Elaboration of the class discussion on line, surface and volume elements in cylin-

drical and spherical coordinate systems

August 8, 2017

M. M. Devi
Tezpur University, Assam 784028, INDIA
devimm[a]tezu.ernet.in

1 Cylindrical Polar Coordinate System:

Let us consider a point A (ρ, θ, z) in cylindrical polar coordinates as shown in Fig. 1. Let us
assume that with an infinitesimal displacement of A we reach B (ρ + dρ, θ + dθ, z + dz). The
unit vectors are (êρ , êθ , êz ).

Note that, the coordinates of the points of the parallelepiped shown in Fig. 1) are:

Point Coordinate Point Coordinate

A (ρ, θ, z) C (ρ, θ, z+dz)
D (ρ, θ+dθ, z+dz) H (ρ, θ+dθ, dz)
F (ρ + dρ, θ, dz) G (ρ + dρ, θ, z + dz)
E (ρ + dρ, θ + dθ, dz) B (ρ + dρ, θ + dθ, z + dz)
#» # »
The line element vector (ds) is defined as the vector AB. From the rules of vector addition,
#» # » # » # » # »
ds = AB = AC + CD + DB (1)
We have, from Fig. 1,
# »
AC (i.e., infinitesimal change along Z axis) = dz êz (2)
# »
CD (i.e., arc length for infinitesimal change dθ) = ρ dθ êθ (3)
# »
DB (i.e., infinitesimal change along ρ) = dρ êρ (4)
So, Eq. (11) results in:
#»
ds = dz êz + ρ dθ êθ + dρ êρ (5)
#»
And, the square of the line element (|ds|) is
#» #»
(ds)2 = ds.ds = (dz)2 + (ρ dθ)2 + (dρ)2 (6)
Area of the surface element ACGF, dA1 , is :

dA1 = dρ dz (7)

Area of the surface element ACDH, dA2 , is :

dA2 = ρ dθ dz (8)

Area of the surface element AHEF, dA3 , is :

dA3 = ρ dθ dρ (9)

1
 D
C B (ρ+dρ, θ+dθ, z+dz)
G
dz
H

A (ρ, θ, z) E
dρ F

ρ dθ
θ
ρ dθ

Figure 1: Elements in Cylindrical Polar Coordinate System

Volume of the element AFEHDCGB, dV , is :

dV = ρ dρ dθ dz (10)

Assignment: Define the area vectors for each of the surfaces and identify their
directions. Hint: Cross Product

2 Spherical Polar Coordinate System:

Let us consider a point A (r, θ, φ) in spherical polar coordinates as shown in Fig. 2. Let us
assume that with an infinitesimal displacement of A we reach B (r + dr, θ + dθ, φ + dφ). The
unit vectors are (êr , êθ , êφ ).

The coordinates of the points of the parallelepiped shown in Fig. 2) are:

Point Coordinate Point Coordinate

A (r, θ, φ) C (r+dr, θ, φ)
D (r+dr, θ+dθ, φ) H (r, θ+dθ, φ)
F (r, θ, φ+dφ) G (r + dr, θ, φ+dφ)
E (r, θ + dθ, φ+dφ) B (r + dr, θ + dθ, φ+dφ)

2
 D
C

dθ H
r cosφ

E
φ
r F

dφ

θ dθ

Figure 2: Elements in Spherical Polar Coordinate System

#»
The line element vector (ds),
#» # » # » # » # »
ds = AB = AF + F E + EB = r dφ êφ + r sin φ dθ êθ + dr êr (11)
#»
the square of the line element (|ds|) is
#» #»
(ds)2 = ds.ds = (dr)2 + (r sin φ dθ)2 + (r dφ)2 (12)
Assignment: Calculate the area elements dA1 (ACGF), dA2 (AHEF) and dA3
(ACDH); and the volume element dV (ACGFEBDH).