimental science because it is a
measure of how seriously we should believe (or not
believe) our theories about how the physical universe
works
 Precision and Accuracy
 If I measure my mass to be 120.317 kilograms,
that is a very precise
measurement because it is very specific. It also
happens to be a very inaccurate measurement because
I am not quite that fat. My mass is considerably less,
something like 65 kilograms. So, when we say that we
have made a precise measurement we can also say that
we have made a very specific measurement. When we
say we have made an accurate measurement we are
saying that our answer is close to the true value of the
quantity. When we make measurements in the laboratory
we should therefore distinguish between the precision
and the accuracy of these measurements.
Classification of Error
 Errors are divided into two kinds,
systematic and random.
◼ Systematic errors are errors which tend to shift all
measurements in a systematic way so their mean value
is displaced. This may be due to such things as
incorrect calibration of equipment, consistently
improper use of equipment or failure to properly
account for some effect. In a sense, a systematic error
is rather like a blunder and large systematic errors can
and must be eliminated in a good experiment. But small
systematic errors will always be present. For instance,
no instrument can ever be calibrated perfectly
Examples of systematic errors
◼ zero error, which is caused by an incorrect
position of the zero point,
◼ an incorrect calibration of the

measuring instrument.
◼ consistently improper use of equipment.

- Systematic error can be reduced by

conducting the experiment with care.
- Repeating the experiment by using different
instruments.
 Zero error
◼ A zero error arises when the measuring
instrument does not start from exactly zero.
◼ Zero errors are consistently present in every
reading of a measurement.
◼ The zero error can be positive or negative.
(NEGATIVE ZERO ERROR: The pointer of the
ammeter does not place on zero but a negative
value when no current flows through it.)
(POSITIVE ZERO ERROR: The pointer of the
ammeter does not place on zero but a positive value
when no current flows through it.)
 Random errors
▪ Random errors arise from unknown and
unpredictable variations in condition.
▪ It fluctuates from one measurement to the next.
Random errors are caused by factors that are beyond the
control of the observers.
▪ They may occur due to lack of sensitivity i.e an
instrument may not be able to respond to a small
change .
▪ They may occur due to noise.
▪ Wrong technique of measurement
Random Errors cont…
◼ Random errors can be caused by personal errors such
as human limitations of sight and touch, natural errors
such as changes in temperature or wind, while the
experiment is in progress
◼ One example of random error is the parallax error.
Random error can be reduced by taking repeated
readings and find the average value of the reading.
Random Errors cont…
Parallax error
A parallax error is an error in reading an instrument when
the eye of the observer and pointer are not in a line
perpendicular to the plane of the scale.
Random and Systematic errors
◼ Random errors displace measurements in an
arbitrary direction whereas systematic errors
displace measurements in a single direction.
◼ Some systematic error can be substantially
eliminated (or properly taken into account).
◼ Random errors are unavoidable and must be
lived with.
Error Analysis: Mean Value
◼ Suppose an experiment was repeated, say N, times to get,

X1, X2, X3, … XN

◼ N measurements of the same quantity, x. If the errors were random then the
errors in these results would differ in sign and magnitude. So if the average
or mean value of our measurements were calculated,
N

x i
x= i =1
N
◼ some of the random variations could be expected to cancel out with others in
the sum. This is the best that can be done to deal with random errors
 Standard error of the mean
◼ When you are carrying out measurements, one most
important parameter is the standard error of the mean.
This is expressed by the formula below;

( x − x )
2
i
s= i =1
N −1
◼ NB There are other important statistical parameters that are
used, but in physics, the standard error of the mean is widely
used.
 Propagation of Errors, Basic Rules
• Suppose two measured quantities x and y have
uncertainties, x and y to report (x ± x), and (y ± y).

• From the measured quantities a new quantity, z, is

calculated from x and y. What is the uncertainty, z, in z?

• Use a simplified version of the proper statistical treatment.

• The guiding principle in all cases is to consider the most

pessimistic situation.
Propagation of Errors
◼ Relation between Z and (X,Y)
◼ Relation between errors ∆Z and (∆X, ∆Y)
----------------------------------------------------
Let’s consider the following cases
1. Z=X+Y
2. Z=X-Y
3. Z = XY
4. Z = X/Y
5. Z = XmYn
6. Z= ln X
7. Z = ex
Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is the sum or the difference of
inputs, i.e.

◼ Z=X+Y
◼ Z=X-Y

• the standard error ∆Z is calculated using

z = (x) + (y ) + ....

2 2
Example
• Suppose; w =(4.52 ± 0.02)cm, x = ( 2.0 ± 0.2)cm, y
= (3.0 ± 0.6)cm.
• Find z = x + y - w and its uncertainty.
• (1) z = x + y - w = 2.0 + 3.0 - 4.5 = 0.5 cm
• (2) Solution with standard error, z = 0.633 cm,
• So z = (0.5 ± 0.6) cm
• Notice that we round the uncertainty to one
significant figure and round the answer to match.
Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is the product or the quotient of
inputs, i.e.

◼ Z = XY
◼ Z = X/Y

• the standard error ∆Z is calculated using

2
z  x   y 
2

=   +   + ....
z  x   y 
 Example
• Suppose; w = (4.52 ± 0.02) cm, x = (2.0 ± 0.2) cm. Find z = wx
and its uncertainty.
(1) z = wx = (4.52) (2.0) = 9.04 cm2
(2) Standard error

z = 0.905 cm2
 z = (9.0 ± 0.9) cm2
The uncertainty is rounded to one significant figure and
the <z> is rounded to match. To write 9.0 cm2 rather than 9
cm2 since the 0 is significant.
Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is the product of an exact number or constant
and inputs, i.e.

• Z = mX

• the standard error is calculated using

• ∆Z = m∆X
 Example 1:
• The radius of a circle is x = (3.0 ± 0.2) cm. Find the circumference
and its uncertainty.
C = 2x = 18.850 cm
C = 2x = 1.257 cm
--The factors of 2 and  are exact.
C = (18.9 ± 1.3) cm
Rounding the uncertainty to two figures since it starts with a 1,
and round the answer to match.
Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is the product of powers of inputs, i.e.

• Z = XmYn

• the standard error ∆Z is calculated using

EXAMPLE/EXERCISE
w = (4.5 ± 0.2) cm, A = (2.0 ± 0.2) cm ,
2 y=
(3.0 ± 0.6) cm.,
Find z = wy2/A0.5 and Δz .

z = (29 ± 12) cm2 (SD)

Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is the natural log of inputs, i.e.

• Z= ln X

• the standard error ∆Z is calculated using

Δ𝑋
• ∆Z =
X
 Propagation of Errors
❑ If the output Z is an exponential function of inputs, i.e.

• Z = ex
•
• the standard error ∆Z is calculated using

Δ𝑍
= ∆X
Z
 Graphical techniques
Graphs should be drawn with the dependent
variable on the vertical axis.
Usually only the dependent variable uncertainties
are relevant, and make sure you have a title, and
label both axes.
Draw a line of best fit, usually a straight line, but not
always...some points will probably have to be
discarded, just to make things fun.
 Graphs cont
◼ The units of the constant defining the slope of the graph will be vertical
unit/horizontal unit.
◼ The range of possible slopes can be found by taking a maximum line of
'best' fit and a minimum line of 'best' fit using the uncertainty bars.
◼ The intercepts' relevance varies from graph to graph. In general, the
intercept is the value of one component when the other is zero.
◼ By playing around with powers (including negative powers) you can get
a linear graph, from which it is much simple to determine the
relationship.
◼ When you have a straight line which goes through the origin, the unit
on the vertical axis is directly proportional to that on the horizontal
axis.
◼ Any straight line graph can be put in the form y = mx + c , where
m=the slope and c=the y intercept.
Graphs cont
◼ Sine, or other repeating graphs have the
following characteristics.
◼ Amplitude -- the difference between the highest
and lowest y values.
◼ Wavelength -- the distance from the top of the crest
of a wave to the top of the next crest (or
equivalently, the distance between successive
identical parts of a wave.)
◼ Period is the time required to complete one cycle.
eg. time for a pendulum to make one back and forth
swing.
◼ Frequency -- usually relevant in graphs against
time, where frequency is the number of cycles
per second. i.e frequency = velocity/wavelength.
Dimensional analysis
◼ The word dimension denotes the physical nature of a
quantity.
e.g The distance between two points can be measured in
feet, metres, or inches – all expressing the dimension of
length.
◼ The technique used to check the correctness of an equation
or to derive a mathematical expression of a physical quantity
is called Dimensional Analysis.
◼ Examples of dimensions are length, mass, time or a
combination.
◼ Both sides of equation must have the same dimensions

◼ Dimensions can be treated as algebraic quantities i.e

added or subtracted if they have the same dimensions.
Dimensional analysis
◼ Dimension is denoted with square
brackets
◼ [Length]=[L]
◼ [Mass]=[M]
◼ [Time]=[T]
◼ [Temperature] = [θ]
◼ [Electric charge]= [Q]
◼ Example: Derived quantities
◼ Area: [A] = L2
◼ Speed: [v] = L/T
◼ Density: [ρ] = M/L3
Examples
◼ Given P = kA ∆T/l, where A is the area,
∆T is difference in temperature, l is length,
and k is a constant with SI units of watts
𝑊
per (metre·kelvin) ,what are the SI
𝑚.𝐾
units for P (rate of thermal energy flow)?
Solution
◼ Recall that watt (W) is joules per second, so
𝑊 𝐽 kg·m2/s2 kg·m
◼ 𝑘= = = = 3
𝑚.𝐾 𝑠.𝑚.𝐾 𝑠.𝑚.𝐾 𝐾.𝑠
◼ [k] = M·L·T-3·θ-1.
[A] = L2, [∆T] =θ,
and [l] = L
[right side] = M·L2/T3 Therefore, [P] = M·L2/T3,
and SI units are kg·m2/s3, or J/s.
EXAMPLE/EXERCISE 1
• Given mv = Ft, where m is mass, v is speed, F is force, and t is
time, what are the dimensions of each side of the equation? Is
the equation dimensionally correct?
EXAMPLE/EXERCISE 2
• The speed of sound v might plausibly depend on the
pressure p, density ρ, and volume V of the gas. Use
dimensional analysis to determine the exponents x, y and
z

ν = CpxρyVz

Where C is a dimensionless constant. Hence

•write down the relationship between the said
quantities based on the derived exponents.
Solution
−𝟏 −𝟐 𝐱 𝐲 −𝟑 𝐲
𝐯 = 𝐋𝐓 𝐂 =𝟏 𝐏 𝐱
= 𝐌𝐋 𝐓 −𝟏 𝛒 = 𝐌𝐋

𝐙 𝟑 𝐙
𝐕 = 𝐋
ν = CpxρyVz
𝟎 𝟏 −𝟏 −𝟏 −𝟐 𝐱 −𝟑 𝐲 𝟑 𝐙
𝐌 𝐋 𝐓 = 𝐌𝐋 𝐓 𝐌𝐋 𝐋
𝐌 𝟎 𝐋𝟏 𝐓 −𝟏 = 𝐌 𝐱+𝐲 𝐋−𝐱−𝟑𝐲+𝟑𝐙 𝐓 −𝟐𝐱
𝐱+𝐲=𝟎 𝟏 𝟏
−
-x-3y+3Z= 𝟏 𝒗= 𝑪𝟏 𝑷𝟐 𝝆 𝟐 𝑽𝟎
-2x= −𝟏

𝒙 = 𝟏ൗ𝟐 , 𝐲 = − 𝟏ൗ𝟐 , 𝐙 = 𝟎 𝑷
𝒗=𝑪
𝝆
Wednesday, October 4, 2023 57
NEXT: A DISCUSSION ON
VECTORS AND SCALARS

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