Chapter 1: Physics and

Measurement

1.1 Standards of Length, Mass, and Time

1.2 Matter and Model Building
1.3 Dimensional Analysis
1.4 Conversion of Units
 Chương 1: Vật lý và đo lường

1.1 Các chuẩn về chiều dài, khối lượng và thời gian

1.2 Vật chất và xây dựng mô hình
1.3 Phân tích thứ nguyên
1.4 Chuyển đổi đơn vị
 Physics
 Physics is fundamental science which concerned
with the fundamental principles of the universe
 Physics is divided into six major areas:
 Classical Mechanics
 Thermodynamics
 Electromagnetism
 Optics
 Quantum Mechanics
 Relativity

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 Objectives of Physics
 To find the limited number of fundamental laws
that govern natural phenomena
 To use these laws to develop theories that can
predict the results of future experiments
 Express the laws in the language of
mathematics
Mathematics provides the bridge between
theory and experiment.

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Classical Physics vs Modern Physics
 Classical physics  Began at end of 19
includes principles in century, related to
many branches phenomena that
developed before could not be
1900. explained by
 Mechanics: Major classical physics.
developments by  Theories of
Newton. relativity
 Thermodynamics  Quantum
 Optics mechanics
 Electromagnetism
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 Special Relativity
(Thuyết tương đối hẹp)
 Correctly describes motion of objects moving
near the speed of light
 Modifies the traditional concepts of space, time,
and energy
 Shows the speed of light is the upper limit for the
speed of an object
 Shows mass and energy are related

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 Quantum Mechanics
 Formulated to describe physical phenomena at
the atomic level
 Led to the development of many practical
devices

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1.1 Standards of Length,
Mass, and Time
 Measurements
 Used to describe natural phenomena
 Each measurement is associated with a physical
quantity
 Need defined standards
 Characteristics of standards for measurements
◦ Readily accessible
◦ Possess some property that can be measured
reliably
◦ Must yield the same results when used by anyone
anywhere
◦ Cannot change with time
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Standards of Fundamental Quantities

Standardized systems
Agreed upon by some authority, usually a
governmental body
SI – Systéme International
Agreed to in 1960 by an international committee
Main system used in this text

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Fundamental Quantities and Their Units
Quantity SI Unit
Length meter

Mass kilogram

Time second

Temperature Kelvin

Electric Current Ampere

Luminous Intensity Candela

Amount of Substance mole

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Quantities Used in Mechanics
In mechanics, three fundamental quantities are
used:
Length
Mass
Time
All other quantities in mechanics can be expressed
in terms of the three fundamental quantities.

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 Length
Length is the distance between two points in
space.
Units
SI – meter, m
Defined in terms of a meter – the distance traveled
by light in a vacuum during a given time

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 Mass
Units
SI – kilogram, kg
Defined in terms of a kilogram, based on a specific
cylinder kept at the International Bureau of
Standards

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 Time
Units
seconds, s
Defined in terms of the oscillation of radiation from
a cesium atom

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 Prefixes
Prefixes correspond to powers of 10.
Each prefix has a specific name.
Each prefix has a specific abbreviation.
The prefixes can be used with any basic units.
They are multipliers of the basic unit.
Examples:
1 mm = 10-3 m
1 mg = 10-3 g

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Prefixes

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 Fundamental and Derived Units
Derived quantities can be expressed as a
mathematical combination of fundamental
quantities.
Examples:
Area
A product of two lengths
Speed
A ratio of a length to a time interval
Density
A ratio of mass to volume
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1.2 Matter and Model Building
 Model Building
(Xây dựng mô hình)
A model is a system of physical components.
 Useful when you cannot interact directly with
the phenomenon
 Identifies the physical components
 Makes predictions about the behavior of the
system

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 Models of Matter
• Some Greeks thought
matter is made of atoms.
– No additional structure
• JJ Thomson (1897) found
electrons and showed
atoms had structure.
• Rutherford (1911)
determined a central
nucleus surrounded by
electrons.
• Bohr model (1913)

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 Models of Matter
Nucleus has structure, containing protons and
neutrons
Number of protons gives atomic number
Number of protons and neutrons gives mass
number
Protons and neutrons are made up of quarks.

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1.3 Dimensional Analysis
(Phân tích thứ nguyên)
 Basic Quantities and Their
Dimension
Dimension has a specific meaning – it denotes the
physical nature of a quantity.
Dimensions are often denoted with square
brackets.
Length [L]
Mass [M]
Time [T]

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 Dimensions and Units
• Each dimension can have many actual
units.
• Table 1.5 for the dimensions and units of
some derived quantities

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 Dimensional Analysis
 Technique to check the correctness of an
equation or to assist in deriving an equation
 Dimensions (length, mass, time, combinations)
can be treated as algebraic quantities.
◦ Add, subtract, multiply, divide
 Both sides of equation must have the same
dimensions.

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 Dimensional Analysis, example
Given the equation: x = ½ at 2
Check dimensions on each side:
L
L  2 T L
2

T
The T2’s cancel, leaving L for the dimensions of
each side.
The equation is dimensionally correct.
There are no dimensions for the constant.

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1.4 Conversion of Units
 Conversion of Units
 When units are not consistent, you may need to
convert to appropriate ones.
 See Appendix A for an extensive list of
conversion factors.
 Units can be treated like algebraic quantities
that can cancel each other out.

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 Conversion
 Always include units for every quantity, you can
carry the units through the entire calculation.
◦ Will help detect possible errors
 Multiply original value by a ratio equal to one.
 Example:
15.0 in  ? cm
 2.54 cm 
15.0 in    38.1cm
 1in 

◦ Note the value inside the parentheses is equal

to 1, since 1 inch is defined as 2.54 cm.
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