Contents

Physical Quantities.......................................................................................................................... 6
Calibration................................................................................................................................... 6
Uncertainties ............................................................................................................................... 6
Calculations with Uncertainties .............................................................................................. 7
Plotting Linear Graphs from Non-Linear Equations .................................................................. 7
SI Units ........................................................................................................................................... 8
Base Quantities ....................................................................................................................... 8
Prefixes ................................................................................................................................... 9
Homogeneity ........................................................................................................................... 9
Motion ........................................................................................................................................... 10
Key Terms ................................................................................................................................. 10
Graphing Displacement, Speed, Velocity, and Acceleration .................................................... 11
Displacement-Time Graphs .................................................................................................. 11
Velocity-Time Graphs ........................................................................................................ 12
Acceleration-Time Graph ..................................................................................................... 14
The Kinematic Equations (and their Derivations) .................................................................... 14
𝑠𝑠 = 12𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 ........................................................................................................................ 15
𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 ............................................................................................................................ 15
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 12𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣2 .................................................................................................................... 16
𝑣𝑣2 = 𝑢𝑢2 + 2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠 ..................................................................................................................... 16
Linear Motion ........................................................................................................................... 17
Projectile Motion ...................................................................................................................... 18
Horizontal Components in Projectile Motion ....................................................................... 19
Vertical Components in Projectile Motion ........................................................................... 20
Useful Equations in Projectile Motion.................................................................................. 20
Cases of Projectile Motion ........................................................................................................ 21
First Case .............................................................................................................................. 21
Second Case .......................................................................................................................... 22
Third Case ............................................................................................................................. 23
Projectile Motion... Is Parabolic ............................................................................................... 24
Newton's Laws of Motion ......................................................................................................... 25
 Linear Momentum .................................................................................................................... 26
The Principle of Conservation of Linear Momentum ........................................................... 26
Elastic and Inelastic Collisions ............................................................................................. 26
Impulse .................................................................................................................................. 27
Circular Motion......................................................................................................................... 28
Gravitation ................................................................................................................................ 31
Near-Earth and Medium Earth Satellites .................................................................................. 32
Geostationary Satellites ............................................................................................................ 33
Effect of Forces ............................................................................................................................. 33
Upthrust..................................................................................................................................... 33
Resistive Forces ........................................................................................................................ 34
Frictional Forces ................................................................................................................... 34
Resistive Forces in Fluids ..................................................................................................... 35
Equilibrium ............................................................................................................................... 36
Simple Harmonic Motion ............................................................................................................. 37
Equations of SHM..................................................................................................................... 37
Energy and SHM....................................................................................................................... 40
Mass Spring Oscillators ............................................................................................................ 41
Springs in Parallel and Series ............................................................................................... 42
The Simple Pendulum ............................................................................................................... 43
Forced Vibrations...................................................................................................................... 43
Resonance ................................................................................................................................. 44
Damping .................................................................................................................................... 45
Properties of Waves ...................................................................................................................... 47
Wave Parameters ...................................................................................................................... 47
Transverse and Longitudinal Waves ......................................................................................... 48
Polarization ........................................................................................................................... 49
Progressive and Stationary Waves ............................................................................................ 49
Stationary Waves on A Strip Fixed at One End, or In a Closed Tube .................................. 51
Behaviour of Waves .................................................................................................................. 52
Rectilinear Propagation ......................................................................................................... 52
Reflection .............................................................................................................................. 53
 Refraction .............................................................................................................................. 53
Total Internal Reflection ....................................................................................................... 54
Diffraction ............................................................................................................................. 56
Interference ........................................................................................................................... 56
Young’s Double Slit Experiment .......................................................................................... 57
Electromagnetic Spectrum .................................................................................................... 59
Physics of the Ear and the Eye ...................................................................................................... 60
The Ear ...................................................................................................................................... 60
Sound .................................................................................................................................... 60
Intensity, Loudness ............................................................................................................... 61
The Eye ..................................................................................................................................... 61
Lenses ................................................................................................................................... 61
Accommodation of the Eye .................................................................................................. 62
Defects of the Eye ................................................................................................................. 62
Thermometers ............................................................................................................................... 64
Thermometric Variables ........................................................................................................... 64
Absolute Thermodynamic Scale ........................................................................................... 67
Thermal Properties ........................................................................................................................ 67
Internal Energy.......................................................................................................................... 68
Heat Capacity ............................................................................................................................ 69
Determining Specific Heat Capacity .................................................................................... 69
Change of State ......................................................................................................................... 72
Specific Latent Heat .............................................................................................................. 73
The Cooling Effect of Evaporation ....................................................................................... 75
Heat Transfer ................................................................................................................................ 76
Thermal Conduction ................................................................................................................. 76
Composite Slabs.................................................................................................................... 77
Determining Thermal Conductivity ...................................................................................... 77
Convection ................................................................................................................................ 79
Radiation ................................................................................................................................... 80
Greenhouse Effect ................................................................................................................. 80
Applications of Heat Transfer ................................................................................................... 81
 Vacuum Flask ....................................................................................................................... 81
Solar Water Heater ................................................................................................................ 82
Kinetic Theory of Gases ............................................................................................................... 84
The Assumptions of Kinetic Theory ......................................................................................... 84
Gas Pressure .............................................................................................................................. 84
Equations of Kinetic Theory ..................................................................................................... 85
First Law of Thermodynamics ...................................................................................................... 88
Special Cases of the First Law .................................................................................................. 89
Molar Heat Capacity ................................................................................................................. 89
Why is 𝐶𝐶𝐶𝐶 > 𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣? ...................................................................................................................... 90
P-V Graphs................................................................................................................................ 90
Mechanical Properties of Matter ................................................................................................... 92
Deriving Fluid Pressure ............................................................................................................ 92
Crystalline vs Non-Crystalline (Amorphous) Solids ................................................................ 93
Hooke’s Law ............................................................................................................................. 93
Young’s Modulus...................................................................................................................... 94
Elastic Strain Energy................................................................................................................. 95
Strain Energy per unit volume .............................................................................................. 96
Elastic vs Inelastic Deformation ............................................................................................... 96
Formula Sheet ............................................................................................................................... 97
Module 1
Physical Quantities
Calibration
• Calibration is an operation that, under specific conditions, establishes a relation between
the quantity values (with measurement uncertainties) provided by measurement
standards and corresponding indications (with associated measurement uncertainties).
o You are essentially comparing the readings of an instrument with those of a
standard instrument to establish a relationship between the values of the quantities
being measured.
• A calibration curve is one that shows the relationship between two physical quantities;
where one is used as a standard (a measuring device) and the other is usually a sensor
(the device being calibrated) that gives an output in response to changes (for example, in
temperature).
o If you are given a calibration curve, you can find the value of a certain quantity on
a measuring device when another quantity is at a certain value.

The calibration curve of a thermistor; resistance against temperature (℃).

You can determine the temperature indicated by a certain resistance by reading that point from
the curve.

Uncertainties
• The uncertainty of a measurement is the range of measurements within which the true
measurement lies. It is an expression of the dispersion of values that could be attributed
to a measure quantity.
• The uncertainty of a measurement depends on the instrument used to measure the
quantity.
 o The precision of an instrument is the smallest measurement division on the
instrument.
o The uncertainty is half of the precision of the instrument.
o The maximum error is the same as the precision of the instrument.
• Absolute uncertainties are expressed as ±0.1𝑔𝑔 or any other quantity suitable to the
context.
• Percentage Uncertainties are expressed as ±10% for example, and are calculated as:
𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢
𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢 = × 100
𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔
Generally, to reduce percentage uncertainties, we use high precision instruments (eg Vernier
Calliper, micrometre screw gauge) to measure small quantities, or simply measure larger
quantities so that the uncertainty is a smaller percentage of the overall reading.

Calculations with Uncertainties

Addition and Subtraction

• When adding and subtracting values with uncertainties, simply add their absolute
uncertainties.
• Usually, uncertainties are represented using ∆ followed by the symbol of whatever
quantity is being measured.
o 𝑥𝑥 + ∆𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢 + ∆𝑢𝑢 + 𝑧𝑧 + ∆𝑧𝑧
o ∆𝑥𝑥 = ∆𝑢𝑢 + ∆𝑧𝑧
Multiplication and Division

• Add the percentage uncertainties of the quantities.

• One useful trick you can use goes like this:
𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴
o If 𝑃𝑃 = 𝐶𝐶
∆𝑃𝑃 ∆𝐴𝐴 ∆𝐴𝐴 ∆𝐶𝐶
o 𝑃𝑃
= 𝐴𝐴
+ 𝐴𝐴
+ 𝐶𝐶
(if you want the percentage uncertainty you’ll have to multiply
by 100)
Exponents

• Multiply the percentage uncertainty by the exponent to which the quantity is raised.
• If 𝐴𝐴 = 𝑘𝑘𝑥𝑥 𝑛𝑛
∆𝐴𝐴 ∆𝑥𝑥
o 𝐴𝐴
= 𝑝𝑝 𝑥𝑥

Plotting Linear Graphs from Non-Linear Equations

We use the laws of logarithms to ‘linearize’ non-linear equations. Non-linear equations have a
1
variable raised to a power greater than one, for example, 𝑥𝑥 = 2 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2 , where x and g are variables.
The laws of logarithms are as follows:

log 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = log 𝐴𝐴 + log 𝐴𝐴

log 𝐴𝐴𝑛𝑛 = 𝑝𝑝 log 𝐴𝐴

𝐴𝐴
log = log 𝐴𝐴 − log 𝐴𝐴
𝐴𝐴
These can be applied to an equation like this:
1 2
𝑥𝑥 = 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣
2
Take the logarithms of both sides
1
log 𝑥𝑥 = log 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
log 𝑥𝑥 = log 𝑔𝑔 + log 𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
log 𝑥𝑥 = log 𝑔𝑔 + 2 log 𝑣𝑣
2

SI Units
Base Quantities
Base Quantity Base Unit Name Base Quantity Unit Symbol
Quantity Dimension
Symbol
mass 𝑚𝑚 kilogram [M] kg
length 𝑎𝑎 metre [L] m
time 𝑣𝑣 second [T] s
thermodynamic 𝑇𝑇 kelvin [Θ] K
temperature
electric current 𝐼𝐼 ampere [I] A
luminous intensity 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 candela [J] cd
amount of substance 𝑝𝑝 mole [N] mol

Prefixes
Prefix Symbol Power of 10
Tera- T 9
Mega- M 6
Kilo- k 3
Hecta- h 2
Deca- D 1
- - 0
Deci- d -1
Centi- c -2
Milli- m -3
Micro- 𝜇𝜇 -6
Nano- n -9
Homogeneity
• You can verify the homogeneity of an equation by checking whether the base units on
either side are equal. This can also be done using the base dimensions.

𝑚𝑚
For example, verify the homogeneity of 𝑇𝑇 = 2𝜋𝜋� 𝑘𝑘 .

Substitute the base units into both sides. Remember that constants (like 2𝜋𝜋) have no dimensions.

𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔
𝑠𝑠 = �
𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚−1

𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔
𝑠𝑠 = �
(𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔𝑚𝑚𝑠𝑠 −2 )𝑚𝑚−1

𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔
𝑠𝑠 = �
𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠 −2

𝑠𝑠 = �𝑠𝑠 2

𝑠𝑠 = 𝑠𝑠

The equation is homogenous/dimensionally correct, as both sides have the same base units.
Motion
Key Terms
• Displacement is a vector quantity representing the magnitude (size) and direction of the
shortest path between two points.
Remember: Vector quantities have both magnitude and direction, while scalar quantities only
have magnitudes.

As you can see, displacement is simply the straight line directional space between A and B,
while distance, a scalar quantity, encompasses all of the contradictory turns taken between the
two points, regardless of whether the net movement is the same or the direction of the movement.

• Speed is a scalar quantity representing the distance travelled per unit time (SI Unit
m/s).
Instantaneous vs Average Speed

• Instantaneous speed is the value of speed at an exact point in time (this can be
determined as the gradient of a distance-time graph at a specific point).
• However, if you were to measure the total distance travelled by a vehicle over a journey
and then divide by the total time taken to complete the journey, the result would be the
average speed of the vehicle throughout the journey.
o It is the average distance moved per unit time for a whole journey.

• Velocity- Velocity is a vector quantity defined as the displacement per unit time (SI
Unit also ms-1, but as a vector quantity, it has a direction).
𝑟𝑟
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑣𝑣
 • Acceleration- Acceleration is the change in velocity per unit time (SI Unit ms-2). Note
that it is a vector quantity, but we are usually only concerned with the magnitude of
acceleration.
𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑎𝑎 =
𝑣𝑣
Where v is final velocity, u is initial velocity and t is the time throughout which the acceleration
(or deceleration) occurs.

Graphing Displacement, Speed, Velocity, and

Acceleration
Note: These graphs will only represent motion in a single dimension (i.e. one dimensional
motion).

Displacement-Time Graphs
• The velocity can be determined as the gradient of a displacement-time graph.
• The total displacement will just be the final value of displacement on the graph (y-value
of the last point on the graph).

The graph above shows a body travelling at a constant velocity (the quantity is velocity since
the graph is displacement versus time rather than distance versus time).
The graph above shows a body at rest (velocity of zero). Consequently, the gradient of the graph
is also zero.

This graph shows a body accelerating uniformly. The gradient at a certain point of the graph
will give the velocity at the specific time.

Velocity-Time Graphs
• The acceleration of an object can be determined as the gradient of a velocity-time graph.
• The total displacement can be calculated as the area under a velocity-time graph.
The graph above shows an object accelerating uniformly from rest.

This graph is of an object decelerating uniformly.

This graph is of an object moving at uniform velocity.

 This graph is of an object whose acceleration is increasing from rest.

Acceleration-Time Graph
• The velocity of an object will be the area under an acceleration time graph. It's unlikely
that you'll encounter acceleration-time graphs of gradients that aren't zero.

The graph above shows an object accelerating uniformly.

The Kinematic Equations (and their Derivations)

1
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣
2
𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2
𝑣𝑣 2 = 𝑢𝑢2 + 2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠
 1
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣
2
Consider an arbitrary velocity time graph, showing an object which accelerates from an initial
velocity (known as u) to a final velocity (known as v) over a time (t):

The graph takes the form of a trapezium. To determine the displacement of the object, we simply
find the area under the graph. Since the area of a trapezium is found as:
1
𝐴𝐴 = (𝑎𝑎 + 𝑎𝑎)ℎ
2
And the Area (A) is the displacement (s), a can be said to be u, b can be v, and h can be t:
𝟏𝟏
𝒔𝒔 = (𝒖𝒖 + 𝒗𝒗)𝒕𝒕
𝟐𝟐

𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣
If we transpose the equation of a for v (i.e. make v the subject by performing operations), we'll
see another kinematic equation:
𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑎𝑎 =
𝑣𝑣
𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣
 1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
By substituting 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 into the𝑠𝑠 = 2 (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣, we can determine our next kinematic
equation:
1
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = (2𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2 )
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2
Or, by substituting for u:

𝑢𝑢 = 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣
1
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = (2𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2 )
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2

𝑣𝑣 2 = 𝑢𝑢2 + 2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠
1
Substitute for t in 𝑠𝑠 = 2 (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣:
𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑎𝑎 = , 𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎
𝑣𝑣
𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑎𝑎
1 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣) � �
2 𝑎𝑎
(𝑣𝑣 + 𝑢𝑢)(𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢)
𝑠𝑠 =
2𝑎𝑎
2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠 = 𝑣𝑣 2 − 𝑢𝑢2

𝑣𝑣 2 = 𝑢𝑢2 + 2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠
(Note: These equations can only be used to solve problems in which acceleration is uniform or
constant)

Linear Motion
• In the forms given above, these equations are used in the solution of linear motion
problems (movement of objects in a straight line), for example, a ball falling in a straight
line, or any vehicle travelling in a straight path.
Note: the value of acceleration in your linear motion calculations will be reliant on whether the
motion is vertical (affected by acceleration to gravity, 9.81 m/s^2) or horizontal (not affected by
gravity).

• Let's look at the example of a bouncing ball.

• In a perfect system, a ball follows a straight line path from where it's dropped to the
ground, influenced only by the acceleration due to gravity. When it makes contact with
the ground, it quickly slows to a halt, before rebounding to a lower height than that it was
dropped from. We can draw a velocity-time graph to illustrate this motion:

• If we take movement downwards towards the ground as positive displacement and

movement upwards as negative displacement, the resulting velocities will be positive
and negative respectively.
• At each bounce, the direction of movement switches, which is why those straight lines
are shown. These lines don't necessarily have to be straight; since the change in direction
is not instantaneous, they may have a gradient showing the deceleration as the ball
changes direction.
The acceleration-time graph would appear as follows:

Note that the acceleration becomes negative after the bounce, since gravity continues to act
downwards, in an opposite direction to the movement of the ball.

Projectile Motion
• For example, a ball being thrown moves according to projectile motion:

• At each point along its path, the ball has a velocity acting at an angle to the horizon
which is related to the initial velocity with which it was thrown and acceleration due to
gravity (considerations of air resistance and the like are not included).
o If air resistance were included, the distances travelled would be smaller.
 • Given the value of the resultant velocity, we can find the horizontal and vertical
components like this:

• So, 𝑣𝑣𝑥𝑥 = 𝑣𝑣 cos 𝜃𝜃 and 𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦 = 𝑣𝑣 sin 𝜃𝜃

Horizontal Components in Projectile Motion

• v, our final velocity, will instead be the horizontal component of v, and u (initial
velocity) will be the horizontal component of u. a will have a value of zero since
gravity only acts vertically, and we won't be considering forces like air resistance.
Simplifying:

𝑣𝑣𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 + 0𝑣𝑣

𝑣𝑣𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥

• Since no acceleration is acting horizontally:

1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣 + 0𝑣𝑣 2
2
 𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑅𝑅 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣, where R is the range, horizontal distance.

Vertical Components in Projectile Motion

• As acceleration acts vertically, a is acceleration due to gravity (represented as g).
• Since gravity acts downwards, i.e. in a direction opposite to the vertical component of
velocity, it will be taken as negative.

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣

1
𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦2 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2 − 2𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦

You can also simply represent sy as y and sx as x.

Useful Equations in Projectile Motion

• At the maximum height, or apex point, you'll notice that the resultant velocity is only
horizontal, or parallel to the horizon:

• This means that at the maximum height, the vertical velocity is zero.
Thus, if we use one of the kinematic equations, we can transpose to find s, or the vertical
displacement (height) when vertical velocity is zero:

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦2 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2 − 2𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦

02 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2 − 2𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦

2𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2

𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2
𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦 =
2𝑔𝑔

𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2
ℎ𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 =
2𝑔𝑔
Note: This formula will give the maximum height above the point it was thrown from.

• The time taken to react maximum height can also be calculated:

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣

0 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣

𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦
𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦
𝑣𝑣↑ =
𝑔𝑔

• The time taken to reach maximum height is represented as t . This equation holds true for
any case of projectile motion.
• The total time of flight, however depends on the way in which the projectile motion
occurred.

Cases of Projectile Motion

First Case
The object in motion moves from the ground and returns to ground level.

• The maximum height is the same as the equation given earlier, and the total time of flight
is two times the time taken to reach max height:
 2𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦
𝑣𝑣𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡 =
𝑔𝑔

Second Case
The object is thrown up and off of an elevated platform. The maximum height will be the
previous equation plus the initial height of the object, or the height of the platform:

𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2
ℎ𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = + 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑔𝑔ℎ𝑣𝑣
2𝑔𝑔

• Thus, the time taken to fall must also include the additional height. It will therefore be the
time taken to reach the maximum height added to the time taken to reach the ground from
the maximum height:
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
𝑠𝑠 − 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣 = − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
2�𝑠𝑠 − 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣�
= 𝑣𝑣 2
−𝑔𝑔

2�𝑠𝑠 − 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣�

𝑣𝑣 = �
−𝑔𝑔
 But, since we are taking the initial velocity as the vertical velocity at max height, initial
velocity is zero:

2(𝑠𝑠 − 0)
𝑣𝑣↓ = �
−𝑔𝑔

2𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣↓ = �
𝑔𝑔

Note that the value of g is shown as negative here. This is because the height is seen as 'negative'
now that our initial velocity is at the max height and has a value of zero. We simply ignore the
negative for our purposes.

𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 2𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡 = +�
𝑔𝑔 𝑔𝑔

Third Case
The object is thrown sideways (or pushed) off of an elevated platform such that the initial
velocity is parallel to the horizontal. Thus the max height is the same as the initial height. The
total time of flight is only the time taken to descend from the max height, which we saw
previously:

2𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡 = �
𝑔𝑔
Projectile Motion... Is Parabolic
• Quadratic equations are of the form 𝑢𝑢 = 𝑎𝑎𝑥𝑥 2 + 𝑎𝑎𝑥𝑥 + 𝑝𝑝, where a, b and c are constants.
o The graphs of quadratics are parabolas

Let's propose that s (displacement) represent position on the x and y axes:

On the x-axis:

𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣

𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 cos 𝜃𝜃

On the y-axis:
1
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 sin 𝜃𝜃 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2
We can transpose the equation of x-position for t:
𝑥𝑥
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑢𝑢 cos 𝜃𝜃

Substituting into the equation for y-position:

𝑥𝑥 1 𝑥𝑥 2
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑢𝑢 � � sin 𝜃𝜃 − 𝑔𝑔 � �
𝑢𝑢 cos 𝜃𝜃 2 𝑢𝑢 cos 𝜃𝜃
𝑢𝑢 sin 𝜃𝜃 1 𝑔𝑔
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑥𝑥 − � 2 � 𝑥𝑥 2
𝑢𝑢 cos 𝜃𝜃 2 𝑢𝑢 cos 2 𝜃𝜃
𝑔𝑔
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑥𝑥 tan 𝜃𝜃 − 2 𝑥𝑥 2
2𝑢𝑢 cos2 𝜃𝜃
 This is in the form of a quadratic, thus, projectile motion is parabolic.

Newton's Laws of Motion

First Law: Every object in uniform motion in a straight line or at rest will continue in that
motion or in its state of rest unless acted upon by a net external unbalanced force.
• This tendency of an object to 'keep doing what it's doing' is called inertia. Mass is
considered a measure of the inertia of an object.

Second Law: The applied resultant force on a mass is directly proportional to the rate of
change of momentum of the mass and occurs in the direction of the change in momentum.
• Expressing this law mathematically:

∆𝐶𝐶
𝐹𝐹 ∝
∆𝑣𝑣
𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢
𝐹𝐹 ∝
∆𝑣𝑣
𝑚𝑚(𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢)
𝐹𝐹 ∝
∆𝑣𝑣
(𝑣𝑣−𝑢𝑢)
But 𝑎𝑎 =
∆𝑡𝑡
𝐹𝐹 ∝ 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑘𝑘𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎

S.I. unit for force is the newton (N), defined such that 1 N of net force gives a mass of 1 kg an
acceleration of 1 ms . This requires that k = 1. So,

𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢
𝐹𝐹 =
𝑣𝑣
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎

• In some cases, mass is not constant, so we use the following equation:

∆𝑚𝑚
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑣𝑣
∆𝑣𝑣
This is useful in calculating thrust from rockets, where gas is expelled.

Third Law: If one object exerts force on another object, that object exerts an equal and
oppositely directed force on the first. Or, every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
Linear Momentum
• The linear momentum of an object is defined as the product of its mass and its velocity.
The equation of linear momentum is as follows:
𝐶𝐶 = 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣

• Larger (higher mass) objects have larger momentum. Since momentum and mass are
directly proportional, an increase in one will result in an increase of the other.
o An object moving very fast will also have a large momentum, but this of course
depends on mass (think of photons, which move at the speed of light, but have a
theoretical mass of 0, or 10^-54 kg as a non-zero value in experiments).
• Linear momentum is also a vector quantity since velocity is a vector quantity.

The Principle of Conservation of Linear Momentum

• This principle states that the total linear momentum within a system (as long as no
external forces act on it) remains constant.
o total momentum before = total momentum after.
o This can be shown in the following equation, where A and B represent arbitrary
objects which collide with initial velocities of u and end with final velocities v.
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴

Which can be rearranged:

𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )

Note- this equation holds true for all motion- 1, 2 and 3 dimensional motion- as long as the
prerequisite of a closed system is met.

Elastic and Inelastic Collisions

• In an elastic collision, all kinetic energy is conserved. In an inelastic collision, kinetic
energy is not conserved.
1 1 1 1
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2
2 2 2 2

• Elastic Collisions will usually have objects bouncing off of each other.
• Their kinetic energy is converted to potential energy then back to kinetic energy with
100% efficiency.
• There is no permanent deformation or 'sticking together' between the objects, nor is any
other form of non-mechanical energy produced.
For elastic collisions, we can derive a very useful relationship 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = −(𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ):

1 1 1 1
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2
2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2
2 2 2 2
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 ) = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴2 )
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 )(𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 + 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )(𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 + 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )
Dividing by 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 )(𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 + 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )(𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 + 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )
=
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )
(𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 + 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 ) = (𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 + 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 )
𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴
𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = −(𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 )
Thus, in an elastic collision in a straight line, the velocities before and after collision are
independent of the masses of the objects.

• Inelastic Collisions will have the objects sticking to one another or experiencing
permanent deformation.
o Work is done in causing damage/deformation, or some other non-mechanical
form of energy is liberated from the collision, such as heat or light.

Impulse
• The impulse of a force, J, is the change in momentum of an object due to a force acting
for a time t.
𝐹𝐹𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎 ∆𝑣𝑣 = 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢
The force may change over time, so we use the average.

𝐽𝐽 = ∆𝐶𝐶 = 𝐹𝐹𝑣𝑣

• The area under a force versus time graph (F vs t) is the impulse of a force on an object.
• Lengthening the time over which a force acts reduces the impulsive force.
o Remember that the change in momentum is constant, so impulse is constant.
However, by lengthening the time over which the force acts, you reduce the ‘peak’
and average impact forces
Circular Motion
• Circular motion is motion along a circular path, where the moving object is acted upon by
a constant centripetal force.
o Displacement must now happen at an angle (angular displacement), velocity
must now occur at an angle (angular velocity) and there has to be some form of
force that keeps pulling the object in circular motion towards the centre of the
circular path (centripetal force).
• Although speed is constant (scalar quantity, magnitude is constant), velocity is not
constant (vector quantity, direction + magnitude) since it changes direction to maintain
the circular path.
o The object is accelerating due to centripetal acceleration, which changes the
direction of the velocity for the object to maintain a
circular path.
• As you can see, the motion of that green object is occurring in
the direction of velocity, which is acting at a tangent (line
perpendicular to the radius) to the circle.
• If the starting point was at the x-axis, the displacement of the
object is that curved line labelled s. This is called the angular
displacement, s.
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑝𝑝𝜃𝜃
 • The angle at which this displacement has occurred there is 𝜃𝜃 (in radians not degrees)

• The angular velocity (ω, common omega) is distinct from the velocity of the object in
circular motion.
o While the velocity of the object is always changing direction (but has the same
magnitude), the angular velocity is a constant value. The angular velocity is the
change in the size of the angle per second.
𝜃𝜃
𝜔𝜔 =
𝑣𝑣
o The SI Units of angular velocity are therefore radians per second.
o Sometimes, you will get values in revolutions per second or revolutions per minute.
One revolution is a movement through an angle of 360 degrees, or 2π radians. So,

𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟
1 = 2𝜋𝜋
𝑠𝑠 𝑠𝑠

• The period (T) of a particle undergoing uniform circular motion is the time taken for one
complete revolution. If it goes through n revolutions in a time t, the period is found as:
𝑣𝑣
𝑇𝑇 =
𝑝𝑝
• Frequency is the number of revolutions per second, and is the reciprocal of the period, T:
1
𝑓𝑓 =
𝑇𝑇
• Therefore, the angular velocity can be calculated using the period, since one revolution is
made per period:
2𝜋𝜋
𝜔𝜔 =
𝑇𝑇
𝜔𝜔 = 2𝜋𝜋𝑓𝑓
• Linear speed, v is constant, and is simply the rate of change of angular displacement (s):
𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑣𝑣
𝑝𝑝𝜃𝜃
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑣𝑣
𝜃𝜃
But 𝜔𝜔 = 𝑡𝑡

𝑣𝑣 = 𝑝𝑝𝜔𝜔
• In order for an object to maintain a circular path, there has to be a force that keeps pulling it
towards the centre. This force is called centripetal force.
o If the centripetal force were to stop acting on the object at any point, the object would
just continue along a straight line (at a tangent to the circular path) at the linear
velocity.
o Since a force is acting towards the centre of the circular path (F=ma), the object is
accelerating towards the centre. We refer to this acceleration as centripetal
acceleration.

∆𝑣𝑣 ∆𝑠𝑠
=
𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝
𝑣𝑣∆𝑠𝑠
∆𝑣𝑣 =
𝑝𝑝
∆𝑣𝑣
But 𝑎𝑎 = 𝑡𝑡

∆𝑣𝑣 𝑣𝑣∆𝑠𝑠
𝑎𝑎 = =
𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣
∆𝑠𝑠
But 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑡𝑡
 𝑣𝑣 2
𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 =
𝑝𝑝
And again, 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑝𝑝𝜔𝜔
𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 = 𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝
2𝜋𝜋
And 𝜔𝜔 = 𝑇𝑇

4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝
𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 =
𝑇𝑇 2

𝑣𝑣 2 4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑟𝑟
• Therefore, centripetal acceleration, 𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 = = 𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝 = 𝑇𝑇 2
𝑟𝑟

• Since F=ma, centripetal force, Fc:

𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2 2
4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚
𝐹𝐹𝑐𝑐 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 = = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔 𝑝𝑝 =
𝑝𝑝 𝑇𝑇 2

Gravitation
• Isaac Newton’s law of universal gravitation:
All objects attract each other with the force of gravity. The force of attraction between two
objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the
square of the distance between them.
𝑚𝑚1 𝑚𝑚2
𝐹𝐹 = 𝐺𝐺
𝑝𝑝 2
Where F is the force of attraction between two objects, m1 is the mass of the first object, m2 is
the mass of the second object, r is the distance between the centres of the two objects and G is
the universal gravitation constant, 6.67x10^-11 Nm2kg-2

• The gravitational field strength (g) at a point is defined as the gravitational force per
unit mass at that point in the field.
o The gravitational force of a mass is referred to as its weight (W).
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑊𝑊 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑊𝑊
𝑔𝑔 =
𝑚𝑚

• The gravitational field strength is numerically equal to the acceleration due to gravity.
𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
 𝑎𝑎 = 𝑔𝑔
• Using the mass of earth mE, 6 × 1024 𝑘𝑘𝑔𝑔:
𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚
𝐹𝐹 = 𝐺𝐺
𝑝𝑝 2

𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚
𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔 = 𝐺𝐺
𝑝𝑝 2
𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸
𝑔𝑔 = 𝐺𝐺 2
𝑝𝑝
The radius of the earth is 6.4 × 106 𝑚𝑚.
• Gravitational Potential Energy is the potential energy an object has by virtue of its
position in a gravitational field.
𝑚𝑚1 𝑚𝑚2
𝐺𝐺𝑃𝑃𝐺𝐺 = −𝐺𝐺 = 𝐹𝐹𝑝𝑝 = 𝑊𝑊𝑝𝑝
𝑝𝑝

• Remember that r should be the distance between the centres of the two bodies in
question, so the distance above the surface of the earth (h) must always be added to
the earth's radius (R) unless it is explicitly stated that the distance given is the distance
from the Earth's centre.
𝑝𝑝 = 𝑅𝑅 + ℎ
𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸
𝑔𝑔 =
(𝑅𝑅 + ℎ)2

Near-Earth and Medium Earth Satellites

• A satellite is any object that orbits another body due to the influence of gravity.
• Near-Earth Satellites (in Low Earth Orbit) are used for photographing and monitoring
details on the earth's surface, such as crop growth, aircrafts and weather progression.
o They are usually found at between 200 and 2000km above the earth's surface.
• A synchronized system of satellites orbiting the earth with a period of 11 hours and 58
minutes (slightly less than half earth’s rotational period) at 20,200km above the earth
forms a Global Positioning System (GPS).
o A receiver can interface with three of these satellites to determine its current
latitude, longitude and movement.
• The force of attraction due to gravity, F or W, is basically the centripetal force of a
satellite in orbit.
𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2
𝑊𝑊 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝐹𝐹 = 𝐺𝐺 2 = 𝑚𝑚2 𝑔𝑔 = = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝
𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝
 Calculating velocity:
𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2 𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚
= 𝐺𝐺 2
𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝

𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸
𝑣𝑣 = �
𝑝𝑝

Calculating period of orbit:

4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚 𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚
2
= 𝐺𝐺 2
𝑇𝑇 𝑝𝑝

2
4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝 3
𝑇𝑇 =
𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸

4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝 3
𝑇𝑇 = �
𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸

Geostationary Satellites
• Geostationary satellites are like 'fixed satellites,' as they are always at the same relative
position over the earth's surface.
o A geostationary satellite has the same orbital period as the rotational period of
the earth about its axis (~24 hours), so the earth moves through the same angle as
the satellite in the same time.
• Geostationary orbits are always above the equator. The height of a geostationary orbit is
about 36000km above the surface of the earth.
• Geostationary satellites are used to track weather phenomena, tectonic plate
movements and global telecommunications.
o It makes sense that telecommunications satellites are 'parked' so that they can
always provide coverage to the same area.

Ef f ect of Forces
Upthrust
• The upthrust acting an object submerged in a fluid is due to the difference in pressure
acting on the lower and upper surfaces of the object.
Proof of the origin of upthrust:
Consider a cuboid held submerged in a fluid.
𝑭𝑭
Recall that fluid pressure, 𝑷𝑷 = 𝑨𝑨 = 𝒉𝒉𝒉𝒉𝒉𝒉

By Pascal’s law, the pressure of a fluid acts equally in

all directions at a given point in the fluid. Fluid pressure
also acts perpendicularly to any surface placed within
the fluid.
So, the forces acting on the top and bottom of the
cuboid are as follows:
𝐹𝐹1 = ℎ1 𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔𝐴𝐴
𝐹𝐹2 = ℎ2 𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔𝐴𝐴
But, since ℎ2 > ℎ1 (deeper), the net force in the vertical direction is upward.
𝑈𝑈 = 𝐹𝐹2 − 𝐹𝐹1 = (ℎ2 − ℎ1 )𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔𝐴𝐴
𝐹𝐹2 − 𝐹𝐹1 , the net force, is called the upthrust, U, on the cuboid. From Newton’s Second Law:
(ℎ2 − ℎ1 )𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔𝐴𝐴 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎
But (ℎ2 − ℎ1 )𝐴𝐴 is equivalent to the submerged volume of the cuboid, so:
𝐹𝐹2 − 𝐹𝐹1 = 𝑈𝑈 = (ℎ2 − ℎ1 )𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔 = 𝑉𝑉𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔 = 𝑚𝑚𝑓𝑓𝑡𝑡𝑢𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑔𝑔

Where mfluid is the mass of the fluid. Therefore:

𝑈𝑈 = 𝑚𝑚𝑓𝑓𝑡𝑡𝑢𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑔𝑔

• The upthrust on a solid submerged in a fluid is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced
(Archimedes’ Principle).
o Thus, if an object floats, the weight of the fluid displaced by the object is equal to
(or greater than) the weight of the object.

Resistive Forces
Frictional Forces
• Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and
material elements sliding against each other.
Static Friction
• Static friction is the frictional force acting on an object not in motion.
o If an increasing force (from 0N) is applied to an object (resting on a horizontal
surface), the static friction will increase so that it is equal and opposite to the
applied force.
 o The object will begin to move when the maximum static friction is reached, also
called the limiting friction.
Kinetic Friction
• When the aforementioned object moves, there is kinetic friction that stays fairly constant
regardless of variations of the applied force (given that the object remains in motion).
o This kinetic friction is also less than the limiting friction.

Resistive Forces in Fluids

Viscous Drag
• When there is relative motion between a liquid and a solid, forces of friction arise within
the liquid as layers of liquid slide along each other if the liquid flow is orderly (laminar).
This type of friction within a liquid is called viscosity, or viscous drag.
o A viscous medium is one that exerts a resistive drag force on a mass moving
through it which depends on its velocity.
• For a sphere moving at low speeds through a fluid medium (flow around the sphere is
laminar), the drag is given by Stoke’s Law:
𝐹𝐹𝑓𝑓 = 6𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣
Where 𝜋𝜋 is the coefficient of viscosity of the fluid, 𝑝𝑝 is the radius of the sphere, and 𝑣𝑣 is the
velocity of the object.
Drag at High Speeds
• At high speeds the drag force becomes proportional to v2, but the flow is no longer
orderly/laminar – it is turbulent. Stokes’ law does not apply.
• The resistance (drag) does not depend on the viscosity of the fluid, but on its density – so
the resistance force might be better referred to simply as ‘drag’ or ‘air resistance’ rather
than viscous drag.
𝐹𝐹𝑓𝑓 = 𝐷𝐷𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌𝑣𝑣 2
Where D is the drag coefficient of the object, and depends on the shape of the object, A is the
cross-sectional area of the object perpendicular to its velocity, and 𝜌𝜌 is the density of the fluid.

Terminal Velocity
• For an object in free fall through a fluid, it will accelerate until it reaches terminal
velocity (𝒗𝒗𝑻𝑻 ), where the net force acting on the object is zero.
 • At terminal velocity (assuming negligible upthrust):
𝐹𝐹𝑓𝑓 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
6𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑣𝑣 =
6𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋𝑝𝑝
Or in turbulent flow:
𝐷𝐷𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌𝑣𝑣 2 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔

𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑣𝑣 = �
𝐷𝐷𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌

• For example, raindrops only attain a limited velocity (terminal velocity) since as they
accelerates due to gravity, drag (or air resistance in this case) will increase with velocity
until it is equal to the weight of the raindrops.
o A raindrop will no longer accelerate once the velocity reaches that value for
which its proportional drag/air resistance is equal to its weight.

Equilibrium
• There are two conditions for equilibrium: translational equilibrium and rotational
equilibrium.
• Translational equilibrium occurs when the net force acting on an object is zero, so
acceleration is zero.
o The object is stationary (static equilibrium) or moving at a constant velocity
(dynamic equilibrium), like in the case of terminal velocity.
 ∑ 𝐹𝐹 = 0
• Rotational equilibrium occurs when the net torque on an object is zero. That is, for an
object with a pivot, the rotational forces (moments) about the pivot sum to zero.
o The object is either stationary or rotates about the pivot at a constant frequency.
o This is shown in the principle of moments, which states that for an object in
(rotational) equilibrium, the sum of anticlockwise moments is equal to the sum of
clockwise moments.
 ∑ 𝐴𝐴𝐶𝐶𝐴𝐴 = ∑ 𝐶𝐶𝐴𝐴
 ∑ 𝜏𝜏 = ∑ 𝐹𝐹𝑟𝑟 = 0
Module 2
Simple Harmonic Motion
• Simple Harmonic Motion is oscillatory motion along a straight line in which acceleration
is always directly proportional to displacement, and always acts in a direction opposite to
the displacement.
• The conditions for simple harmonic motion are as follows:
o The acceleration must be directly proportional to displacement but must take
place in the opposite direction.
o Total energy of the system remains constant.
o Must have a constant amplitude
o Must have a constant time period or frequency
o Must have a restoring force (Elasticity is present)
o Must have inertia (able to overshoot the equilibrium position)

Equations of SHM
• Simple Harmonic motion can be represented through the defining equation:

𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝑥𝑥

o Where 𝑎𝑎 is acceleration, 𝜔𝜔 is angular frequency and 𝑥𝑥 is displacement.

o Angular frequency is a term used to describe the motion of an oscillating
object, and is related to the angular velocity of an object in circular motion.
2𝜋𝜋
o 𝜔𝜔 = 𝑇𝑇
= 2𝜋𝜋𝑓𝑓
• The displacement of an object in circular motion projected along the diameter from the
equilibrium position at O is given as 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜃𝜃
• The displacement over time can be shown on a cosine graph.

• The displacement of an object in simple harmonic motion can be expressed as either:

𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
o The equation used depends on where the oscillating object is at t=0.
o If the object is released from its amplitude, then at t=0, the object is at positive
amplitude, and begins oscillating from its amplitude:
 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
o If the object begins oscillating from equilibrium position, at t=0 its displacement
is 0:
 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
• The velocity of an object in simple harmonic motion at a particular displacement can be
expressed as:
o 𝑣𝑣 = ±𝜔𝜔√𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑥𝑥 2
• Maximum velocity occurs at the equilibrium position, i.e. when x=0
o 𝑣𝑣𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴
o 𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴
• If the displacement is given as 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣:
o 𝑣𝑣 = −𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
o 𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
• If the displacement is given as 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣:
o 𝑣𝑣 = 𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
o 𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣
• The following are graphs of displacement, velocity and acceleration with respect to time:
• However, for a graph of acceleration or velocity with respect to displacement would be
limited to the maximum and minimum values of displacement (positive and negative
amplitude):

This straight line directly proportional relationship is seen as acceleration is directly

proportional to displacement according to a constant −𝜔𝜔2
Energy and SHM
• For any object in simple harmonic motion, total energy remains constant, as long as there
are no losses due to friction.
• Potential energy is maximum at amplitude, as the object is briefly stationary and has no
kinetic energy
• Kinetic energy is maximum as the object passes the equilibrium position, as it reaches
maximum velocity, and the object has no potential energy
1
o 𝐾𝐾𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 2 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴2
1
o 𝐾𝐾𝐺𝐺 = 2 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 (𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑥𝑥 2 )
• Energy is interchanged between potential and kinetic energy as the object oscillates:
 • A graph of energy against displacement shows that the energy remains constant but
energy is constantly being converted between potential and kinetic energy

Mass Spring Oscillators

• Mass Spring Oscillators take the form of vertical and horizontal mass spring oscillators:
 • The forces acting on the object in each depend directly on the extension of the spring,
thus the acceleration is proportional to the displacement from the original extension,
showing that the oscillator obeys simply harmonic motion.
• Regardless of whether it is a vertical or horizontal mass spring oscillator, the equations
representing the acceleration and period are the same:
𝑘𝑘
o 𝑎𝑎 = − 𝑚𝑚 𝑥𝑥
𝑚𝑚
o 𝑇𝑇 = 2𝜋𝜋� 𝑘𝑘

• The total energy of a mass spring oscillator can be found as follows:

1 1
o 𝐺𝐺 = 2 𝑘𝑘𝑥𝑥 2 + 2 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2
• And since the maximum potential energy will be based on the maximum extension of the
1
spring, and therefore its elastic potential energy, 2 𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴2 :
1 1 1
o 2
𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴2 = 2 𝑘𝑘𝑥𝑥 2 + 2 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2

Springs in Parallel and Series

• The effective spring constant, k is the spring constant that appears to be acting in a
spring system containing multiple springs.
• For springs in parallel:
o 𝑘𝑘 = 𝑘𝑘1 + 𝑘𝑘2

• For springs in series:

1 1 1
o 𝑘𝑘
= 𝑘𝑘 + 𝑘𝑘
1 2
The Simple Pendulum
• For a mass attached to a string in a simple pendulum, Simple Harmonic Motion is
observed for small angles of swing (<30°)
𝑎𝑎
o 𝑎𝑎 = − � 𝑡𝑡 � 𝑥𝑥
𝑡𝑡
o 𝑇𝑇 = 2𝜋𝜋�𝑎𝑎

Forced Vibrations
• A periodic force is a force applied to a system at regular intervals.
• A system oscillating without a periodic force being applied to it is oscillating at its
natural frequency.
• A system oscillating with a periodic force being applied to it is undergoing forced
vibrations.
• If a periodic force is applied to a system at varying frequencies (applied frequencies), the
amplitude of oscillations of the system will increase until it reaches a maximum
amplitude at a particular frequency.
 • At 𝑓𝑓0 , the maximum amplitude is achieved, as the applied frequency is the same as the
natural (or resonant) frequency of the system.
o Essentially, as the applied frequency approaches the natural frequency of a system,
the amplitude increases to a maximum where the applied frequency of a periodic
force and the natural frequency of the system are the same.
o This phenomenon is known as resonance.

Resonance
• Resonance is the phenomenon where a system oscillates at larger amplitudes when the
frequency of an applied periodic force is equal or close to the natural frequency of the
system.
• When the system is oscillating at the maximum amplitude, the phase difference between
𝜋𝜋
the displacement and the periodic force is 2 .
o The periodic force is then exactly in phase with the velocity of the oscillating
system, and the system is in resonance.
• Examples of resonance:
o Barton’s pendulums:

o Bridge Oscillations (a disadvantage of resonance):

 A crosswind can cause a periodic force on a bridge. If the wind speed is
such that the periodic force of the wind is equal to the natural frequency of
the bridge, resonance can occur (given limited damping). The collapse of
the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940 was due to such resonance.
 A steady trail of people in step with each other walking across a
footbridge can cause resonant oscillations of the bridge. Soldiers marching
in columns are taught to break out of step with each other when they cross
 a footbridge, to avoid causing resonance. Soon after it was opened, the
Millennium Bridge in London had to be closed and fitted with a more
suitable damping system because it swayed in resonance when people first
walked across it.
o Mechanical Resonance (advantageous resonance)
 Ultrasound is used to shatter small outgrowths of bone called spurs by
matching the frequency of the ultrasound to the natural frequency of the
outgrowth.
o Electrical Resonance (advantageous resonance)
 Resonance is used to tune radios and televisions.
 When the natural frequency of a radio is ‘tuned’ to a particular frequency,
only broadcast signals coming from a station at that frequency will be
received loudly, allowing one station to be heard predominantly.
o Magnetic Resonance Imaging (advantageous resonance)
 Resonance is used in medical diagnostic imaging of the body.
 The resonance of hydrogen nuclei in response to an emitted radio wave is
detected, producing a special type of image.

Damping
• Damping is the decrease in amplitude of an oscillating system over time due to loss of
energy.
o Damping also causes a decrease in the natural frequency of a system
• There are three types of damping: under-damping, critical damping and over-damping
• Under-Damping: the amplitude of the object decreases over time, with the object
making several oscillations before coming to rest.
o For example:
 Mass-spring and pendulum systems do work against friction (drag from
the air) and slowly lose energy over time.
 The strings of string instruments (eg guitar and piano) are under-damped
and slowly lose energy as they produce pleasant sounds and lose energy to
the air they vibrate.
• Critical Damping: the oscillating object reaches the equilibrium position in the shortest
possible time and remains there without passing through it.
o For example:
 Spring operated doors in air conditioned rooms are critically damped to
ensure the doors close in the shortest possible time.
 Shock absorbers in cars use pistons with holes to provide a frictional
damping force as the piston moves through a special fluid in a cylinder.
• Over Damping: the object does not oscillate at all, and instead very slowly reaches the
equilibrium position because the energy loss is so great.
o For example:
 Exit doors to buildings or auditoriums with large capacities are over
damped to allow the door to close slowly in the case of emergency or to
accommodate the disabled.
• The fluid used in the closing mechanism is very viscous and
provides a lot of friction to prevent oscillation.
 Analog electrical meters make use of the aluminium frame on which the
coil is wound to provide damping. The magnetic field about the frame
opposes the magnetic field about the coil. This action reduces the overall
field of the moving coil so that it swings more slowly. In effect, the faster
 the coil swings, the more the aluminium frame’s field slows it down. This
causes the coil and pointer to rotate relatively slowly and smoothly to the
correct reading without vibrating.

Properties of Waves
A wave is a travelling disturbance that propagates through a medium, transporting energy from
one location (its source) to another location, without transporting matter.

Wave Parameters
• Displacement- the distance and direction of a vibrating particle from its equilibrium
position
• Amplitude- the maximum displacement of a vibrating particle from the equilibrium
position, or the height of a wave crest/depth of a wave trough from the equilibrium
position.
• Wavelength- the distance between two consecutive points on a wave in phase, or
between two successive crests or troughs.

• Period- the time taken for a particle on the wave to complete one complete oscillation, or
the time taken for the crest of a wave to move forward one wavelength.
• Frequency- this is the number of crests passing a given point per second
1
o 𝑓𝑓 = 𝑇𝑇 , 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑇𝑇 𝑢𝑢𝑠𝑠 𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟
• Velocity (Wave Speed)- the distance by the wave travelled per unit time
𝑥𝑥 𝜆𝜆
o 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑡𝑡 = 𝑇𝑇 = 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓
• Phase- the fraction of an oscillation completed by a particle on a wave since the start of
the cycle.
 o Phase difference is the fraction of a cycle between two particles vibrating at the
same frequency along a wave.
o For two points separated by a distance d along a wave of wavelength 𝑓𝑓:
2𝜋𝜋𝑓𝑓
 Phase difference, 𝜙𝜙 = 𝜆𝜆
 Two waves are in phase if they have a phase difference of 2𝜋𝜋 or a whole
number multiple of 2𝜋𝜋, i.e. 2𝑝𝑝𝜋𝜋. Or if they have a path difference of n𝑓𝑓 (n
can be 0, 1, 2, 3). They undergo constructive interference.
 Two waves are in antiphase if they have a phase difference of 𝜋𝜋 or 2𝑝𝑝𝜋𝜋 +
1
𝜋𝜋. Or if they have a path difference of �𝑝𝑝 + 2� 𝑓𝑓, (n can be 0, 1, 2, 3).
They undergo destructive interference.
• Intensity- the energy carried by a wave through a unit area per unit time
o 𝐼𝐼 = 2𝜋𝜋 2 𝑓𝑓 2 𝑣𝑣𝜌𝜌𝐴𝐴2
o Therefore, 𝐼𝐼 ∝ 𝐴𝐴2 , the intensity of a wave is directly proportional to the
square of its amplitude.
o This gives rise to the relationship
𝐼𝐼1 𝐴𝐴2
 = 𝐴𝐴12
𝐼𝐼2 2

Transverse and Longitudinal Waves

• A transverse wave is a wave in which oscillations occur at right angles to the direction
of travel of the wave.
o Waves are made up of crests and troughs
o Transverse waves can be polarized

• A longitudinal wave is a wave in which oscillations occur along the line of travel of the
wave
o Waves are made up of compressions and rarefactions
o Longitudinal waves cannot be polarized
Polarization
• Polarization is the restriction of transverse waves to one plane of vibration.
o Two or more planes of vibration are reduced to a single plane
• Unpolarized waves change from one plane to another.
• Ordinary light waves are unpolarised, or polarised in all planes.
• A polaroid sheet can be used to polarize light; is a transparent material with the carbon
chains in its molecules arranged vertically to cause the vertical polarization of light,
which cuts off all of the horizontal components of vibrations of light and so reduces the
light intensity by about 50%.
o They are used in photography to block out reflections when taking pictures
through glass or water, since the light reflected from them is usually polarized in
one plane.
o Polarised sunglasses block out one of the two net components of light, reducing
intensity to about 50%.
o 3D glasses contain polarizing sheets at perpendicular axes in either eye so that
two separate images can be sent to either eye simultaneously, giving the illusion
of depth.

Progressive and Stationary Waves

• Progressive Waves or travelling waves transfer energy from one point to another. They
propagate through the medium.
• Stationary waves (or standing waves) do not transfer energy, instead energy is confined.
They occur when a progressive wave is being reflected back and forth in a small region
of space.
o It can be said that a standing wave is the pattern formed due to the
interference of two waves (of equal frequency and amplitude) along the same
medium.
o Each pattern forms at a particular frequency known as a harmonic, which
depends on the length of the region (eg length of the string) and the number of the
harmonic (first, second, third…)
 o Note that all particles in one loop of a standing wave vibrate in phase, but are in
antiphase with particles in an adjacent loop
• For a string of length L clamped at both ends, if it is plucked, standing waves can take
one of several modes of vibration:

• These standing waves have points that do not oscillate, known as nodes, where the two
reflecting waves are in antiphase, and points which oscillate to maximum amplitude
halfway between nodes, called antinodes, where the two waves are in phase.
• The amplitude for each point varies along the standing wave, since the wave does not
propagate.
• These standing waves are produced at resonance, and the string is said to resonate at
these certain frequencies, called resonant frequencies.
o Resonant frequencies are the frequencies of vibration for which a standing wave
can be generated in a medium.
• The wavelength of the nth harmonic in a string clamped at both ends can be found as
2𝐿𝐿
o 𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛 = 𝑛𝑛
, where n is 1, 2, 3, 4 or any other natural number.
𝑣𝑣
• The first harmonic has a frequency of 𝑓𝑓1 = 2𝐿𝐿.

• The resonant frequency that corresponds to the nth wavelength is:

𝑣𝑣
o 𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛 = 𝑝𝑝 �2𝐿𝐿� = 𝑝𝑝𝑓𝑓1 , where n is 1, 2, 3, 4 or any other natural number.
2𝑉𝑉
o Thus, the 2nd harmonic’s frequency is 𝑓𝑓2 = 2𝐿𝐿
.
 The 2nd harmonic is also called the 1st overtone.
 The nth overtone is the nth next possible harmonic above the fundamental
frequency.
Stationary Waves on A Strip Fixed at One End, or In a Closed Tube
• When the string is fixed at one end, the fixed endpoint is a node while the free endpoint
is an antinode.

One end is free to oscillate, while the other is fixed.

• The same applies to an air column within a pipe when one end is closed:

Air molecules can vibrate freely at the open end, but cannot vibrate at the closed end.
𝜆𝜆1
• As shown above, the first harmonic in a closed tube occurs where 𝐿𝐿 = , thus:
4
4𝐿𝐿
o 𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛 = 𝑛𝑛
, 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝 = 1, 3, 5 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢 𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑟𝑟 𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝.
𝑣𝑣
o 𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛 = 𝑝𝑝 �4𝐿𝐿� = 𝑝𝑝𝑓𝑓1
 Note that only odd number harmonics are possible for a closed tube or a
string fixed at one end.
 Thus, the 1st overtone would be the 3rd harmonic, as only odd number
harmonics are possible.
• The wave speed, 𝑣𝑣, of a stationary wave through a certain string of tension 𝜏𝜏 and linear
density 𝜇𝜇 can be found as:
 𝜏𝜏
𝑣𝑣 = �
𝜇𝜇

𝑚𝑚
Where 𝜇𝜇 = 𝑡𝑡

Example:

• The Resonance Tube:

A resonance tube is a hollow cylindrical tube partially filled

with water and forced into vibration by a tuning fork. The
tuning fork vibrates at a certain frequency and forces the air in
the tube to vibrate at that frequency.
We know that an increase in the length of a vibrational
system (here, the air in the tube) increases the wavelength and
𝑛𝑛𝜆𝜆
decreases the natural frequency of that system (𝐿𝐿 = 2
=
𝑛𝑛𝑣𝑣
2𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛
).

Conversely, a decrease in the length of a vibrational system

decreases the wavelength and increases the natural
frequency.
So by raising and lowering the water level, the natural frequency of the air in the tube could be
matched to the frequency at which the tuning fork vibrates. When the match is achieved, the
tuning fork forces the air column inside of the resonance tube to vibrate at its own natural
frequency and resonance is achieved. The result of resonance is always a big vibration - that is,
a loud sound.

Behaviour of Waves
Rectilinear Propagation
• In a homogenous medium, a wave travels at a constant speed in a straight line.
Reflection
• Occurs when a wave changes direction at a boundary between two media, remaining in
the original medium.
• The laws of reflection state that:
o When waves are reflected off a plane surface, the angle of incidence is equal to
the angle of reflection.
 When waves reflect off a concave surface, they are brought to a focus (eg.
Satellite dish)
o The angle of incidence, normal and angle of reflection all lie in the same plane.
• Waves can also be partially reflected or transmitted across a boundary, depending on the
nature of the boundary.
• The wavelength and frequency remain unchanged.

Refraction
• This is the change in direction of a wave as it crosses a boundary between two media
and undergoes a change in speed.
• When a wave refracts, there is always some level of reflection, that is, partial
reflection at the boundary.
• If the wave slows down, it will refract towards the normal; if the wave speeds up it
will refract away from the normal.
 • If the wave slows down, the wavelength decreases and the frequency remains
unchanged (𝑣𝑣 ∝ 𝑓𝑓), while if the wave speeds up, the wavelength increases and the
frequency remains constant.
• The laws of refraction state that:
o The angle of incidence, normal and angle of refraction all lie in the same plane.
o The ratio of sine of the angle of incidence to the sine of the angle of refraction is a
constant (Snell’s Law)
𝑝𝑝1 sin 𝑢𝑢 = 𝑝𝑝2 sin 𝑝𝑝
• Snell’s law can also state that: the ratio of the sine of the angle of incidence to the sine of
the angle of refraction is equal to the ratio between the refractive indices of the two
media
sin 𝑢𝑢 𝑝𝑝2 𝑣𝑣1 𝑓𝑓1
= = =
sin 𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝1 𝑣𝑣2 𝑓𝑓2

• The refractive index, n, of a material is defined as the ratio of the speed of light in free
space to the speed of light in the material. In equation form, this is given by:
𝑐𝑐
o 𝑝𝑝 = 𝑣𝑣 , 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑠𝑠 𝑣𝑣ℎ𝑝𝑝 𝑠𝑠𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑔𝑔ℎ𝑣𝑣

Total Internal Reflection

• Total Internal Reflection is the phenomenon in which a light ray originating in an
optically dense medium is reflected at a boundary with a less optically dense medium
back into the original medium rather than being refracted out when the light ray is
incident at an angle greater than the critical angle.
o No light is refracted out of the original medium.
• There are two conditions for Total Internal Reflection:
o The light must be travelling through a medium of higher refractive index as it
strikes the boundary with a medium of lower refractive index.
o The angle at which the light strikes the boundary must be larger than the critical
angle
• The critical angle is the angle of incidence for which the angle of refraction is 90°:
 𝑝𝑝1 sin 𝐶𝐶 = 𝑝𝑝2 sin 90
𝑝𝑝2
sin 𝐶𝐶 =
𝑝𝑝1
Where n1 must be the refractive index of the optically denser medium, i.e. the higher
refractive index. When TIR occurs at a boundary with air, n2 is 1.

• Examples:
o Retroreflectors are used on vehicles and roads to reflect lights back to their
source.


second face and the surrounding air. Total internal reflection occurs twice
and practically all the light, incident from the vehicle’s headlamps, is
reflected back towards the driver, causing the reflected light to appear very
bright.
 This is often used in the rear and front reflectors of bicycles.

o Optical fibres comprise a solid, transparent plastic core, surrounded by a solid,

transparent cladding of lower refractive index than the inner plastic.
 Light entering a fibre at a small angle of incidence makes an angle of
incidence exceeding the critical angle along the length of the fibre. Hence
total internal reflection occurs. Multiple reflections occur along the fibre
with little loss of light.
  Optical fibres are used for carrying signals over the internet.
 Fibres can be bundled, thus carrying a large amount of information along
a narrow cable.
 Fibre optic cables are lighter than metal wires and are less affected by
weathering.

• Bundled optical fibres are also used in endoscopes in medicine. A physician can ‘look’
into the stomach, for example, for diagnostic purposes.
o Light is sent along some of the fibres of the endoscope, reflects from the stomach
wall and travels along the optical fibres to a viewing screen.

Diffraction
• Diffraction is the phenomenon in which a wave spreads out in various directions when
passing through a gap of a similar magnitude to its wavelength.

• The wave diffracts more (i.e. gains a more circular wavefront) after passing through a gap
that is similar or smaller in size to its wavelength.

Interference
• Interference describes the interaction between two waves in the same location, that is,
superposition of two waves of the same type.
• In order for interference to occur, the waves must be coherent
 o Two wave sources are coherent if there is a constant phase relation between the
waves and an identical frequency and wavelength.
• The Principle of Superposition states that when two waves are at the same place at the
same time, their displacements can be added algebraically to produce a resultant wave.
o Alternatively said, waves pass through each other unaffected and where they cross,
the resultant displacement is the algebraic sum of the individual displacements at
that point.
• There are two types of interference, constructive and destructive interference.
o Constructive Interference occurs when both superposed waves are in phase,
causing a greater resultant amplitude/displacement.
o Destructive Interference occurs when the superposed waves are out of phase,
causing a resultant amplitude less than the amplitude/displacement of the
superposed waves.
 If the waves are in antiphase (phase difference of 𝜋𝜋), complete
destructive interference occurs, where the amplitude and displacement
resulting are zero.

Young’s Double Slit Experiment

• Remember that interference requires two coherent wave sources to occur. Young’s
Double Slit experiment utilized a monochromatic source of light and a single narrow slit
to diffract the light and create a uniform wavefront.

• There was a double slit in front of the single slit as per the experiment, so that two
sources could be gained from one wave. Each slit acts as its own source of coherent
waves.
• An interference pattern is produced on the screen, comprising bright fringes (maxima,
where constructive interference occurs) and dark fringes (minima, where destructive
interference occurs)

• The separation between the two slits is a. The separation between adjacent fringes on the
screen is x (it is also commonly represented as y). The distance between the screen and
the slits is D. D is much larger than a (D>>a)
• Since 𝜃𝜃1 ≈ 𝜃𝜃2 and sin 𝜃𝜃 = tan 𝜃𝜃 for small angles:
𝑛𝑛𝜆𝜆 𝑛𝑛𝑥𝑥
o sin 𝜃𝜃1 = sin 𝜃𝜃2 = tan 𝜃𝜃2 , where sin 𝜃𝜃1 = 𝑚𝑚
𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 tan 𝜃𝜃2 = 𝐷𝐷
:
𝝀𝝀 𝒙𝒙
 𝒂𝒂
= 𝑫𝑫
 𝑛𝑛𝜆𝜆
• Since sin 𝜃𝜃 = 𝑚𝑚
, 𝒏𝒏𝝀𝝀 = 𝒂𝒂 𝐬𝐬𝐬𝐬𝐬𝐬 𝜽𝜽
• The highest order of bright fringe (i.e. highest value of n) produced by a certain
diffraction experiment can be found as:
𝑝𝑝𝑓𝑓 = 𝑎𝑎 sin 90
𝑎𝑎
𝑝𝑝 =
𝑓𝑓
• A diffraction grating consists of many evenly spaced, close slits in a material.
o If the spacing between slits is the same (a) in the diffraction grating as in the
double slit, the same interference pattern will be produced, except that the fringes
will be less tapered, resulting in more concentrated bright fringes and more
defined dark spaces as dark fringes.

Electromagnetic Spectrum
• Light is a part of the electromagnetic spectrum.
• Electromagnetic waves all travel in free space at the same speed, the speed of light (3.0 ×
108 ms-1)
• The wavelengths of visible light extend from about 400 nm (ultraviolet) to 700 nm
(red).
• Note: Since wave speed remains constant, an increase in wavelength must follow a
𝑣𝑣
decrease in frequency, 𝑓𝑓 = 𝑓𝑓
Physics of the Ear and the Eye
The Ear
Sound
• Sound describes travelling longitudinal waves passing through a material medium like
air.
o Sound is produced by a mechanically vibrating source like the diaphragm of a
speaker
o A medium is required because sound waves comprise compressions and
rarefactions (regions of low and high pressure when they are in air), nothing
would be available to compress or rarefy in empty space.
• Pitch is related to the frequency of a sound, and is perceived as the highness or
lowness/depth of a sound.
• Sound frequencies make up a spectrum with three major sections:
o Audible Sound- Sound between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz, which is detectable
generally by the human ear.
o Infrasound- Sound less than 20Hz
o Ultrasound- Sound greater than 20,000 Hz
• Sound Intensity is related to the amplitude of a sound wave (remember that 𝐼𝐼 ∝ 𝐴𝐴2 ), and
is perceived as the loudness of a sound wave
o Note that intensity (Wm-2) and loudness (dB) are two different physical
quantities
o Intensity is defined as the energy crossing perpendicularly across a material per
unit time per unit area:
𝑃𝑃
 𝐼𝐼 = 𝐴𝐴
  For a sound wave, intensity a distance r from the source is given as 𝐼𝐼 =
𝑃𝑃
4𝜋𝜋𝑟𝑟 2
• Sound Quality (also called timbre) refers to the presence of harmonic frequencies that
give a sound a distinctive identity.
• Speed- The speed of sound in air at a temperature 𝜃𝜃°𝐶𝐶 is given as:
o 𝑣𝑣 ≈ (330 + 0.60 𝜃𝜃)𝑚𝑚𝑠𝑠 −1

Intensity, Loudness
• The human ear can comfortably detect sounds of intensities between 10−12 Wm−2 to 1 Wm−2.
o 10−12 Wm−2 is the threshold intensity of hearing (I0), the lowest intensity usually
detectable by the human ear for a 1 kHz sound.
o 1 Wm-2 is considered the threshold of pain, the highest intensity of sound able to
be comfortably detected by the human ear for a 1 kHz sound. Beyond this, the
intensity of sound becomes painful and even harmful to the ear.
• Loudness is measured in intensity (Wm-2) or sound level (decibels).
o Decibel sound level, corresponding to a sound intensity I, is defined as 10 times
the logarithmic ratio of the intensity, I, of the sound to the threshold intensity of
hearing, I0.
𝐼𝐼
• 𝛽𝛽(𝑟𝑟𝐴𝐴) = 10 log �𝐼𝐼 �
0

The Eye
Lenses
• A lens is a transparent material which has at least one curved surface.
• Important definitions for lenses:
o The Optical Centre is the physical centre of the lens
o The principal axis is the line passing through the optical centre of the lens and is
perpendicular to both of its surfaces.
o The principal focus is the point on the principal axis where rays parallel and
close to the principal axis converge or appear to converge.
o The focal length (f) is the distance between the optical centre and the principal
focus.
o The focal plane is the plane passing through the principal focus. This is the
plane upon which all light rays parallel to each other (don’t have to be parallel to
the principal axis) converge on this plane.
1
o The power of a lens is the reciprocal of its focal length, 𝑃𝑃 = 𝑓𝑓. It represents the
converging or diverging ability of the lens, and is measured in dioptres (D) or m-1.
  Note that converging lenses have positive powers, while diverging lenses
have negative powers.
1 1 1
• 𝑓𝑓
= 𝑃𝑃 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣
ℎ 𝑣𝑣
• 𝑚𝑚 = ℎ 𝑖𝑖 = − 𝑢𝑢
𝑜𝑜
o Note that v (image distance) is positive when the image is on the opposite side of
the object, forming a real image, but negative when the image is on the same
side as the object, forming a virtual image.
• Thicker lenses have shorter focal lengths.

Accommodation of the Eye

• Accommodation is the process by which eye adjusts the lens (through the ciliary
muscles) to keep an object in focus on the retina as its distance from the eye varies.
• The depth of focus of the eye for a certain state of the lens (i.e. when it is at a particular
thickness) is the distance in front and behind the focal point (or retina) over which the
image may be focused without causing a sharpness reduction beyond a certain
tolerable amount.
• To form focused images on the retina, the eye accommodates by adjusting the thickness
of the lens (remember that a thicker lens refracts light rays more, and has a shorter focal
length).
o When the eye is focusing on a distant object, the lens becomes thin to increase the
focal length.
o When the eye is focusing on a close object, the lens becomes thicker to shorten
the focal length.

Defects of the Eye

• Far-sightedness or long-sightedness/hyperopia/hypermetropia is the condition in which a
person can see distant objects clearly but cannot focus on close objects.
o Either the eyeball is too short or the lens is not sufficiently curved, even when the
ciliary muscles contract.
o A converging lens corrects far sight by increasing the power of the lens system of
the eye and decreasing focal length.
• Near-sightedness or myopia/short-sightedness is the condition in which a person can see
close objects clearly but cannot focus on distant objects.
o Either the eyeball is too long or the lens is too curved, even when the ciliary
muscles relax.
o A diverging lens corrects far sight by decreasing the power of the lens system of
the eye and increasing focal length.
• Astigmatism is the optical defect in which a person’s eye is shaped somewhat
cylindrically rather than spherically, resulting in the person seeing blurred images.
o Correcting lenses have correcting cylindrical lenses
• Presbyopia is the loss of elasticity of the lens due to age, resulting in the loss of ability
for the eye to accommodate successfully.
o Bifocal lenses are usually prescribed. The upper part is a diverging lens to enable
clear distance vision, and the lower part is converging to enable close vision.
o Varifocus or progressive lenses are also used. The power of the lens varies
gradually from diverging to converging.
• A cataract is a cloudy area that forms in the lens of the eye, resulting in the increased
opacity of the lens. Blindness may result.
Module 3
Thermometers
Thermometric Variables
• It is possible to measure temperature using a physical property of a substance that varies
with temperature.
o This is known as a thermometric variable.
• For a certain property to be used to measure temperature, it must:
o Vary continuously with temperature
o Remain constant when temperature is constant
• Examples of thermometric variables include volume of a liquid, pressure of a gas at
constant volume, electromotive force, or resistance
• If we assume that the thermometric variable of the thermometer varies linearly with
temperature, then we can calibrate a thermometer by measuring the variable (e.g.
volume, pressure, length) at the fixed points
o The fixed points of the empirical Celsius scale are ice point (0°C, a mixture of
pure melting ice and water) and steam point (100°C, pure boiling water and
steam)
o Let the value of the variable at ice point be X0 and the value at steam point be X100.
To determine the Celsius temperature, T, when the variable has a value of X , we
can use the following equation:
𝑋𝑋𝜃𝜃 −𝑋𝑋0
 𝑇𝑇 (℃) = 𝑋𝑋
100 −𝑋𝑋0
o Or, if a graph of physical property vs temperature is plotted using the two fixed
points, the temperature at certain values can be read by interpolation or
extrapolation of the linear graph.
• However, some thermometric properties do not vary linearly with temperature.

• Instead, we must determine the values of the thermometric variable at various known
temperatures to acquire a calibration curve. Values can then be read off of this curve.
 • Two accurately calibrated thermometers according to the empirical scale may give
different readings because one, or both of the thermometric properties, may not vary
uniformly with temperature

Thermometer Thermometric Range Advantages Disadvantages Variation

Type Variable
Liquid-in-glass Volume Depends on They are Not suitable for Linear
thermometer liquid used cheaper than very high or
(Mercury: - most other very low
39 to 500°C) devices. temperatures.
or (Alcohol: They provide Not reliable for
-114 to good producing
60°C) repeatability highly accurate
without results.
effects on
their
calibration.
Thermocouple Electrical -200 to Very large Small emf Linear
Current 1250°C temperature produced,
range. thereby
Suitable for requiring highly
use in sensitive
hazardous instruments for
environments (accurate)
as they measurement.
comprise Can only
robust measure
materials. temperature
differences.
Constant Pressure -2700C to High Slow change in Linear
Volume Gas 15000C accuracy. response to
Thermometer High temperature.
sensitivity. Large size.
Resistance Resistance -200 to High Possibility of Linear
Thermometer 1500°C accuracy. self-heating.
Stability is Expensive.
maintained
over time,
with little
need for
maintenance.
Thermistor Resistance -50 to 300°C Very It is susceptible Non-linear
sensitive. to self-heating
Cheap, also errors.
reacts quickly It needs an
to temperature excitation
changes. current, or more
commonly
known as a
voltage source.
Absolute Thermodynamic Scale
• This is a scale of temperature based on the theoretical lower limit of temperature,
absolute zero
o Absolute zero is the lower limit of the absolute thermodynamic scale (0K), the
temperature at which a thermodynamic system has the lowest possible energy
(kinetic energy of particles is 0) and no further heat can be removed.
• The relationship between absolute (thermodynamic) temperature T in kelvin and Celsius

• The absolute thermodynamic scale differs from the empirical scale as it does not rely on
the property of any particular substance.
o The Celsius scale relies on the boiling and melting point of pure water; the
absolute scale relies on absolute zero (and the triple point of water)
• The second fixed point of the Kelvin (thermodynamic) scale is the triple point of water.
o The triple point of water (273.16K= 0.01°C). is the temperature at which ice,
water and water vapour coexist in thermal equilibrium.
o A triple point is a much more accurate temperature reference than either a
freezing point or a boiling point, because the triple point is INDEPENDENT of all
external conditions such as pressure and temperature, while the freezing point and
boiling points will vary as external conditions vary
• The Kelvin scale is obtained from the pressure measurements of an ideal gas and the
measurements are made by the constant-volume gas thermometer.
o The Kelvin temperature is calculated based on the equation:
𝑃𝑃
o 𝑇𝑇 = 𝑃𝑃 𝑡𝑡 × 273.16, where Ptr is the pressure at triple point and Pt is the pressure at
𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡
temperature t.

Thermal Properties
Heat is a net, spontaneous transfer of internal energy from a hotter to a colder object until both
objects attain the same temperature.
Heat is not a form of energy, it is a transfer of energy
Thermal energy is an internal energy that consists of the kinetic and potential energies
associated with the random motions of the atoms, molecules, and other microscopic bodies
within an object.

Internal Energy
• The internal energy of a system is the sum of the kinetic and potential energies
associated with the molecules of the system.
• Particles are in constant motion according to kinetic theory.
o In monoatomic gases, particles have translational motion (i.e. along a straight
line).
o In diatomic and polyatomic gases however, motion can be translational,
rotational and vibrational. Similar is true for liquids.
o Particles in solids only possess vibrational motion (motion about a fixed point)
since they are not free to move
o These forms of motion contribute to the kinetic energy of a system.
• Remember that there are forces of attraction between particles of a system. These act sort
of like ‘springs’ which oppose the separation of particles (within molecules and between
molecules).
o These forces contribute to the potential energy of a system, as the separation of
molecules creates potential energy in the same way as when a spring is extended
or compressed.
• Temperature is directly proportional to the average kinetic energy per molecule of a
substance (according to kinetic theory).
o A temperature increase means an increase in average kinetic energy per
molecule. Thus, the internal energy, which is the sum of kinetic and potential
energies, increases with increasing temperature.
Heat Capacity
• The heat capacity (C) of a body is the amount of energy required to raise its temperature
by 1K.
𝑄𝑄
o 𝐶𝐶 = 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝 = ∆𝑇𝑇
• The specific heat capacity (c) of a substance is the amount of energy required to raise
the temperature of the substance by 1K per unit mass (per kg).
𝑄𝑄
o 𝑝𝑝 = 𝑚𝑚∆𝑇𝑇

Determining Specific Heat Capacity

Method of Mixtures
• The method of mixtures is usually used to find the specific heat capacity of a solid, such
as a metal

• The masses of the metal block, water and calorimeter must be determined using a
balance.
• The metal block is brought up to a known temperature (100°C) by placing it in boiling
water. The method of mixtures still works if you measure the initial temperature of the
heated block.
• The initial temperature of the water in the calorimeter is measured.
• The heated block is then transferred to the calorimeter
• The ‘mixture’ is stirred until no further temperature change is seen on the thermometer
(i.e. thermal equilibrium is reached)
• This final temperature is recorded. In essence:
o ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢 𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑟𝑟 = ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑔𝑔𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑢𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚
 The heat lost by the solid is 𝑚𝑚𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑡𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 ∆𝑇𝑇, while the heat gained by the
rest of the system is the heat gained by the water and by the calorimeter,
𝑚𝑚𝑤𝑤𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡𝑤𝑤𝑟𝑟 𝑝𝑝𝑤𝑤𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡𝑤𝑤𝑟𝑟 ∆𝑇𝑇 + 𝑚𝑚𝑐𝑐 𝑝𝑝𝑐𝑐 ∆𝑇𝑇.
o So ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢 𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑟𝑟 − ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑔𝑔𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑢𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚 = 0
 o Thus, ∑ ∆𝑄𝑄 = 0

Electrical Method
• The electrical method can be applied to liquids and solids

• The immersion heater is connected to a circuit containing a power source, a voltmeter

and an ammeter (the readings from these are important)
• For solids like a block of metal, two holes are made- one for the heater and another for
the thermometer.
o In the hole for the immersion heater, oil or glycerine is added to ensure good
thermal contact (for conduction). The mass of oil added can be determined in case
its specific heat capacity is non-negligible for inclusion in calculations.
• For liquids, the heater can simply be immersed in the liquid along with the thermometer
and a stirrer (the stirrer helps force convection and distribution of heat).
• A timer should be started when the immersion heater is turned on, and the readings of the
voltmeter and ammeter taken.
• The total energy applied to the system is therefore:
o 𝑄𝑄 = 𝐼𝐼𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣, where I is current, V is voltage and t is time in seconds.
o The total energy supplied is absorbed by the components of the system, in the
case of the solid it is the metal block (and the oil, possibly), and in the case of the
liquid it is the liquid itself and the calorimeter (if its heat capacity is non-
negligible)
 𝐼𝐼𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣 = 𝑚𝑚1 𝑝𝑝1 ∆𝑇𝑇 + 𝑚𝑚2 𝑝𝑝2 ∆𝑇𝑇

Callender and Barnes Continuous Flow Method

• The specific heat capacity of a liquid can be reliably determined using the continuous
flow method
• The liquid is made to flow through a tube containing an electric heater at a constant rate
o The temperatures at both ends of the tube (𝜃𝜃1 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝜃𝜃2 ) are measured constantly
by thermometers, though platinum resistance thermometers are usually used due
to their high accuracy.
o The entire tube is kept in lagging (insulating material) or an evacuated container
(vacuum) to minimize heat loss
• The flow rate of the liquid can be determined be measuring the mass of liquid that flows
𝑚𝑚
through the apparatus over a time period (𝑓𝑓𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑤𝑤 𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝 = 𝑡𝑡 )
• The temperatures are not measured until they are constant- this is known as steady state,
or thermal equilibrium
o The advantage of this method is that at steady state, the specific heat capacity
of the apparatus need not be known since the apparatus remains at constant
temperature.
• The measurements at the voltmeter, ammeter and thermometers are taken for one flow
rate at steady state.
 o Then, the flow rate is changed and the heater is adjusted so that the change in
temperature between the two thermometers is the same as in the first experiment
o The measurements are taken again
• For the first experiment (let m be flow rate and h be heat loss):
o 𝐼𝐼1 𝑉𝑉1 = 𝑚𝑚1 𝑝𝑝∆𝑇𝑇 + ℎ
• And for the second:
o 𝐼𝐼2 𝑉𝑉2 = 𝑚𝑚2 𝑝𝑝∆𝑇𝑇 + ℎ

If both equations are subtracted, you can eliminate heat loss and determine c accurately:

𝐼𝐼1 𝑉𝑉1 − 𝐼𝐼2 𝑉𝑉2 = 𝑚𝑚1 𝑝𝑝∆𝑇𝑇 − 𝑚𝑚2 𝑝𝑝∆𝑇𝑇

𝐼𝐼1 𝑉𝑉1 − 𝐼𝐼2 𝑉𝑉2
𝑝𝑝 =
(𝑚𝑚1 − 𝑚𝑚2 )∆𝑇𝑇

Change of State
• Boiling is the conversion of a substance from its liquid to gas phase at a constant
temperature. It occurs when the saturated vapour pressure (pressure in the bubbles of
vapour in the liquid) is equal to external pressure.
• Melting is the conversion of a substance from its solid to liquid phase at a constant
temperature.
• Temperature stays the same during phase changes because the kinetic energy of the
particles remains the same, but their potential energy increases.

• Energy is being contributed to breaking bonds and forces of attraction between

molecules, which increases potential energy (if you remember from chemistry, bond
breaking requires energy, or is endothermic)
 (This is a pretty good analogy)

Specific Latent Heat

• Specific Latent Heat is the energy required to change the state of one kilogram of a
substance at constant temperature.
o Specific Latent Heat of Fusion is for conversion between solid and liquid
phases
o Specific Latent Heat of Vaporisation is for conversion between liquid and gas
phases

𝑄𝑄 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 , where lf is latent heat of fusion and lv is latent heat of vaporization.

Method of Mixtures
Specific Latent Heat of Fusion of Ice

• Dried, melting ice is added quickly to water in a polystyrene container.

o The melting ice has to be dried (e.g. using an absorbent tissue) and transferred
quickly so that ice only, and not water and ice, are added to the water in the
calorimeter.
o You have to measure the mass of ice, the mass of water, the mass of the
container, stirrer and lid, the initial temperature of the water and the final
temperature. The initial temperature of melting ice is assumed to be 0.
 Thus ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝, 𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔 +
ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑤𝑤𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑓𝑓𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 +
ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝐶𝐶, 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑤𝑤𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 = 0
Specific Latent Heat of Vaporization of Water

• The heat lost by the steam (𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 ) is the same as the heat gained by the water, the
condensed steam and the calorimeter
o ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚, 𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔 =
ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝑤𝑤𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑓𝑓𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚 𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚 +
ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 𝑤𝑤𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝

Electrical Method
Specific Latent Heat of Fusion of Ice

Heat is supplied electrically to some melting ice in a large funnel. A mass, m1, of water collected
during a specific time interval, with the heater in the melting ice but not turned on, is measured.
The mass, m2, of water collected in the beaker in the same time interval, but with the heater
turned on, is measured.
𝐼𝐼𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣
𝐿𝐿𝑓𝑓 =
𝑚𝑚2 − 𝑚𝑚1
Specific Latent Heat of Vaporization of Liquid
• The liquid is placed in an inner flask that has holes in its
neck. An electric heater element brings the liquid to a
boil. The vapour escapes through the holes in the neck
into an outer flask and then into a condenser.
• The condensed vapour (now liquid) is collected in a
beaker below the condenser. After the liquid has started
boiling and condensed vapour emerges at a steady rate,
the condensed vapour is collected for a given length of
time.
• 𝐼𝐼𝑉𝑉𝑣𝑣 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣

Or, this apparatus can be used, where you measure the mass change after boiling starts over a
time period.

The Cooling Effect of Evaporation

• Evaporation is the escape of highly energetic particles from the surface of a liquid into
the gaseous phase.
o The most energetic particles (highest kinetic energy) leave the surface of the
liquid.
o Thus, the average kinetic energy of the remaining particles is lower, resulting in
a lower temperature.
 • The latent heat of vaporization is overcome each time a particle escapes, so a significant
portion of kinetic energy is converted to potential energy, resulting in a decrease in
average kinetic energy of the system.

Heat Transf er
Thermal Conduction
• Conduction is heat transfer by means of molecular agitation within a material without
any motion of the material as a whole.
o Higher speed particles collide with lower speed particles, with a net energy
transfer to the slower ones.
o In gases and liquids, conduction is due to the collisions and diffusion of the
molecules during their random motion.
o In solids, it is due to two effects:
 Lattice vibrational waves induced by vibrational motion of molecules
about fixed positions in a periodic manner (mostly in non-metals)
 Free flow of electrons/Electron Diffusion transports energy (in metals)
• In a solid, especially in crystalline solids, the vibration of particles are coupled to each
other, causing regular distributions of lattice vibrations called phonons
• Solids are better conductors than liquids and gases because particles in solids are closer
together, and in constant contact, so vibrational kinetic energy gained by one particle is
quickly transferred to the adjacent one.

• Heat conduction in one dimension of a material is modelled by Fourier’s Law of heat

conduction:
𝑄𝑄 ∆𝜃𝜃
o 𝑡𝑡
= −𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴 ∆𝑥𝑥
𝑄𝑄
o Where 𝑡𝑡
is the rate of heat transfer, 𝑘𝑘 is the thermal conductivity of the material
(in Wm-1K-1), ∆𝜃𝜃 is the temperature difference across the material (𝑇𝑇2 − 𝑇𝑇1 ) and
∆𝑥𝑥 is the thickness of the material
Composite Slabs

• For a composite slab made up of two different materials, the rate of heat transfer through
one material is equal to the rate of heat transfer through the other material under steady
state conditions. Thus:
𝑄𝑄 𝜃𝜃1 − 𝜃𝜃2 𝜃𝜃2 − 𝜃𝜃3
= 𝑘𝑘1 𝐴𝐴 = 𝑘𝑘2 𝐴𝐴
𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎1 𝑎𝑎2

• To find the rate of heat transfer through the entire composite slab, we simply find the
equivalent thickness of material A that would allow for the same rate of heat conduction
as the current thickness of slab B.
𝑘𝑘1 𝑘𝑘2
=
𝑎𝑎1 𝑎𝑎2

Determining Thermal Conductivity

Thermal Conductivity is the rate of heat transfer through a unit thickness of a material per unit
area per unit temperature difference.
Different procedures must be used for good and bad conductors, since their thermal
conductivities are so different in magnitude.

• To determine the thermal conductivity of a material:

o Heat must flow through the sample at a measurable rate
o The temperature gradient must be steep enough to give measurable values.
∆𝜃𝜃
 The temperature gradient is change in temperature per unit length ∆𝑥𝑥.

Good Conductors
• Because these are good conductors, heat will pass quickly and efficiently through them,
so there is a difficulty in procuring a steep temperature gradient.
• To ensure that there is a steep temperature gradient, we use a sample that is a
uniform rod with a length much greater than its diameter.
• This method is Searle’s Bar Method.
 • At steady state conditions, the rate of heat energy supplied by the heater is equal to the
rate at which heat is being carried away by the water.
𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴(𝜃𝜃2 −𝜃𝜃1 )
o = 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝𝑤𝑤 (𝜃𝜃4 − 𝜃𝜃3 )
𝐿𝐿
𝑚𝑚𝐿𝐿𝑐𝑐𝑤𝑤 (𝜃𝜃4 −𝜃𝜃3 )
o 𝑘𝑘 =
𝐴𝐴(𝜃𝜃2 −𝜃𝜃1 )

Bad Conductors
• For bad conductors, there is a difficulty in acquiring a measurable heat flow.
o To overcome this, the sample is made into a thin disc, with diameter ~10cm and
thickness of a few millimetres.

• At steady state, the rate of heat loss from disc C is equal to the rate of heat gain through
the glass disc.
• Measurements of temperature are first taken at steady state conditions.
o Then, the sample disc is removed, and C is heated directly from B until the
temperature has risen 10K.
o The sample disc is then replaced, and at intervals of about 1 minute, the
temperature of C is measured and a graph of temperature vs time is plotted.
 • ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣 𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑠𝑠𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 = 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝 × 𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑓𝑓𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑠𝑠𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟
• The gradient of the graph will be found at T1 by drawing a tangent
𝜃𝜃2 −𝜃𝜃1 𝑚𝑚𝑐𝑐∆𝑇𝑇
o 𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴 =
𝑡𝑡 ∆𝑡𝑡

Convection
• Convection is the transfer of heat by the movement of a fluid. When natural, it is caused
by buoyancy forces that are induced by density differences due to the variation of
temperature in the fluid.
o As fluid warms, its density decreases, causing it to rise relative to the rest of the
fluid. Cooler fluid falls to take its place, which is then warmed and again rises.
This cyclical movement of fluid in convection cells is characteristic of convection.

• Convection can be used to explain the phenomena of land and sea breezes.
o The earth (land) has a lower specific heat capacity
than the sea, so it will heat up faster in the day.
 The heated land transfers heat to the air
above it, causing a decrease in density. The
warm air rises, causing cooler air from
above the sea to rush in to fill the low
pressure area created. This cool air
movement is called sea breeze.
 o At night, no heat is being supplied to the earth and sea, so they both lose heat
instead. The land, having a lower specific heat capacity, cools faster.
 The air above the sea is therefore warmer than that above the land at night.
This air rises, and cooler air from above the land rushes in to take its place.
This movement of air results in land breeze.

Radiation
• Radiation is the exchange of thermal energy through the emission and absorption of
electromagnetic waves (or photons) by matter as a result of changes in the electronic
configurations of the atoms or molecules.
o Unlike conduction and convection, the transfer of heat by radiation does not
require the presence of an intervening medium.
• A black body is one that absorbs all the radiation that falls on it.
o The rate at which a black body emits thermal radiation is given as

𝑃𝑃 = 𝜎𝜎𝐴𝐴𝑇𝑇 4

Where 𝜎𝜎 is the Stefan-Boltzmann Constant (5.67×10-8 Wm-2K-1)

A is the total surface area of the body

T is the absolute temperature (i.e., in Kelvin)

• The net rate of emission of thermal radiation depends on the temperature of the
environment within which the object is placed, or another object in its environment.

𝑃𝑃𝑛𝑛𝑤𝑤𝑡𝑡 = 𝜎𝜎𝐴𝐴(𝑇𝑇14 − 𝑇𝑇24 )

Where T1 is the temperature of the body emitting radiation, and T2 is the temperature of the body
absorbing radiation, or of the environment. It’s useful to just put the higher temperature first.

Greenhouse Effect
• The greenhouse effect refers to the trapping of the sun’s heat due the greater
transparency of the atmosphere to short wave (UV) radiation from the sun than long wave
(infrared) radiation re-emitted from the planet’s surface.
o While this does account for climate change, without it, temperatures on Earth
would be too low to sustain life.
• A bit of context for the greenhouse effect is given by Wien’s Displacement Law, which
essentially states that the predominant wavelength of radiation emitted by a body is
inversely proportional to the absolute temperature of the body.
 So, hotter bodies emit radiation of shorter wavelength, while cooler bodies emit radiation of
longer wavelength.

• The radiation emitted by the sun is of a short wavelength (~500nm, ultraviolet), and can
pass through the atmosphere easily.
o This radiation is absorbed by the surface of the earth, causing an increase in the
temperature of the earth.
o The earth is relatively cool, and thus re-radiates radiation of long wavelength
(~10𝜇𝜇𝑚𝑚, infrared), which is absorbed largely by greenhouse gases
 This radiation is reflected back to the earth’s surface, causing it to heat up
additionally, increasing the temperature, as in a greenhouse.

Applications of Heat Transfer

Vacuum Flask
 • In a vacuum flask, our knowledge of heat transfer is used to minimize heat transfer
between the flask contents and the environment
o Double-glass walls- minimize heat loss by conduction since glass is a poor
conductor.
o Vacuum between the glass walls- minimizes heat loss by conduction, since
conduction cannot take place in a vacuum. The vacuum also minimizes heat loss
by convection, since heat transfer by convection requires a liquid or gas.
o Interior silvered surface of the glass walls- reflects heat back into the liquid
(bad absorber); the exterior silvering is a poor emitter of heat; these two
minimize radiation heat loss.
o Stopper- made from air-filled plastic or cork. Both materials reduce heat loss by
conduction since they are insulators. They also prevent hot air from escaping
from above the liquid, thus minimizing heat loss by convection. Further, the
stopper also prevents heat loss by evaporation from the surface of the hot liquid.
o Felt pads- protect the glass from mechanical shock and are thermal insulators.
o Case made of tough plastic to help protect the glass container. Plastic is also a
poor conductor and this further helps to minimize heat loss.
o The layer of air between the glass container and the case helps to reduce heat loss
by conduction since air is a poor conductor of heat.

Solar Water Heater

• In a solar water heater, we aim to maximize heat transfer to the water and reduce its heat
loss to the environment.
• Glass cover- Glass is not very transparent to longer wave radiation. The glass cover
therefore allows short wavelength electromagnetic waves from the Sun to pass easily into
the collector, which heat up the collector plate. The collector radiates electromagnetic
waves, but of longer wavelengths, which are reflected back by the glass, increasing the
temperature further, an instance of exploiting the greenhouse effect.
• Collector plate- Blackened to absorb heat radiation readily (black materials are good
absorbers). The collector plate, along with the pipes bolted to it, is made of copper, a
 good conductor, so that absorbed heat is easily transferred to the pipes connected to the
plate, and to the water in the tubes.
• Polyurethane backing to the collector reduces heat loss through the base, as it is an
insulating material.
• The outlet is placed above the inlet during use, so that heated water in the tubes would
rise and carry heat by convection to the outlet.
Kinetic Theory of Gases
• A mole is the quantity of substance containing a number of particles equal to the
Avogadro’s Constant (𝑁𝑁𝐴𝐴 ), the number of atoms in 0.012kg of the Carbon-12 isotope.
• The equation of state of an ideal gas, or the ideal gas equation is expressed as:

𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑝𝑝𝑅𝑅𝑇𝑇

Where P is pressure, V is volume, n is the number of moles of the gas (amount), R is the ideal
gas constant (8.314 Jmol-1K-1), T is the absolute temperature (K)

• The ideal gas equation can also be rewritten using the following relationships:
𝑅𝑅
o 𝐴𝐴𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑧𝑧𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝐶𝐶𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣, 𝑘𝑘 = 𝑁𝑁 = 1.38 × 10−23
𝐴𝐴
𝑁𝑁
o 𝑝𝑝 = 𝑁𝑁 , 𝑤𝑤ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑁𝑁 𝑢𝑢𝑠𝑠 𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓 𝐶𝐶𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠
𝐴𝐴

• Thus, the ideal gas equation can also be:

o 𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑁𝑁𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇

The Assumptions of Kinetic Theory

• All particles are in constant, random motion
• All collisions between particles and between particles and the container are perfectly
elastic
• The volumes of individual particles when compared to the volume of the gas are
negligible
• Intermolecular forces of attraction (and repulsion) are assumed not to operate
• The duration of collisions is negligible compared to the time interval between collisions
• Newton’s laws of motion, and rules of statistical analysis apply

Gas Pressure
• The pressure exerted by a gas if due to the movement of the particles of the gas, and
therefore their energy and rate of collision with the container.
o As gas particles are in constant random motion, they collide frequently with the
walls of the container.
o At each collision (assumed perfectly elastic), the particles change momentum,
which, according to Newton’s second law, implicates that a force was applied on
them by the container.
 And according to Newton’s third law, the particles exert an equal and
opposite force on the walls of the container.
o The average force exerted on the walls of the container by the particles of a gas
per unit area is the pressure exerted by the gas
Equations of Kinetic Theory
Note that the following equations are applied only to monoatomic gases, because, as was stated
before, polyatomic molecules can have rotational, vibrational and translational kinetic energy,
which require much more advanced analysis to approximate.
1
𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
3
1
𝑃𝑃 = 𝜌𝜌𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
3
3
𝐴𝐴𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑘𝑘𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔𝑢𝑢, 𝐺𝐺𝐾𝐾 = 𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
2
3 3
𝑇𝑇𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝐺𝐺𝑘𝑘 = 𝑝𝑝𝑅𝑅𝑇𝑇 = 𝑁𝑁𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
2 2

3𝑅𝑅𝑇𝑇
����
𝑝𝑝 2 = �
𝐴𝐴𝑟𝑟

The derivations for these equations are not completely necessary, but can be useful:
𝟏𝟏 ���𝟐𝟐 for a monoatomic gas.
Show that 𝑷𝑷𝑷𝑷 = 𝟑𝟑 𝑵𝑵𝑵𝑵𝒄𝒄

• Consider a container with N molecules of gas, each of mass m and moving along the x-
axis with a velocity u.
• The momentum of each particle is mu, and when it strikes a wall of the container, its
velocity becomes -u and its momentum becomes -mu.
o Thus, the change in momentum is ∆𝐶𝐶 = −𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢 = −2𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢.
 • Moving from its original position to collide with the wall and rebound, the particle moves
through a distance of 2𝑥𝑥.
𝑓𝑓 𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑡𝑚𝑚𝑛𝑛𝑐𝑐𝑤𝑤
• From 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑡𝑡 , we know that 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑤𝑤𝑤𝑤𝑓𝑓
:

2𝑥𝑥
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑢𝑢
• Recall that according to Newton’s Second Law, force is the change in momentum per
∆𝑠𝑠
unit time, 𝐹𝐹 = 𝑡𝑡
:
2𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = − 2𝑥𝑥
𝑢𝑢

2𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢2
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = −
2𝑥𝑥
𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢2
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = −
𝑥𝑥
• If N particles collide with the walls each second, then the force exerted by N particles is:

𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢2
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = −
𝑥𝑥
• Since all particles do not have the same speed u, we should use the average squared
speed of the particles, which is denoted with ���
𝑢𝑢2 :
 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢���2
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = −
𝑥𝑥
• Since all of the particles have motions along the x, y and z axes (called u, v and w
respectively), the resultant speed c is found by Pythagoras’ Theorem (3D):
���
𝑝𝑝 2 = ��� ���2 + ����
𝑢𝑢2 + 𝑣𝑣 𝑤𝑤 2

• There are equal contributions from each axis of motion since the particle has no
preference in direction, that is, 𝑢𝑢� = 𝑣𝑣̅ = 𝑤𝑤
�:
��� ���2
𝑝𝑝 2 = 3𝑢𝑢
1 ���2 ���2
𝑝𝑝 = 𝑢𝑢
3
• Substituting:

1 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 = −
3 𝑥𝑥

𝐹𝐹
• Since 𝑃𝑃 = 𝐴𝐴, and if each face has a length x, 𝐴𝐴 = 𝑥𝑥 2 :

𝐹𝐹𝑥𝑥 1 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
𝑃𝑃 = =
𝑥𝑥 2 3 𝑥𝑥 3
• And since 𝑥𝑥 3 is Volume, V:

1 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
𝑃𝑃 =
3 𝑉𝑉
1
𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2
3
Where ���
𝑝𝑝 2 is the mean square speed of the particles.

• Furthermore, since 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚 simply represents the total mass of the gas and V represents total
volume:
1 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚 ���2
𝑃𝑃 = 𝑝𝑝
3 𝑉𝑉
𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠, 𝑚𝑚
𝐴𝐴𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 𝑟𝑟𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢, 𝜌𝜌 =
𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝, 𝑉𝑉
 1 ���2
𝑃𝑃 = 𝜌𝜌𝑝𝑝
3

Show that Average Translational Kinetic Energy of Monoatomic Gas Molecules, 𝑲𝑲𝑲𝑲 =
𝟑𝟑
𝟐𝟐
𝒌𝒌𝑻𝑻.
1
• From above, we know that 𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 3 𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2. However, from the ideal gas equation, it is
also known that 𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑁𝑁𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇. Thus:
1
𝑁𝑁𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2 = 𝑁𝑁𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
3
1 ���2
𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝 = 𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
3
𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2 = 3𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
1
• But kinetic energy is given as 𝐺𝐺𝑘𝑘 = 2 𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝���2 , so dividing by 2:

1 ���2 3
𝑚𝑚𝑝𝑝 = 𝑘𝑘𝑇𝑇
2 2
𝟑𝟑
𝑲𝑲𝑲𝑲 = 𝒌𝒌𝑻𝑻
𝟐𝟐

• Total Translational Kinetic Energy of a gas is simply the average translational kinetic
energy multiplied by the number of particles, thus:
𝟑𝟑 𝟑𝟑
𝑲𝑲𝑲𝑲𝒕𝒕𝒕𝒕𝒕𝒕𝒂𝒂𝒕𝒕 = 𝑵𝑵𝒌𝒌𝑻𝑻 = 𝒏𝒏𝒏𝒏𝑻𝑻
𝟐𝟐 𝟐𝟐

First Law of Thermodynamics

• The internal energy of a system is the sum of the potential and kinetic energies of the
particles of the system.
• The first law of thermodynamics states that the change in internal energy of a system is
equal to the sum heat supplied of the system and the work done on the system:

∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 + ∆𝑊𝑊

Where U is internal energy, Q is hat energy supplied and W is work done on the system.

• If heat is supplied to the system, ∆𝑄𝑄 is positive, and if work is done on the system, ∆𝑊𝑊
is positive.
 • If heat is removed from the system, ∆𝑄𝑄 is negative, and if work is done by the system,
∆𝑊𝑊 is negative.

Special Cases of the First Law

Name of Process Description Resulting State Equation
Adiabatic No heat supplied or removed ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑊𝑊
from the system, ∆𝑄𝑄 = 0
Isovolumetric/Isochoric/Constant- No work done on or by the ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄
Volume system. There must be a volume
change for work to be done.
∆𝑊𝑊 = 0
Isothermal/Constant-Temperature Temperature is maintained ∆𝑈𝑈 = 0
constant throughout the 𝑉𝑉𝑓𝑓
𝑊𝑊 = 𝑝𝑝𝑅𝑅𝑇𝑇 ln � �
expansion or compression. ∆𝑇𝑇 = 𝑉𝑉𝑓𝑓
0
Isobaric/Constant-Pressure Pressure remains constant, 𝑊𝑊 = 𝑃𝑃∆𝑉𝑉
∆𝑄𝑄 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑟 ∆𝑊𝑊 > 0 Proof:
𝑆𝑆𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝑊𝑊 = 𝐹𝐹𝑟𝑟
𝑟𝑟2
𝑊𝑊 = 𝐹𝐹∆𝑟𝑟 × � 2 �
𝑟𝑟
𝐹𝐹
𝑊𝑊 = 2 × ∆𝑟𝑟(𝑟𝑟2 )
𝑟𝑟
𝑊𝑊 = 𝑃𝑃∆𝑉𝑉
Isolated/Free Expansion No interaction with the ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 = ∆𝑊𝑊 = 0
surroundings.
Cyclic Process System begins and ends in the ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 = ∆𝑊𝑊 = 0
same state

Molar Heat Capacity

• When heat is supplied to a gas, it may or may not expand depend on the nature of the
container. Likewise, whether or not it contracts will depend on the container.
 • If a gas is placed in a container fitted with a frictionless, movable piston, then when heat
is supplied to or removed from the gas, it will change volume to maintain a constant
pressure.
o The molar heat capacity at constant pressure (𝑪𝑪𝒑𝒑 ) is the amount of heat energy
required to increase the temperature of one mole of a gas by 1K at constant
pressure.
o Since the gas is able to do work, ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 + ∆𝑊𝑊 = 𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 ∆𝑇𝑇.
• If the gas is placed in a closed vessel, it would not be allowed to change volume, that is,
the volume would be constant. All energy would go to increasing the heat of the gas, as
no work would be done.
o The molar heat capacity at constant volume (𝑪𝑪𝒗𝒗 ) is the amount of heat energy
required to raise the temperature of one mole of a gas by 1K at constant volume.
o Since no work can be done, ∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 = 𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 ∆𝑇𝑇

Why is 𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 > 𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 ?

• For heat changes at constant volume, no work is done on or by the system, so ∆𝑊𝑊 = 0.
All heat supplied to the system goes directly into increasing the temperature of the gas
(internal heat), so ∆𝑄𝑄 = 𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 ∆𝑇𝑇.
• For heat changes at constant pressure, work can be done by the system due to changes
in volume, where work is 𝑊𝑊 = 𝑃𝑃∆𝑉𝑉. Therefore, heat supplied goes to both increasing
internal heat and towards the work done by the system against the atmosphere. So, ∆𝑈𝑈 =
𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 ∆𝑇𝑇.
o 𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 is always greater than 𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 as it incorporates the work done on or by the system
in addition to the temperature/internal heat change
• Using the first law of thermodynamics:

∆𝑈𝑈 = ∆𝑄𝑄 + ∆𝑊𝑊

𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 ∆𝑇𝑇 = 𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 ∆𝑇𝑇 + 𝑃𝑃∆𝑉𝑉

But 𝑃𝑃𝑉𝑉 = 𝑝𝑝𝑅𝑅∆𝑇𝑇, so:

𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 ∆𝑇𝑇 = 𝑝𝑝𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 ∆𝑇𝑇 + 𝑝𝑝𝑅𝑅∆𝑇𝑇

Dividing through by 𝑝𝑝∆𝑇𝑇:

𝐶𝐶𝑠𝑠 = 𝐶𝐶𝑣𝑣 + 𝑅𝑅

P-V Graphs
• The work done by a gas is the area under a P-V graph.
 Isobaric Process. Area under the graph is 𝑃𝑃∆𝑉𝑉.

Isovolumetric process. No work done, as there is no area under the graph.

 Cyclic process.

The net work done in a cyclic process is the area enclosed by the graph, 𝑊𝑊𝑛𝑛𝑤𝑤𝑡𝑡 = (𝑃𝑃2 −
𝑃𝑃1 )(𝑉𝑉2 − 𝑉𝑉1 )

Mechanical Properties of Matter

• Density is the mass per unit volume of a substance.
𝑚𝑚
𝜌𝜌 =
𝑉𝑉
• Pressure is the force acting normally (at a right angle) per unit area
𝐹𝐹
𝑃𝑃 =
𝐴𝐴

Deriving Fluid Pressure

• For a fluid with density 𝜌𝜌 and height ℎ in a container, of base area 𝐴𝐴, the fluid pressure
can be derived as follows:
𝐹𝐹
𝐶𝐶 =
𝐴𝐴
But 𝐹𝐹 = 𝑊𝑊 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝐶𝐶 =
𝐴𝐴
But 𝑚𝑚 = 𝜌𝜌𝑉𝑉
𝜌𝜌𝑉𝑉𝑔𝑔
𝐶𝐶 =
𝐴𝐴
 But 𝑉𝑉 = 𝐴𝐴ℎ, so:
𝜌𝜌𝐴𝐴ℎ𝑔𝑔
𝐶𝐶 =
𝐴𝐴
𝐶𝐶 = 𝜌𝜌ℎ𝑔𝑔

• This is the pressure difference between the surface of the fluid and the base of the fluid.
The change in pressure is:

∆𝐶𝐶 = 𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔∆ℎ

Crystalline vs Non-Crystalline (Amorphous) Solids

• Crystalline solids have flat, smooth surfaces and regular shapes.
o These properties are due to unit cell structures made up of atoms in regular
arrangements based on cubes, tetrahedra, hexagons and other
polyhedrons/polygons.
o Each unit cell contains the basic arrangement of atoms that act as the building
blocks of the crystals.
o All metals are crystalline!
• Amorphous solids do not have a regular, repeating structure- the particles have no
definite arrangement as in a crystal lattice.
o A typical example is glass.
• Polymers are very large molecules made of repeating subunits called monomers
chemically bonded together.
o For example, nylon, polythene and rubber.

Hooke’s Law
• Hooke’s Law states that the force acting on a wire/spring is directly proportional to the
extension produced, and is related by the stiffness constant, k, provided that the
proportional limit is not exceeded.
• On the right is the typical F vs e or
F vs ∆𝑳𝑳 graph for a metal wire (a
typical ductile material).
• F varies linearly with ∆𝑳𝑳 up until
the proportional limit.
• The wire will return to its original
length if the force is removed up
until the elastic limit. Beyond this,
inelastic/plastic deformation
occurs, and the wire will undergo permanent extension.
 • The amount of permanent deformation in the wire when a load is taken off in the plastic
region is called the permanent set of the wire.
• The ultimate tensile stress (UTS) is the maximum force per unit cross-section area that
the wire can take.
• The breaking stress is the force per unit cross-section area that in the wire when it snaps.

Glass is a typical brittle material. Its breaking stress is very close to the elastic and proportional
limits.

• The loading–unloading loop

shown by the rubber is called a
hysteresis loop.
• The work done in stretching the
rubber during loading is the area
under the loading curve and is
positive since applied force and
extension are in the same
direction.
• The work done during unloading
is the area under the unloading
curve and is negative since the
force and extension are in opposite directions.
• The net work done during the hysteresis cycle is therefore positive and can be noticed as
heating in the rubber.
• Rubber is a typical polymeric material.

Young’s Modulus
• Young’s modulus is defined as the ratio of stress on a material to the strain produced in
the material.
 o The stress is the force applied per unit cross-section area and the strain is its
extension per unit length.
𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑡𝑟𝑟𝑤𝑤𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 𝜀𝜀
o Young’s Modulus, 𝑌𝑌 = 𝑠𝑠𝑡𝑡𝑟𝑟𝑚𝑚𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛 = 𝜎𝜎
𝐹𝐹
o 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 = 𝜀𝜀 = 𝐴𝐴
𝑤𝑤𝑥𝑥𝑡𝑡𝑤𝑤𝑛𝑛𝑠𝑠𝑓𝑓𝑡𝑡𝑛𝑛 𝑤𝑤
o 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝 = 𝜎𝜎 = 𝑡𝑡𝑟𝑟𝑓𝑓𝑎𝑎𝑓𝑓𝑛𝑛𝑚𝑚𝑡𝑡 𝑡𝑡𝑤𝑤𝑛𝑛𝑎𝑎𝑡𝑡ℎ 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑡𝑡
𝐹𝐹𝑡𝑡
o 𝑌𝑌 = 𝑤𝑤𝐴𝐴

Stress vs strain graph for typical materials.

Elastic Strain Energy

• As you know, work is done when a force moves something a particular distance. So,
when a force, F, extends a material by a length e, work is done.
o This work is stored as a type of potential energy called elastic strain energy
(assuming the material has not exceeded its elastic limit, since the energy will
instead be converted to heat during plastic deformation if the elastic limit is
exceeded)
o The elastic strain energy is the area under a force-extension graph:
1
𝑊𝑊 = 𝐹𝐹𝑝𝑝
2
 However, recall that 𝐹𝐹 = 𝑘𝑘𝑝𝑝, so:
1
𝑊𝑊 = 𝑘𝑘𝑝𝑝 2
2
This may also be expressed in terms of the Young’s Modulus:
1
𝑌𝑌𝐴𝐴𝑝𝑝 2
𝑊𝑊 = 2
𝐿𝐿
Strain Energy per unit volume
1
𝑊𝑊 2 𝐹𝐹𝑝𝑝
=
𝑉𝑉 𝑉𝑉
1
𝑊𝑊 2 𝐹𝐹𝑝𝑝 1 1
= = 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 × 𝑠𝑠𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝 = 𝜀𝜀𝜎𝜎
𝑉𝑉 𝐴𝐴𝐿𝐿 2 2

Elastic vs Inelastic Deformation

• During elastic deformation, Hooke’s law is obeyed, and atoms undergo small
displacement. The elastic limit is not exceeded, and the energy of the material is fully
recovered when the load is removed.
• During inelastic deformation, Hooke’s law is not obeyed, and the original shape of the
material is not recovered. Atoms are permanently displaced, and the elastic limit is
exceeded. Some energy is converted to heat and is not recovered when the load is
removed.
Formula Sheet
Uncertainties

𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢
𝐶𝐶𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑔𝑔𝑝𝑝 𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢 = × 100
𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔

∆𝑥𝑥 = ∆𝑢𝑢 + ∆𝑧𝑧

∆𝑃𝑃 ∆𝐴𝐴 ∆𝐴𝐴 ∆𝐶𝐶

= + +
𝑃𝑃 𝐴𝐴 𝐴𝐴 𝐶𝐶
Laws of Logarithms

log 𝐴𝐴𝐴𝐴 = log 𝐴𝐴 + log 𝐴𝐴

log 𝐴𝐴𝑛𝑛 = 𝑝𝑝 log 𝐴𝐴

𝐴𝐴
log = log 𝐴𝐴 − log 𝐴𝐴
𝐴𝐴
SI Units

Base Quantity Base Quantity Unit Name Base Quantity Unit Symbol
Symbol Dimension
mass 𝑚𝑚 kilogram [M] kg
length 𝑎𝑎 metre [L] m
time 𝑣𝑣 second [T] s
thermodynamic temperature 𝑇𝑇 kelvin [Θ] K
electric current 𝐼𝐼 ampere [I] A
luminous intensity 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 candela [J] cd
amount of substance 𝑝𝑝 mole [N] mol

Prefixes

Prefix Symbol Power of 10

Tera- T 9
Mega- M 6
Kilo- k 3
Hecta- h 2
Deca- D 1
- - 0
Deci- d -1
Centi- c -2
Milli- m -3
Micro- 𝜇𝜇 -6
Nano- n -9

Linear Motion

𝑟𝑟
𝑣𝑣 =
𝑣𝑣
𝑣𝑣 − 𝑢𝑢
𝑎𝑎 =
𝑣𝑣
1
𝑠𝑠 = (𝑢𝑢 + 𝑣𝑣)𝑣𝑣
2
 𝑣𝑣 = 𝑢𝑢 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣

1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣 + 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2
1
𝑠𝑠 = 𝑣𝑣𝑣𝑣 − 𝑎𝑎𝑣𝑣 2
2

𝑣𝑣 2 = 𝑢𝑢2 + 2𝑎𝑎𝑠𝑠

Projectile Motion

𝑣𝑣𝑥𝑥 = 𝑣𝑣 cos 𝜃𝜃

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦 = 𝑣𝑣 sin 𝜃𝜃

𝑣𝑣𝑥𝑥 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥

𝑠𝑠 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝑅𝑅 = 𝑢𝑢𝑥𝑥 𝑣𝑣

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣

1
𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦 𝑣𝑣 − 𝑔𝑔𝑣𝑣 2
2

𝑣𝑣𝑦𝑦2 = 𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2 − 2𝑔𝑔𝑠𝑠𝑦𝑦

𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦2
ℎ𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = (+𝑢𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑣𝑣𝑢𝑢𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 ℎ𝑝𝑝𝑢𝑢𝑔𝑔ℎ𝑣𝑣)
2𝑔𝑔
𝑢𝑢𝑦𝑦
𝑣𝑣↑ =
𝑔𝑔

2𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣↓ = �
𝑔𝑔

𝑔𝑔 2
𝑢𝑢 = 𝑥𝑥 tan 𝜃𝜃 − 𝑥𝑥
2𝑢𝑢2 cos2 𝜃𝜃

Newton’s Laws
𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢
𝐹𝐹 =
𝑣𝑣
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎
∆𝑚𝑚
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑣𝑣
∆𝑣𝑣
Linear Momentum

𝐶𝐶 = 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣
𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 + 𝑚𝑚𝐴𝐴 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴
Elastic Collision

1 1 1 1
𝑚𝑚 𝑢𝑢2 + 𝑚𝑚 𝑢𝑢2 = 𝑚𝑚 𝑣𝑣 2 + 𝑚𝑚 𝑣𝑣 2
2 𝐴𝐴 𝐴𝐴 2 𝐴𝐴 𝐴𝐴 2 𝐴𝐴 𝐴𝐴 2 𝐴𝐴 𝐴𝐴
𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 − 𝑢𝑢𝐴𝐴 = −(𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 − 𝑣𝑣𝐴𝐴 )
Impulse

𝐹𝐹𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎 ∆𝑣𝑣 = 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 − 𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑢

𝐽𝐽 = ∆𝐶𝐶 = 𝐹𝐹𝑣𝑣

Circular Motion
 𝑠𝑠 = 𝑝𝑝𝜃𝜃

𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣 𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑎𝑟𝑟
1 = 2𝜋𝜋
𝑠𝑠 𝑠𝑠
𝑣𝑣
𝑇𝑇 =
𝑝𝑝
1
𝑓𝑓 =
𝑇𝑇
𝜃𝜃 2𝜋𝜋
𝜔𝜔 = = = 2𝜋𝜋𝑓𝑓
𝑣𝑣 𝑇𝑇

𝑝𝑝𝜃𝜃
𝑣𝑣 = = 𝑝𝑝𝜔𝜔
𝑣𝑣
𝑣𝑣 2 4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝
𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 = = 𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝 = 2
𝑝𝑝 𝑇𝑇
𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2 4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝𝑚𝑚
𝐹𝐹𝑐𝑐 = 𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑎𝑐𝑐 = = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝 =
𝑝𝑝 𝑇𝑇 2
Velocity to loop the loop

𝑣𝑣 = �𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔

Conical pendulum

𝑣𝑣 2
tan 𝜃𝜃 =
𝑝𝑝𝑔𝑔

Gravitation
𝑚𝑚1 𝑚𝑚2
𝐹𝐹 = 𝐺𝐺
𝑝𝑝 2
𝐹𝐹 = 𝑊𝑊 = 𝑚𝑚𝑔𝑔
𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸
𝑔𝑔 = 𝐺𝐺
𝑝𝑝 2
𝑚𝑚1 𝑚𝑚2
𝐺𝐺𝑃𝑃𝐺𝐺 = −𝐺𝐺 = 𝐹𝐹𝑝𝑝 = 𝑊𝑊𝑝𝑝
𝑝𝑝
𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸 𝑚𝑚 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2
𝑊𝑊 𝑎𝑎𝑝𝑝 𝐹𝐹 = 𝐺𝐺 = 𝑚𝑚 2 𝑔𝑔 = = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 𝑝𝑝
𝑝𝑝 2 𝑝𝑝

𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸
𝑣𝑣 = �
𝑝𝑝

4𝜋𝜋 2 𝑝𝑝 3
𝑇𝑇 = �
𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝐸𝐸

Upthrust

𝑈𝑈 = (ℎ2 − ℎ1 )𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔 = 𝑉𝑉𝜌𝜌𝑔𝑔 = 𝑚𝑚𝑓𝑓𝑡𝑡𝑢𝑢𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑔𝑔

Drag

𝐹𝐹𝑓𝑓 = 6𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋𝑝𝑝𝑣𝑣 (𝑆𝑆𝑣𝑣𝑎𝑎𝑘𝑘𝑝𝑝 ′ 𝑠𝑠 𝐿𝐿𝑎𝑎𝑤𝑤)

 𝐹𝐹𝑓𝑓 = 𝐷𝐷𝐴𝐴𝜌𝜌𝑣𝑣 2

Equilibrium

� 𝐹𝐹 = 0

� 𝐴𝐴𝐶𝐶𝐴𝐴 = � 𝐶𝐶𝐴𝐴

� 𝜏𝜏 = � 𝐹𝐹𝑟𝑟 = 0

Simple Harmonic Motion

𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝑥𝑥

= ±𝜔𝜔�𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑥𝑥 2

Maximum velocity occurs at the equilibrium position, i.e. when x=0

𝑣𝑣𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴

𝑎𝑎𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴

If the displacement is given as 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣:

𝑣𝑣 = −𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣

𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣

If the displacement is given as 𝑥𝑥 = 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣:

𝑣𝑣 = 𝜔𝜔𝐴𝐴 cos 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣

𝑎𝑎 = −𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴 sin 𝜔𝜔𝑣𝑣

Energy and SHM

1
𝐾𝐾𝐺𝐺𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑥𝑥 = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 𝐴𝐴2
2
1
𝐾𝐾𝐺𝐺 = 𝑚𝑚𝜔𝜔2 (𝐴𝐴2 − 𝑥𝑥 2 )
2

Mass Spring Oscillator

𝑘𝑘
𝑎𝑎 = − 𝑥𝑥
𝑚𝑚
𝑚𝑚
𝑇𝑇 = 2𝜋𝜋�
𝑘𝑘
1 2 1 2 1
𝑘𝑘𝐴𝐴 = 𝑘𝑘𝑥𝑥 + 𝑚𝑚𝑣𝑣 2
2 2 2

For springs in parallel:

𝑘𝑘𝑤𝑤𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 = 𝑘𝑘1 + 𝑘𝑘2

For springs in series:

1 1 1
= +
𝑘𝑘𝑤𝑤𝑓𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑘𝑘1 𝑘𝑘2
Simple Pendulum

=2

Waves

= = =

2
=

=2

Standing Waves

Closed Tube

2
=

=
2

= =
2
1
= = ,
2 2

In an open tube:

4
=
2 +1

= (2 + 1) = (2 + 1)
4

Optics
 sin = sin

sin
= = =
sin

= ,

sin = sin 90

sin =

When n2 is 1 (i.e. medium 2 is air)

1
sin =

Interference

sin = , =

= ( )

Physics of the Ear and Eye

=
4

(330 + 0.60 )

( ) = 10 log

1
( )=

1 1 1
= = +

= =

= 1

Thermal Physics

( )=

T (K) = + 273.15

= × 273.16
 = =

= ( )

Kinetic Theory

= =

1
=
3
1
=
3
3
, =
2
3 3
= =
2 2

3
=

First Law of Thermodynamics

= +

Name of Process Description Resulting State Equation

Adiabatic No heat supplied or removed from the =
system, =0
Isovolumetric/Isochoric/Constant- No work done on or by the system. =
Volume There must be a volume change for
work to be done. =0
Isothermal/Constant-Temperature Temperature is maintained constant =0
throughout the expansion or
= ln
compression. =0
Isobaric/Constant-Pressure Pressure remains constant, =
>0 Proof:
=

= ×

= × ( )
=
Isolated/Free Expansion No interaction with the surroundings. = = =0
Cyclic Process System begins and ends in the same = = =0
state

= =

= + =

= +

=( )( )

Mechanical Properties of Matter

Young’s Modulus, = = =

= =

= =

1 1
= =
2 2
1
= ×
2
Happy Physics!
-Quelpr-san