Lecture Notes Mechanics 2022 PDF

Lecture Notes Mechanics 2022

Ruud van Damme, Yorick Birkhölzer, Michel de Jong

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Contents
1. Solving problems. .................................................................................................................. 5
1.1 Solving strategies. ........................................................................................................... 5
1.2 Dimensional arguments. ................................................................................................. 6
1.3 Arguments by checking limiting cases. ............................................................................ 7
Concept Questions. ............................................................................................................. 10
Tutorial Questions. .............................................................................................................. 10
2. Motion in One Dimension. .................................................................................................. 12
2.1 Motion in 1D. ................................................................................................................ 12
3. Motion in Two and Three Dimensions. ............................................................................... 17
3.1 Motion in 2D and 3D. .................................................................................................... 17
3.2 Special case: Projectile Motion. ..................................................................................... 18
3.3 Special case: Motion on a Circle. ................................................................................... 20
4. Working with Newton’s laws (part 1). ................................................................................. 25
4.1 Newton’s laws. .............................................................................................................. 25
4.2 The use of vectors. ........................................................................................................ 25
4.3 The use of vectors (continued). ..................................................................................... 27
4.4 Examples of forces. ....................................................................................................... 29
5. Newton’s laws (part 2). ....................................................................................................... 37
5.1 Friction. ......................................................................................................................... 37
5.2 Examples with friction. .................................................................................................. 38
5.3 Centre of mass. ............................................................................................................. 39
6. Work and Energy. ................................................................................................................ 44
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6.1 Work done by constant forces. ..................................................................................... 44
6.2 Work done by variable forces and arbitrary displacements. ......................................... 45
6.3 Potential energy. ........................................................................................................... 47
7. Momentum. ........................................................................................................................ 53
7.1 Momentum, Conservation of Momentum. ................................................................... 53
7.2 Collisions. ...................................................................................................................... 54
8. Rotations, moment of inertia. ............................................................................................. 60
8.1 Rotations. ...................................................................................................................... 61
8.2 Kinetic energy. ............................................................................................................... 61
8.3 Computation of the moment of inertia. ........................................................................ 63
8.4 A list of moments of inertia of certain shapes. .............................................................. 64
9. Torque. ................................................................................................................................ 69
10. Angular momentum. ......................................................................................................... 80
10.1 Real three dimensional mechanics: Torque. ................................................................ 80
10.2 Real three dimensional mechanics: Angular momentum. ........................................... 81
10.3 Real three dimensional mechanics: Translation and Rotation. .................................... 82
10.4 Real three dimensional mechanics: Newton laws. ...................................................... 82
11. Statics. ............................................................................................................................... 87
11.1 Zero force and torque. ................................................................................................ 87
11.2 Choosing an origin. ...................................................................................................... 87
12. Oscillations. ....................................................................................................................... 91
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12.1 Hooke’s law. ................................................................................................................ 91
12.2 Simple harmonic motion. ............................................................................................ 91
12.3 Initial conditions. ......................................................................................................... 92
12.4 Some oscillating systems ............................................................................................. 93
12.5 Damped oscillations .................................................................................................... 94
References ............................................................................................................................ 104

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1. Solving problems.
1.1 Solving strategies.
Here we discuss some strategies that can help you to solve problems. This applies not only to mechanics,
but also more generally to physics problems.

1) Draw a diagram, if appropriate. Indicate all data that is known (for this course: forces, accelerations,
lengths, masses, layout, etc.).
2) Write down what you know, and what you are trying to find.
3) Write down whether or not the laws of mechanics apply:
1) Newton’s 3 laws;
2) The law of conservation of energy;
3) The law of conservation of momentum;
4) The law of conservation of angular momentum.
The last two may be new to you. It will take a few weeks before we get there, so do not worry.
4) You will be solving things symbolically, so almost never with numbers. So, e.g., you use 𝑔 for the
gravitatonal acceleration, and not 9.8 m/s . I am pretty sure you are not used to this as it is not done in
high school – which is a pity as in this way it is so much easier. However, it requires some practice to get
used to it.
Using variables/symbols has many advantages – I hope you will soon realize this as well:
i) It is quicker: it is easier to multiply 𝑣 and 𝑡, then 30.789 with 2.12.
ii) It gives fewer mistakes. When you multiply 30.789 with 2.12 you may type the wrong
numbers or you typed in instead of ∗, using your calculator. In other words in this course you
will not use a calculator! This comes as a shock?
iii) It is easier to spot errors. If you add 𝑣 and 𝑡 you can see that does not fit as you add “apples
and oranges” (in Dutch: “appels en peren”). If you compute 30.789 2.12 32.909 you have
no clue whether it makes sense or not.
iv) You have the powerful tool to check results on dimensions. If you multiply 𝑣 and 𝑡 and (1)
𝑣 has dimension length divided by time with units 𝑚/𝑠, (2) 𝑡 has dimension time with units 𝑠,
then (3) the product is a length in units 𝑚, let us call it ℓ, so the following equation makes sense:
ℓ 𝑣 ⋅ 𝑡.
Of course you can write
. .
ℓ ⋅ 2.12𝑠 ⋅ 𝑠 65.273𝑚,

but seriously: did you ever do that?
v) It is possible to consider limiting cases. We will give a few examples below.

More new things. In this course we add to many problems the question whether you can come up with
sanity checks. We also give you how many sensible independent checks we think are possible.
# Checks 𝑛: asks for 𝑛 tests with which you can validate your final result, or invalidate it. Note that the

latter is also good, as noticing that something is wrong (e.g. on an exam) is worth much more than just
giving the wrong answer without reflection.
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You will be dealing with two sorts of checks:
i) The dimension of your answer is correct (or not);
ii) Your solution which makes a general claim can sometimes be analysed for special values of the
parameters in the problem at hand.
In the next two sections we give examples of such checks.
1.2 Dimensional arguments.
[1]: Sections 1.2‐1.4.
The result of a physical measurement will always be a number with a unit. The unit corresponds to the
dimension of that physical quantity. In mechanics we have basically three of them: length, time, and
mass.1
1) A distance, 𝑑, between two objects is a length; its dimension is denoted by 𝑑 ℒ, with SI unit m
(meter);
2) The time difference between beginning and end of a process, 𝑡; its dimension is denoted by 𝑡 𝛵,
with SI unit s (second);
3) The mass of an object 𝑚: 𝑚 ℳ, SI unit kg (kilogram).
Example
Dimensions of derived quantities can be determined by considering equations that they are part of.
i) The area 𝐴 of an object, 𝐴 ℒ , SI unit m
ii) The volume 𝑉 of an object, 𝑉 ℒ , SI unit m
iii) A displacement 𝑠, velocity 𝑣 and acceleration 𝑎;
𝑠 𝑠 𝑣𝑡 𝑎𝑡
This formula is only valid if 𝑎 is constant, but the dimensions should fit:
𝑠 ℒ 𝑣𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣𝛵→ 𝑣 ℒ/𝛵, SI unit m/s
and
𝑠 ℒ 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑡 𝑎𝛵 → 𝑎 ℒ/𝛵 , SI unit m/s
iv) The dimension of force can, e.g., be found by Newton’s law, 𝐹 𝑚𝑎
𝐹 𝑚 𝑎 ℳℒ/𝛵 .
Force is usually expressed in the SI units 𝑁 𝑘𝑔 ⋅ 𝑚/𝑠 .
v) For energy we can use kinetic energy, 𝐸 𝑚𝑣 :
𝐸 𝑚𝑣 𝑚 𝑣 ℳℒ /𝛵 .
Or we use potential energy 𝐸 𝑚𝑔ℎ:
𝐸 𝑚𝑔ℎ 𝑚 𝑔 ℎ ℳ ⋅ ℒ/𝛵 ⋅ ℒ ℳℒ /𝛵 .
Energy is usually expressed in SI units 𝐽 𝑁𝑚 𝑘𝑔 ⋅ 𝑚 /𝑠
vi) Power is energy divided by time, so ℳℒ /𝛵 with as SI unit 𝑊 𝐽/𝑠 𝑘𝑔 ⋅ 𝑚 /𝑠 .
The following example shows how you can check your final answer using dimensions.

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Others are, e.g., temperature, electric current, amount of light, but they do not play a role in this course.
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Example
A pendulum consisting of a very thin bar of length ℓ with a heavy mass 𝑚 at the end of it swings without any
friction due to gravity (the gravitational acceleration constant is denoted by 𝑔, as always in this course). Which
of the following expressions cannot be correct for the period, time 𝑡?
ℓ ℓ ℓ
𝑡 ,𝑡 ,𝑡 ,𝑡 ,𝑡 .
ℓ ℓ
Answers 𝑡 ‐𝑡 cannot be right, only 𝑡 can (but need not). We of course know

ℒ
𝑡 𝛵, ℓ ℒ, 𝑚 ℳ, 𝑔 .
Next
ℒ/
𝑡 ℓ ℓ ℒ
𝛵.
The expressions 𝑡 , 𝑡 contain a mass, which cannot enter the solution as an ℳ cannot be canceled. Next 𝑡

cannot be right as
𝑡 𝑡 → 𝑡 𝛵.
Because 𝑡 2𝜋/𝑡 this expression is the only expression that might fit:

ℓ ℓ / ℒ /
/
𝑡 𝛵 𝛵: .
ℒ/
Note that we cannot make the claim that 𝑡 is the correct result: for that you need to do a detailed computation.
But you can claim that the other four are nonsense.

1.3 Arguments by checking limiting cases.
Another type of check can be obtained by examining special or limiting cases of the parameters.
Example
Consider a pulley attached to the ceiling with a string. This is called an Atwood machine (named after its inventor,
mathematician George Atwood). It consists of two objects of mass 𝑚 and 𝑚 , connected by an inextensible
(unstrechable) string over this pulley (Figure below (left)).
We assume that the strings and pulley are massless. Moreover, we assume at time 𝑡 0 the two masses have
no velocity.
What will happen if the masses are released? The answer to this question is relatively easy.
i) If 𝑚 𝑚 , then mass 𝑚 will go down with some acceleration 𝑎 and the other mass (𝑚 ) will go up with
the same acceleration. So the red arrows 𝑎 in the Figure (right) point in the proper direction: the value of 𝑎 will
be positive.
ii) If 𝑚 𝑚 it is exactly the other way around. Mass 𝑚 will go down with some acceleration 𝑎 and the
other mass (𝑚 ) will go up with the same acceleration. In this case the red arrows 𝑎 in the Figure (right) point in
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the wrong direction: hence the value of 𝑎 will be negative.
iii) If 𝑚 𝑚 we know that nothing happens, i.e., 𝑎 0.
Later on, we will discuss how to compute the value of 𝑎. Here we present some possible expressions that may
be the proper expression for the value of 𝑎.

The question is now if we can say, without doing the actual computation, which of those expressions can be the
real solution to the problem, and which can NOT be the proper expression.
(a) 𝑎 𝑚 𝑚 𝑔
(b) 𝑎 𝑔
(c) 𝑎 𝑔
(d) 𝑎 𝑔
(e) 𝑎 𝑔
(f) 𝑎 𝑔
(g) 𝑎 𝑔
Before looking at the answer below, make a guess whether the expressions (a) until (g) can or cannot be the

proper expression.
(a) 𝑎 𝑚 𝑚 𝑔. This cannot be right. The dimensions on both sides are not equal. .
(b) 𝑎 𝑔. This now is proper when it comes to dimensions. But there is something weird here. The
expression is not symmetric if we interchange mass 𝑚 and 𝑚 – How can the machine know which is 𝑚 and
which is 𝑚 ? So I would discard this expression because of that. (Physics is beautiful.) .
(c) 𝑎 𝑔. This looks OK. Dimensions fit and it satisfies our requirements (i)–(iii). .
(d) 𝑎 𝑔. Wrong. The sign of the solution is wrong. .
(e) 𝑎 𝑔. At first sight this looks possible. But I have another trick up my sleeve. What if 𝑚 0? Look
at the experiment. What acceleration will 𝑚 have if 𝑚 0? Right, 𝑔. So this in front is not allowed! .
(f) 𝑎 𝑔. Wrong. The answer is always positive. .
(g) 𝑎 𝑔. From this expression we cannot say that is wrong or right. .
An actual computation must decide whether (c) or (g) or yet another expression is the correct one. (And the
answer is (c) as we will see later.)
Example
A ball with mass 𝑚 moving with velocity 𝑉 collides head‐on elastically with a ball with the same size but with
mass 𝑚 that is initially at rest. The question is to find the velocities after the collision of both masses.

Student 𝑎 obtained
𝑣 ,𝑣 .
whereas student 𝑏 arrived at:
𝑣 ,𝑣 .
Who can be right, who is absolutely wrong, student 𝑎 or student 𝑏?
# Checks 4.
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These 4 checks can be:
(1) The dimensions of the quantities are correct for both students:
ℳ
𝑣 𝑉 ℒ/𝛵:.
ℳ
ℳ
𝑣 𝑉 ℒ/𝛵:.
ℳ
Numerical differences (scalar prefactors, here 2) never play a role in dimensional considerations.
(2) If the balls have the same mass, so 𝑚 𝑚 we see that the velocity is exchanged, 𝑣 0, 𝑣 𝑉. Okay,
maybe you never played pool, but this sounds logical, right?
(3) Student 𝑎: If 𝑚 → ∞ we obtain 𝑣 2𝑉, 𝑣 0; 𝑚 bounces back as 𝑚 serves as a fixed wall.
But this factor of 2 is wrong? Ball 𝑚 ’just bounces back’, so only student 𝑏 can be right (𝑣 𝑉).
(4) Student 𝑎 failed to be correct in check (3). Therefore we only need to see if student 𝑏 can be correct in
our fourth check.
If 𝑚 → ∞ student 𝑏 predicts 𝑣 𝑉, 𝑣 2𝑉. This factor of 2 seems peculiar, but it can be explained (and

don’t feel bad that you did not find it yourself): Suppose you observe the collision as you walk with velocity 𝑉,
the velocity of ball 𝑚 . What you see is ball 𝑚 in rest and 𝑚 coming towards ball 𝑚 with velocity 𝑉; i.e.,
it has a velocity 𝑉. When it hits the heavy ball, this acts as a fixed wall (just as in the case 𝑚 → ∞) so it bounces
back and gets velocity 𝑉. The difference in velocity after and before is indeed 2𝑉. This principle of moving
along at constant velocity experiencing the same physics is called Galilean Invariance
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galilean_invariance).

So in all: student 𝑎 is wrong, the answer of student 𝑏 could be correct.

Observe that you can never achieve this in problems where you ’just use numbers’. Moreover, observe
that we have the following ’identities’:
ℒ ℒ ℒ, ℒ 𝛵 , i.e. impossible.
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Concept Questions.
CQ1.1 A spring with spring constant 𝑘 has a mass 𝑚 on its end (see Figure below).
The spring force is 𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥, where 𝑥 is the displacement from the equilibrium position. What does

dimensional analysis say about the frequency of oscillations expressed in terms of the mass and the spring
constant?
CQ 1.2 Two massless strings support a mass 𝑚 (see Figure below).
Which of the following quantities is the tension (that is, force) 𝑇 in each string?
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)

Don’t solve things from scratch, that will come later. Just check special cases.

CQ 1.3 The following question is based on the calculation of a famous English physicist named Taylor. In
a nuclear explosion, an enormous amount of energy is instantly generated in a small space. This produces
a shock wave where the pressure inside the wave is thousands of times greater than outside.

Now the question is: How does the radius 𝑅 of the shock wave grow over time? The relevant variables
are the energy 𝐸, the time 𝑡 and the initial air density 𝜌?

Tutorial Questions.
TQ 1.1 Important scales in physics just after the Big Bang are Planck time and Planck length. Both have a
value that is based on three fundamental constants:
(i) the speed of light (the fundamental constant of relativity), 𝑐 3.00 ⋅ 10 m/s;
(ii) Newton’s gravitational constant, 𝐺 6.67 ⋅ 10 𝑚 / 𝑘𝑔 ⋅ 𝑠 ;
(iii) Planck’s constant (the fundamental constant of quantum mechanics), ℎ 6.63 ⋅ 10 𝑘𝑔 ⋅ 𝑚 /𝑠.
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Based on a dimensional analysis, find the values of
(a) the Planck time 𝑡 ,
(b) the Planck length ℓ .
Do that by assuming that each quantity is written as 𝑐 𝐺 ℎ .
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2. Motion in One Dimension.
[1]: Chapter 2.
2.1 Motion in 1D.

Definition
If an object is at 𝑥 at some time 𝑡 and at 𝑥 at some time 𝑡 we say that the displacement is 𝑥 𝑥 , a
quantity that can be negative, zero or positive. It has dimension length ℒ.
The average velocity is defined as
𝑣 ,
which has a dimension ℒ/ 𝛵.

In daily life we usually use “distance” instead of “displacement”. If you travel from your home in Enschede
to Amsterdam for a visit to a museum and return home 12 hours later, the physical displacement is 0𝑚
and average velocity 𝑣 0𝑚/𝑠. In daily life you of course use distance which is around 300𝑘𝑚 and
average speed 25𝑘𝑚/ℎ. But in physics we stick to displacements and velocities.
Definition
If an object has velocity 𝑣 at some time 𝑡 and 𝑣 at some time 𝑡 we say that the change in velocity is
𝑣 𝑣 , a quantity that can be negative, zero or positive. It has dimension ℒ/𝛵.
The average acceleration is then defined as
𝑎 ,
which has a dimension ℒ/𝛵 .
In physical laws only displacement, velocity and acceleration are used and we do this in differential form:
we use calculus on the interval 𝑡 𝑡, 𝑡 𝑡 Δ𝑡 :
𝑣 →𝑣 𝑡 lim 𝑥 𝑡 .
→
(Either you saw this in a math course, or you will soon see it.)

Definition
For an object located at 𝑥 𝑡 we define the velocity, 𝑣 𝑡 , as
𝑣 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 𝑥′ 𝑡
which has a dimension ℒ/𝛵.
For an object located at 𝑥 𝑡 we define the acceleration 𝑎 𝑡 , as

𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 𝑥′′ 𝑡

which has a dimension ℒ/𝛵 .
Note that the definitions of 𝑣 and 𝑎 also must be consistent with their dimensions:

ℒ
𝑣 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 → 𝑣 , 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 → 𝑎 ℒ/𝛵 ,
and so we have to define
, .
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Example
Suppose a particle has a position 𝑥 𝑡 𝑟sin𝜔𝑡. Its velocity is given by
𝑣 𝑡 𝑥′ 𝑡 𝑟 sin 𝜔𝑡 𝜔𝑟cos 𝜔𝑡 , → 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣′ 𝑡 𝜔𝑟cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜔 𝑟sin 𝜔𝑡 .
The displacement of the particle from 𝑡 0 at 𝑡 𝜋/𝜔, 𝜋/𝜔, 2𝜋/𝜔 is

𝑥 𝜋/𝜔 𝑥 0 𝑟, 𝑥 𝜋/𝜔 𝑥 0 0, 𝑥 2𝜋/𝜔 𝑥 0 0.
The average velocity from 𝑡 0 at 𝑡 𝜋/𝜔, 𝜋/𝜔, 2𝜋/𝜔 is

/ / /
, 0, 0.
/ / /
Example
Suppose a particle accelerates with 𝑎 𝑡 𝑔 from 𝑡 0 with a starting velocity 𝑣 0 𝑣 and initial
position 𝑥 0 𝑥 ; this is a common situation, like an apple dropping on Newton’s head (assuming no air
resistence). Then the velocity of the particle is given by:
𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑎 𝑡 →𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑎 𝑡′ d𝑡′ 𝑣 𝑔𝑑𝑡′ 𝑣 𝑔𝑡′ 𝑣 𝑔𝑡.

The position as a function of time is therefore:
𝑥′ 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 →𝑥 𝑡 𝑥 0 𝑣 𝑡′ d𝑡′ 𝑥 𝑣 𝑔𝑡′ 𝑑𝑡′ 𝑥 𝑣 𝑡 𝑔𝑡 .
Beware that this (maybe familiar) result can only be used if the acceleration, 𝑎 𝑡 , is constant.
Example
Suppose a particle accelerates with 𝑎 𝑡 𝛾𝑡 from 𝑡 0 with a starting velocity 𝑣 and initial position
𝑥 0 𝑥 . Then the velocity of the particle can be obtained by integration:
𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑎 𝑡 →𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑎 𝑡′ d𝑡′ 𝑣 𝛾 𝑡′𝑑𝑡′ 𝑣 𝛾𝑡′ | 𝑣 𝛾𝑡 .
The position as a function of time is, again using integration,
𝑥′ 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 →𝑥 𝑡 𝑥 0 𝑣 𝑡′ d𝑡′ 𝑣 𝛾𝑡′ 𝑑𝑡′ 𝑥 𝑣 𝑡 𝛾𝑡 .
# Checks 2.
?
(1) 𝛾 has dimension 𝑎 / 𝑡 ℒ/𝛵 . Check 𝑣 𝑡 𝛾 𝑡 ℒ/𝛵:  (i.e., it fits).
?
(2) Check 𝑥 𝑡 𝛾 𝑡 ℒ: .

13

Concept Questions.
CQ2.1 The displacement always equals the product of the average velocity and the time interval. True or
False? (And explain your choice.)
CQ2.2 Average velocity always equals one‐half the sum of the initial and final velocities. True or False?
(And explain your choice.)

CQ2.3 The Figure below gives 𝑥 𝑡 . Make a rough sketch of 𝑣 𝑡 and 𝑎 𝑡 .
CQ2.4 (From [6]) The position of an object as a function of time 𝑡 is given by 𝑥 𝛽𝑡 . Find:

(a) the dimension of parameter 𝛽,
(b) the instantaneous velocities and the instantaneous accelerations at time 𝑡,
(c) the average velocity and the average acceleration for an initial time of zero and arbitrary final time 𝑡.

# Checks 2.
(1) Are the dimension 𝑣 and 𝑣 correct?
(2) Are the dimension 𝑎 and 𝑎 correct?

Tutorial Questions.
TQ 2.1 Dr. Josiah S. Carberry stands at the top of the Sears Tower in Chicago. Wanting to emulate Galileo,
and ignoring the safety of the pedestrians below, he drops a bowling ball from the top of the tower. One
second later, he drops a second bowling ball. While the balls are in the air, does their separation
(a) increase over time?
(b) decrease?
(c) stay the same?
Ignore any effect due to air resistance.

TQ2.2 If the velocity as a function of time is given by 𝑣 𝑡 𝐴𝑡 , and if the position, 𝑥 𝑡 , satisfies
𝑥 0 0, 𝑎 0 0 at 𝑡 0 what are 𝑥 𝑡 and 𝑎 𝑡 ?
(a) 𝑥 𝑡 3𝐴𝑡 , 𝑎 𝑡 𝐴𝑡
(b) 𝑥 𝑡 2𝐴𝑡, 𝑎 𝑡 𝐴𝑡
(c) 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑡 , 𝑎 𝑡 2𝐴𝑡
(d) 𝑥 𝑡 2𝐴𝑡, 𝑎 𝑡 𝐴𝑡 const.
(e) 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑡 const. , 𝑎 𝑡 2𝐴𝑡
14

(f) None of the above

TQ2.3 Given 𝑣 𝑡 𝐴 𝐵𝑡. Determine the total displacement an object with velocity 𝑣 𝑡 travels from
𝑡 to 𝑡 𝑡 . What is the average velocity (simplify the answer as far as you can)?
TQ2.4 A rock is dropped from a cliff of height 𝐿. How long does it take to fall (ignoring friction) (a) the

first 𝐿/2 and
(b) the second 𝐿/2?

Hint: Make an 𝑥 𝑡 diagram.
# Checks 1.
(1) Are the dimensions of the obtained times correct?
TQ2.5 A speeder traveling at a constant speed of 𝑣 races past a billboard. A patrol car pursues from rest
with constant acceleration 𝑎 . This car, however, has a maximum speed 𝑤 . If the car reaches this
maximum speed it will maintain that speed. We assume that 𝑣 𝑤 2𝑣 .
(a) Show that the patrol car has velocity 𝑤 when it catches up with the speeder.
(b) Compute the time when the catching up is achieved.
Hint: Make for both cars one 𝑥 𝑡 diagram .
# Checks 3.
(1) Dimension check on the times obtained?
(2) What happens for the special case 𝑤 𝑣 ? Does that coincide with what you expect?
(3) What happens for the special case 𝑤 2𝑣 ? Does that coincide with what you expect?
TQ2.6 Consider the motion of a particle that experiences a variable acceleration given by 𝑎 𝑎 𝑏𝑡,
where 𝑎 and 𝑏 are constants. Furthermore 𝑥 0 𝑥 and 𝑣 0 𝑣 .
(a) Find the instantaneous velocity as a function of time.
(b) Find the position as a function of time.
(c) Find the average velocity for the time interval with an initial time of zero and arbitrary final time 𝑡.
(d) Compare the average of the initial and final velocities to your answer to part (c).
(e) Are these two averages equal? Explain.
# Checks 2.
TQ2.7 (From [6]) At the National Physical Laboratory in England, a measurement of the acceleration 𝑔
was made by throwing a glass ball straight up in an evacuated tube and letting it return, as shown in the
Figure below. Let Δ𝑡 be the time interval between the two passages across the lower level, Δ𝑡 the
time interval between the two passages across the upper level, and ℎ the distance between the two
levels. Show that:
𝑔 .
# Checks: 2.
(1) Does 𝑔 have the proper dimension?
(2) Special case: what if Δ𝑡 0?

15

TQ2.8
(a) Starting at one station, a subway train accelerates from rest at a constant rate of 1𝑚/𝑠 for half the
distance to the next station, then slows down at the same rate for the second half of the journey. The
total distance between stations is 900 m. Compute 𝑣 𝑡 , 𝑥 𝑡 and make a sketch of them.
(b) Starting at one station, a subway train accelerates from rest at a constant rate of 𝑎 for half the
distance to the next station, then slows down at the same rate for the second half of the journey. The
total distance between stations is ℓ. Compute 𝑣 𝑡 , 𝑥 𝑡 .
# Checks: are your solutions from (b) consistent with the solution of (a)?

16

3. Motion in Two and Three Dimensions.
[1]: Chapter 3.
3.1 Motion in 2D and 3D.
[1]: Sections 3.1‐3.2.
Previously we discussed the difference between displacement and distance, and also between velocity
and speed. The entities displacement, velocity and acceleration are the only ones we will need.
Displacement, velocity, acceleration are now vectors. Their definitions are not much different from the
one dimensional case.
Definition
If an object is at 𝑟⃗ at some time 𝑡 and at 𝑟⃗ at some time 𝑡 we say that the displacement is 𝑟⃗ 𝑟⃗ , which
is a vector. Each component has dimension ℒ.
The average velocity is defined as
⃗ ⃗
𝑣⃗ ,
of which each component has a dimension ℒ/𝛵.

Definition
If an object has a velocity 𝑣⃗ at some time 𝑡 and at 𝑣⃗ at some time 𝑡 we say that the change in velocity is
𝑣⃗ 𝑣⃗ , which is a vector. Each component has dimension ℒ/𝛵.
The average acceleration is defined as
⃗ ⃗
𝑎⃗ ,
of which each component has a dimension ℒ/𝛵 .

In physical laws only displacement, velocity and acceleration are used and we do this, as in one dimension,
in differential form:

Definition
For an object located at 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 we define the velocity, 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 , as
𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 or 𝑣 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 ,𝑣 𝑡 𝑦 𝑡 ,𝑣 𝑡 𝑧 𝑡 .
For an object located at 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 we define the acceleration 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 , as

𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 or 𝑎 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 ,𝑎 𝑡 𝑦 𝑡 ,𝑎 𝑡 𝑧 𝑡 .
It also holds that
𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 or 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 ,𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 ,𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 .
Example
Suppose a particle has a position 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 sin 𝜋𝑡 𝚤̂ 3𝑡𝚥̂ 10𝑘. Its velocity is given by
𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 sin 𝜋𝑡 𝚤̂ 3𝑡𝚥̂ 10𝑘 𝜋cos 𝜋𝑡 𝚤̂ 3𝚥̂,

and acceleration 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝜋cos 𝜋𝑡 𝚤̂ 3𝚥̂ 𝜋 sin 𝜋𝑡 𝚤̂.
17

3.2 Special case: Projectile Motion.
[1]: Section 3.2
Consider a ball thrown through the air, not necessarily vertically. We will neglect air resistance in the
following discussion. (Things get a bit more complicated when this is included.)

Let 𝑥 and 𝑦 be the horizontal and vertical positions, respectively. The force in the 𝑥 direction is 𝐹
0, and the force in the 𝑦 direction is 𝐹 𝑚𝑔, So 𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗ gives:
𝑥 0 and 𝑦′′ 𝑔.
Note that these two equations are ’decoupled’. That is, there is no mention of 𝑦 in the equation for 𝑥′,

and vice versa. The motions in the 𝑥 and 𝑦 directions are therefore completely independent. The
classic demonstration of the independence of the 𝑥 and 𝑦 motions is the following. Fire a bullet
horizontally (or, preferably, just imagine firing a bullet horizontally), and at the same time drop a bullet
from the height of the gun. Which bullet will hit the ground first? (Neglect air resistance, the curvature of
the earth, etc.) The answer is that they will hit the ground at the same time, because the effect of gravity
on the two 𝑦 motions is exactly the same, independent of what is going on in the 𝑥 direction.
If the initial position and velocity are 𝑟⃗ 0 𝑥 , 𝑦 and 𝑣⃗ 0 𝑣 , 𝑣 then we can easily
integrate the equations to obtain:

𝑥 𝑡 𝑣 and 𝑦 𝑡 𝑣 𝑔𝑡.

Integrating again gives:

𝑥 𝑡 𝑥 𝑣 𝑡 and 𝑦 𝑡 𝑦 𝑣 𝑡 𝑔𝑡 .

These equations for the speeds and positions are all you need to solve a projectile problem.
Example
We fire a cannonball with a velocity 𝑣 under an angle 𝜃 with the horizon, see Figure above. How far does the
cannonball get? We assume that there is no friction. We copy the solution we obtained above with the choices:
𝑥 ,𝑦 0,0 , 𝑣 , 𝑣 𝑣 cos𝜃, 𝑣 sin𝜃 ,
and obtain the velocity and position as a function of time:
𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑣 cos𝜃 → 𝑥 𝑡 𝑣 0 d𝑡′ 𝑣 𝑡cos𝜃

𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑔𝑑𝑡 𝑣 sin𝜃 𝑔𝑡 → 𝑦 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑔𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑣 𝑡sin𝜃 𝑔𝑡 .
18

The cannonball hits the ground when 𝑦 0, so:

1 2𝑣 sin𝜃
𝑣 𝑡sin𝜃 𝑔𝑡 0→𝑡 0, 𝑡 .
2 𝑔

The time at the top is:
𝑣 sin𝜃
𝑡 / ,
𝑔
at a maximum height
𝑦 / 𝑣 𝑡 / sin𝜃 𝑔𝑡 / .
We therefore need the last solution: the distance 𝑑 equals
𝑑 𝑣 𝑡cos𝜃 .
The maximum distance is:
0→ sin𝜃cos𝜃 0 → cos𝜃 ⋅ cos𝜃 sin𝜃 ⋅ sin𝜃 cos 𝜃 sin 𝜃 0.
As cos 𝜃 sin 𝜃 1 we deduce 2cos 𝜃 1→𝜃 𝜋/4. This value of 𝜃 achieves the largest distance,
𝑑 .
# Checks 3.
(1) The 𝑡 0 for “hitting the ground” makes sense because that is the moment that we fired. So it is at ground
level then.
ℒ ℒ
(2) 𝑑 ℒ, 2𝑣 sin𝜃cos𝜃/𝑔 𝑣 /𝑔 / ℒ: .
(3) If 𝑔 → ∞ we find 𝑑 → 0 which makes sense: it is hard to move anything up with infinite gravitational
acceleration: .
Remarks considering example above
The kinetic energy 𝑚𝑣 is at the moment 𝑡 0:
𝐾 𝑡 0 𝑚 𝑣 cos 𝜃 𝑣 sin 𝜃 𝑚𝑣 .
When the object is at its highest point, 𝑦 / the velocity is 𝑣 cos𝜃, 0 : the vertical velocity is 0.

So the kinetic energy is then
𝐾 𝑡 𝑡 / 𝑚𝑣 cos 𝜃.
The difference between the two
𝐾 𝑡 0 𝐾 𝑡 𝑡/ 𝑚𝑣 sin 𝜃,
which exactly matches:
𝐾 𝑡 0 𝐾 𝑡 𝑡/ 𝑚𝑔𝑦 / → 𝐾 𝑡 0 𝐾 𝑡 𝑡/ 𝑚𝑔𝑦 / ,

which you may recognize as the law of energy conservation: 𝑚𝑔ℎ is the potential energy of gravity. If you did
not learn about the potential energy of gravity in highschool: do not worry, we come to that later.
19

3.3 Special case: Motion on a Circle.
[1]: Section 3.3
𝑒̂ cos𝜃, sin𝜃 , 𝑒̂ sin𝜃, cos𝜃 .

Example
Consider an object that moves along a circle with radius 𝑅 with a constant angular velocity 𝜔 𝜃′. We
can describe this with a vector 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 as follows:
𝑟⃗ 𝑡 𝑅cos 𝜔𝑡 𝚤̂ 𝑅sin 𝜔𝑡 𝚥̂ 𝑅 cos 𝜔𝑡 , sin 𝜔𝑡 → 𝑟 𝑡 |𝑟⃗ 𝑡 | 𝑅.
We can compute the velocity and acceleration:
𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗′ 𝑡 𝜔𝑅sin 𝜔𝑡 𝚤̂ 𝜔𝑅cos 𝜔𝑡 𝚥̂ 𝜔𝑅 sin 𝜔𝑡 , cos 𝜔𝑡 → 𝑣 𝑡 |𝑣⃗ 𝑡 | 𝜔𝑅

𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝜔 𝑅cos 𝜔𝑡 𝚤̂ 𝜔 𝑅sin 𝜔𝑡 𝚥̂ 𝜔 𝑅 cos 𝜔𝑡 , sin 𝜔𝑡 𝜔 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 ,

and we see that |𝑎⃗ 𝑡 | 𝜔 𝑅 , the centripedal acceleration. It is convenient to change to other basis vectors
(see Figure above):
𝑒̂ cos𝜃, sin𝜃 , 𝑒̂ sin𝜃, cos𝜃 .
Then 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 𝑅𝑒̂ , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝜔𝑅𝑒̂ , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝜔 𝑅𝑒̂ .

Remark
In linear motion we have 𝑥 → 𝑣 𝑥′ → 𝑎 𝑣′ 𝑥′′,
in rotation we have 𝜃 → 𝜔 𝜃′ → 𝛼 𝜔′ 𝜃′′.

The following example demonstrates that high school mathematics and physics already are sufficient to
solve genuine problems. Needed: kinetic energy, potential energy of gravity and centrifugal forces. The
latter is always confusing, that is why this example is here. Warning: It is a tough one.

Example
A ball is attached to a horizontal cord, a rope, of length 𝐿 whose other end is fixed, see Figure above (left). 𝑃 is
the pivot, the point that fixes the rope to the ceiling; it will be point “around which everthing can rotate”. A peg
is located at a distance 𝐿 𝑟 below point 𝑃.
20

(a) The mass is released and it is not that hard to know what will happen (Intuition/common sense helps in
mechanics!) At first, the mass will follow a quarter of a circle before it reaches the lowest point, see Figure above
(middle). Energy conservation!
𝑚𝑔𝐿 𝑚𝑣 → 𝑣 2𝐿𝑔.
Check? Dimensions fits? Yes, ℒ/𝛵 ℒ ⋅ ℒ/𝛵 , continue.
(b) Next the mass will follow the smaller circle (on the right, radius 𝑟). The question now is: will it reach the
highest point, point 𝑄?
First impulsive answer is: sure, why not? It has enough energy, so it can move to that point?
But now the circular motion comes in. And the fact that the mass is connected with a rope. Let us look at the
situation that, if possible, the mass (almost) reached the point 𝑄.
 First there is gravity, 𝑚𝑔 (downward).
 Next there is a centrifugal force of size 𝑚𝑣 /𝑟 (which points upward).
 And the rope, what does that do? It is a rope, not a stick. It can build up a tension if the total force is
pushing the mass up, so if 𝑚𝑣 /𝑟 𝑚𝑔. But if it is the other way around, so if 𝑚𝑣 /𝑟 𝑚𝑔, the rope
will not do anything. In that case the mass will feel a force downwards – implying that it cannot reach
𝑄.
For me, this is the solution. And yes, difficult. But I hope you see that you only needed one argument about
centrifugal forces and a property of ropes. You will see this question back later in the course; you will then derive
the exact condition on how large 𝑟 can be.
21

Concept Questions.
CQ3.1 Given two vectors, 𝑎⃗ 4𝚤̂ 3𝚥̂ and 𝑏⃗ 6𝚤̂ 8𝚥̂, find the magnitudes and the angle they make

with the 𝑥‐axis of the following vectors:
(a) 𝑎⃗
(b) 𝑏⃗ 𝑎⃗
(c) 𝑎⃗ 𝑏⃗
CQ3.2 (From [6]) The velocity of a particle moving in the 𝑥𝑦 plane is given by:

𝑣⃗ 6𝑚/𝑠 𝑡 4𝑚/𝑠 𝑡 𝚤̂ 8𝑚/𝑠 𝚥̂.

Assume that 𝑡 0.
(a) What is the acceleration when 𝑡 3s?
(b) When (if ever) is the acceleration zero?
(c) When (if ever) is the velocity zero?

Tutorial Questions.
TQ3.1 Suppose you paint a dot on the rim of a rolling wheel, radius 𝑅. Compute 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 of the

dot. Assume that the wheel is rolling at constant angular velocity 𝜔.

TQ3.2 A person stands on a scale at the equator. If the earth somehow stopped spinning but kept its same
shape, would the reading on the scale increase or decrease? By what fraction?

TQ3.3 The unit vectors 𝚤̂, 𝚥̂ are not the most convenient choice for motion on a circle. We define vectors
that depend on the coordinate 𝜃
𝑒̂ cos𝜃, sin𝜃 , 𝑒̂ sin𝜃, cos𝜃 ,
see Figure above.
(a) Show that 𝑒̂ and 𝑒̂ are unit vectors.
(b) Show that 𝑒̂ and 𝑒̂ are perpendicular.
(c) Assume 𝜃 𝑡 depends on 𝑡. Show: 𝑒̂ 𝑡 𝜃′ 𝑡 𝑒̂ 𝑡 , 𝑒̂ 𝑡 𝜃′ 𝑡 𝑒̂ 𝑡 .
(d) Consider non uniform motion on a circle of radius 𝑅,
𝑟⃗ 𝑡 𝑅 cos𝜃 𝑡 , sin𝜃 𝑡 .
Write 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 in terms of the vectors 𝑒̂ 𝑡 and 𝑒̂ 𝑡 .

(e) Interpret the terms in 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 .
TQ3.4 A stone thrown horizontally from the top of a building of height ℎ hits the ground at a point ℓ
from the base of the tower. Ignore air resistance.
22

(a) Find the speed with which the stone was thrown.
(b) Find the speed of the stone just before it hits the ground.
# Checks: 2. Are the dimensions of velocities correct?

TQ3.5 A cannon is placed at a distance 𝐿 from a wall with height 𝐻. A cannonball is fired from the
cannon such that it just passes over the wall. The size of the cannonball and air resistance may be
negelected.
(a) Determine the angle 𝜃 at which the canon must be tilted in terms of 𝐿 and 𝐻.
(b) For a given value of 𝐿, what is the value of 𝐻 for which the initial velocity 𝑣 of the cannonball is
as low as possible?
Checks: Limiting cases.

TQ3.6 A particle is moving along a circle of fixed radius 𝑅. The speed of the particle is given by
|𝑣⃗ 𝑡 | 𝑓 𝑡 ,
with 𝑓 𝑡 an arbitrary positive function. The motion of the particle is always counter clockwise. For
which 𝑓 𝑡 is the acceleration perpendicular to the velocity?

TQ3.7 After 2 years of absence you are playing golf again in the US open. You are at the last hole which
has length 𝐿, straight ahead. You have side wind which you estimate to result in an acceleration 𝑎 to
your left. Needed: a hole in one, otherwise you do not win.
(a) Find all possible velocities 𝑣⃗ that would result in a hole in one.
(b) The solution in part (a) is indeed not unique. Determine the solution that requires the least amount
energy. Use the fact that the kinetic energy of a mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣⃗ 𝑣 , 𝑣 , 𝑣 :
𝐾 𝑚 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 .
What is 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 in that case? What is the angle with respect to the 𝑥 𝑦‐plane of the shot?
# Checks: 3.
TQ3.8 (Exam 2018.) A golf player wants to putt a ball (with mass 𝑚 ) with one hit. Unfortunately, the ball
is lying in a pit. The wall of the pit has a height ℎ and is a distance 𝐿 from the ball. From the pit wall
the distance to the putt is 𝐿 . The ball is hit under an angle 𝜃 with respect to the horizontal. The initial
velocity of the ball is 𝑣 in the horizontal direction and 𝑣 in the vertical direction. The angle 𝜃 is
determined by the values of 𝑣 and 𝑣 . When the player hits the ball 𝑣 is kept constant. Only 𝑣
varies. When the ball lands on the green between the pit wall and the putt, the ball will roll in the putt.

(a) Derive an equation for the smallest value of 𝑣 for which the ball will end up in the putt. Also show
in a diagram the expected trajectory of the ball.
(b) Derive an equation for the largest value of 𝑣 for which the ball will end up in the putt. Also show
in a diagram the expected trajectory of the ball.
TQ3.9 (Adapted from [1]) Earth rotates around its axis once every 24 hours, so that objects on its
surface execute uniform circular motion about the axis with a period of 24 hours. Consider only the
23

effect of this rotation on the person on the surface. (Ignore Earth’s orbital motion about the Sun.)
What is the speed and what is the magnitude of the acceleration of a person standing on the equator?
(Express the magnitude of this acceleration as a percentage of 𝑔.) What is the ratio of your weight on the
equator and the weight at the north Pole? We have for the circumference of the earth 40000 km.

TQ 3.10 (Retake 2018.) A cannonball is launched with an initial velocity
𝑣⃗ 𝑣 , 0, 𝑣 ,
and initial position
𝑟⃗ 0,0, 𝑧 .
Here, 𝑣 is the initial horizontal velocity, 𝑣 is the initial vertical velocity, and 𝑧 corresponds to the

height of the exit of the cannon. The human cannonball has mass 𝑚. The initial velocity 𝑣⃗ has an angle
of 𝜋/4 with respect to the horizontal plane as indicated in the figure, i.e. 𝑣 𝑣 . Friction with the
air can be neglected.

(a) Give expressions for the acceleration 𝑎⃗, the velocity 𝑣⃗ and the position 𝑟⃗ as a function of time. The
cannonball is launched at time 𝑡 0 The human cannonball will land in a net at position 𝑟⃗
𝑥 , 0, 𝑧 .
(b) Derive an expression for the time it takes the human cannonball to reach the net.
(c) Calculate the speed |𝑣⃗ | at which the human cannonball should be launched to land in the net.

24

4. Working with Newton’s laws (part 1).
[1]: Chapter 4.
4.1 Newton’s laws.
[1]: Sections 4.1‐4.7.

Newton postulated three laws.
Newton’s 𝟏𝒔𝒕 law. If the total force on an object adds up to 0⃗ (the zero vector), then this object moves with

constant velocity.
Newton’s 𝟐𝒏𝒅 law. The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it, and the

reciprocal of the mass of the object is the constant of proportionality. Thus, 𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗.
Newton’s 𝟑𝒓𝒅 law. When two bodies interact, the force 𝐹⃗ exerted by object B on object A is equal in
magnitude and opposite in direction to the force 𝐹⃗ exerted by object A on object B. Thus
𝐹⃗ 𝐹⃗ .
Such a pair of forces is called a Newton’s third law pair.

Remarks
(1) The mass, 𝑚, of an object is an intrinsic property of that object. This does not change if you move from Earth
to the Moon. The weight of an object does change as weight equals a force with size 𝑚𝑔 , with 𝑔 the
gravitational acceleration.
(2) Rewriting the 2 law:
𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗ 𝑚 𝑣⃗,
and assuming that the force acts upon object for a short time Δ𝑡 we can write it into a convenient approximation

for the change in the velocity Δ𝑣⃗:
Δ𝑣⃗ 𝐹⃗ Δ𝑡.
4.2 The use of vectors.
In mechanics we mainly look at solids, so balls of iron, cubes of wood, hoops and pulleys of plastic, etc. In
the first eight lectures of the course we assume that objects can move and accelerate as a whole but will
not deform nor rotate. This is the same as saying that the objects can be considered point objects.
Look at the Figure below (left), which shows a block on a floor that we pull it in the 𝑥‐direction.

Note the definition of the 𝑥‐ and 𝑦‐direction on the top right; always start with that when making such

drawings.
25

The picture conveys the message ’this 𝐹⃗ is a vector’ in two ways: (1) the blue arrow pointing in the 𝑥
direction and (2) the arrow above 𝐹, so 𝐹⃗ . The essential information is contained in the blue arrow; the
arrow above 𝐹 does not add anything, so we omit it, see Figure (right).
Now compare the drawings in the next Figure (below).
Is it to be expected that the physics is different in the two situations?
The answer is no, at least when things do not start to rotate. The topic of rotation is part of section 9 and
later, so for now we do not care how we draw the vectors: the two pictures embody the same physics.
Remark
One more thing on vectors. If we have two vectors pointing in opposite directions, when adding their values they
should have a relative minus sign. In the Figure below (left), a force “3” acts to the right, which is of the same
strength as a force “ 3” to the left. Or the gravitational acceleration is pointing downwards and equals 𝑔, but
chosen to be upwards it becomes 𝑔. It does not matter how you draw your arrows (to the left or to the right;
downward or upward), but we always have the ’equality’:

plus in one direction minus in opposite direction .
Check that Newton’s law for the two blocks in the Figure below (right) gives 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝑦′′ 𝑚𝑔.

Still a little curious how rotations (disregarded for now) would work? For that, consider two blocks with
’equal’ but opposite forces acting on them, see Figure below. The forces in both situations add up to 0⃗.
The block on the left will not move. The right block, on the other hand, will start to rotate, in a clock wise
fashion. We come back to this in section 9.
26

Left: Two canceling forces. Right: Two forces giving rise to rotation.

4.3 The use of vectors (continued).

The main strategy of many problems in mechanics is to start with a sketch of the situation of the problem
at hand.
We consider the situation where we try to lift a box of mass 𝑚 by applying a force upward, which has
size 𝐹. Target: find the acceleration of mass 𝑀.
Note that we have drawn all vectors in the directions that we think they are pointing. And we use the
convention that the direction in the picture defines our formulas.
(i) Gravity is pointing downward in the 𝑦‐direction, which is 𝚥̂, so

𝐹 𝑚𝑔𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂.
(ii) We pull up, so we take 𝐹⃗ to be pointing upward, which is 𝚥̂, so

𝐹⃗ 𝐹𝚥̂.
We could take the force to be pointing in the downward direction, but this is so unnaturel that we are
bound to make minus‐sign errors: keep it logical!

(iii) Finally we need Newton’s second law as we want to know the acceleraion of the box. In the sketch we
put the acceleration pointing upwards (the red vector), so
𝑎⃗ 𝑎𝚥̂.
We now apply Newton’s second law:
𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗ → 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂ 𝐹𝚥̂ 𝑚𝑎𝚥̂ → 𝑚𝑎 𝐹 𝑚𝑔 → 𝑎 𝑔𝑎⃗ 𝑔 𝚥̂.
And this is what you expect. But notice that the result is also correct if 𝐹 𝑚𝑔 or 𝑔 . Indeed, then

𝑎⃗ 𝑔 𝚥̂ 𝑔 𝚥̂,
27

which means the acceleration points downward, as it should. Let us look at what would happen if we
would have chosen the acceleration in the opposite direction (called 𝐴, and not 𝑎, to avoid confusion),
see Figure below.
(i) 𝐹 𝑚𝑔𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂,

(ii) 𝐹⃗ 𝐹𝚥̂,
(iii) 𝐴⃗ 𝐴𝚥̂.
So 𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝐴⃗ → 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂ 𝐹𝚥̂ 𝑚𝐴𝚥̂ → 𝑚𝐴 𝐹 𝑚𝑔 → 𝐴 𝑔 𝐴⃗ 𝑔 𝚥̂.
Now observe, the accelation 𝑎⃗ and 𝐴⃗ are the same, as it should. And the values 𝑎 and 𝐴 differ a
minus sign, which makes sense because their arrows are in opposite direction.
So this the way you formally approach it. The sketch is leading and you keep track of the arrows. Still, this
is somewhat awkward as writing everything in vector notation all the time, especially in larger problems,
may cause errors. So the bottom line?
Make a sketch with arrows and symbols, such as the Figures above, and let the arrows ’decide’ the sign of
each term:

The ′𝐹 𝑚𝑎′ equation for :
Choose up , down : 𝑚𝑎 𝐹 𝑚𝑔
choose down , up : 𝑚𝑎 𝐹 𝑚𝑔
𝐹 𝐹
then 𝑎 𝑔𝑎⃗ 𝑔 𝚥̂.
𝑚 𝑚
The ′𝐹 𝑚𝑎′ equation for :

choose up , down : 𝑚𝐴 𝐹 𝑚𝑔
choose down , up : 𝑚𝐴 𝐹 𝑚𝑔
𝐹 𝐹
then 𝐴 𝑔 𝐴⃗ 𝑔 𝚥̂ 𝑎⃗
𝑚 𝑚
28

4.4 Examples of forces.
[1]: Section 4.4
4.4.1 Gravity, normal forces.

Consider the following simple situation, a block on a floor (left).
Left: Block with weight. Middle: Weight and two normal forces. Right: The Free Body Diagram (FBD) of
the block.

We have the following forces in play. First of all: The block has a mass 𝑚 and hence a weight, which is a
force, so it is a vector.
𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂ → 𝐹 ≡ |𝐹⃗ | 𝑚𝑔.
There are two more forces in play. The weight will press on the floor which is depicted as 𝑁 , acting on
the floor. Newton’s third law says there will be a reaction force on the block, 𝑁 (Figure above, middle).
The FBD of the block is obtained by isolating the mass with the forces that act upon it (Figure above, right).
As the block is at rest (this is an experiment) we know that the two forces on the block must add up to the
0‐vector, 0⃗. So we conclude:
𝐹⃗ 𝑁⃗ 0⃗ → 𝐹 𝑁 𝑚𝑔.
𝑁 and 𝑁 are both normal forces; due to the third Newton law, the two are equal in size. This implies
that there is a force of size 𝑚𝑔 acting on the floor. So why doesn’t the floor move? Well, there are many
more forces acting on the floor and we don’t know them (the floor is in contact with Earth). They also add
up to 0⃗, however. Note that the shape of the object (a block) does not play a role. If instead we use a
sphere instead of a block the picture changes in appearence, but the results remain the same, see Figure
figure below.

Left: The block replaced by a sphere. Right: The Free Body Diagram (FBD) of the sphere.
29

4.4.2 Spring forces.
[1]: Section 4.5
Of course, blocks and spheres are not the only objects we consider, nor is gravity the only relevant force.
We also consider, for example, (ideal) springs. A spring has a “relaxed length”, or reduced length, 𝐿 ,
shown in the Figure below. If the spring has a length 𝐿 𝑥 then the force on 𝑚 will be 𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥,
𝑘 is called the spring constant (𝑘 0). The diagram (Figure below, right) contains the FDB of a block. It
is clear that the situation as sketched is not static (i.e., the system cannot be at rest), unless 𝑥 0.
Left: An ideal spring. It is assumed to have a relaxed length 𝐿 and the force is linearly proportional to
the change in length. Right: the FBD of the block.

Newton’s second law yields 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝑥′′ 𝑘𝑥. (The minus sign here comes from the fact that the force
is restoring the displacement.) This differential equation has oscillatory solutions: insert 𝑥 𝐴sin𝜔𝑡
𝐵cos𝜔𝑡, with 𝜔 𝑘/𝑚, and see what happens. We will discuss this in detail in later sections.
4.4.3 Forces applied by strings or ropes.
Another object that will appear once in a while is a string or a rope. We usually assume that strings are
massless. We can attach a mass to it, and tie the other end of the rope to the ceiling, see Figure below
(left). Point 𝑃 is called the pivot: the turning, or rotation, point.

Left: Pendulum. Right: The forces: the weight of the mass and a constant tension 𝑇. The red arrow is the
sum, or the resultant, of the two forces.

30

Left: FBD of the mass. Right: FBD for (a piece of) the rope.

(i) The FBD of the mass shows that the situation cannot be at rest, as the sum of the forces on the mass,
𝑅⃗, do not cancel: it points right/downwards. The mass will fall ’down’, and it will follow a circle with origin
𝑃 and radius 𝐿, it overshoots and then the story repeats itself, but then mirrored. The mass will swing
back and forth: it is a pendulum.
(ii) The FBD of a small part of the rope/string also contains information. We will always assume that the
string is massless. If 𝑇′ 𝑇 there will be a resulting force on the small piece of the string. However, if
the string has mass 0 Newton’s second law says that this piece of string will get an infinite acceleration.
As that is not possible we conclude that 𝑇 𝑇′.
Let us do the math. The vector 𝑇⃗ and 𝐹⃗ add up to the resulting (red) vector, 𝑅⃗. This vector must be

perpendicular to 𝑇⃗. Hence trigonometry tells us
𝑅 𝐹 sin𝜃, 𝑇 𝐹 cos𝜃,
and Newton tells us:
𝐹 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝐿𝜃 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃,
with the same minus sign as in the previous example: it wants to ’undo’ 𝜃, i.e., it is also a restoring force.
When sin𝜃 𝜃 when 𝜃 is small (in radians!), as sin𝜃 cos𝜃 1. So if 𝜃 is small, we have

sin𝜃 𝜃 (see Figure above) so we come to
𝜃 𝜃→𝜃 𝐴sin𝜔𝑡 𝐵cos𝜔𝑡, with 𝜔 .
31

4.4.4 A block sliding downwards on a wedge.
Free Body Diagrams are important, as they give a structural way of investigating the properties of
mechanical systems. The Figure below shows the analysis of a mass on a tilted plane, or a wedge. As has
always been the case so far, there is no friction.
Example

A block with mass 𝑚 is standing on a wedge (angle 𝜃), see Figure above. Let’s do a Q & A.
Q: What happens?
A: The block will slide down along the wedge. And it will accelerate as there is nothing to stop the mass.
Q: Which quantity do we need to compute?
A: We need the resulting vector 𝑅⃗ in the Figure above (middle); the direction of this vector will point along the
wedge (the block does not start to fly nor will it penetrate the plane: experimental facts!). So now we have to find
the value of 𝑅 in the Figure above (right).
Q: Does this look familiar (is it a ’deja vu’)?
A: Yes, : 𝑅 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃𝑎 𝑔sin𝜃
For later reference we compute the normal force explicitly: 𝑁 𝑚𝑔.
# Checks 2.
(1) If 𝜃 0 the size of the acceleration is 0 as sin0 0:.
(2) If 𝜃 𝜋/2 the size of the acceleration is 𝑔:

32

4.4.5 Atwood machines.
An Atwood machine, see Example below.
Example
Consider a pulley attached to the ceiling with a string. We have seen this thing before, it is called an Atwood
machine. It consists of two objects of mass 𝑚 and 𝑚 , connected by an inextensible (unstrechable) string over
this pulley. We assume that the strings and pulley are massless. Moreover, we assume at time 𝑡 0 the two
masses have no velocity.
Q: What will happen if the masses are released?
A: If the masses 𝑚 , 𝑚 are equal, the system will remain in rest. Otherwise the largest of the two masses will
go down, the other one will go up. The velocities and accelerations of the two are equal as the string does not
stretch.
Q: Which forces do we have?
A: Gravity on the masses, 𝑚 𝑔 and 𝑚 𝑔, and 𝑇 everywhere in the string. The pulley is fixed to the ceiling so
there will be another force 𝑇′ in the connection to the ceiling. As we know that the situation may not be static,
we assume that mass 𝑚 is accelerated upwards with acceleration 𝑎; if so, the acceleration of mass 𝑚 will
also be 𝑎 but downward.
The three FBDs are now found by removing the strings and ceiling, see Figure above (right).
Because the pulley does not come down we know that 𝑇′ 2𝑇.

Q: So, what is next?
A: The FBDs for 𝑚 resp. 𝑚 give: 𝑇 𝑚 𝑔 𝑚 𝑎, 𝑚 𝑔 𝑇 𝑚 𝑎.

Important: Note that the (red and blue) arrows in the picture define the signs in our equations!
By adding the two equations we get:
𝑚 𝑔 𝑚 𝑔 𝑚 𝑎 𝑚 𝑎→𝑎 𝑔.
This gives 𝑇 and 𝑇′ .
Q: It is clear that this fits for the case 𝑚 𝑚 . So what if 𝑚 is smaller than 𝑚 ?

A: Then it is also correct. The value of 𝑎 is then negative; because (red arrow with something negative) = (the
inverse arrow with a plus): everything moves again in the proper direction.
# Checks 5.
(1) 𝑎 𝑔 :.
(2) The answer is symmetric in the two masses:.
(3) If 𝑚 𝑚 then 𝑎 0:.
(4) If 𝑚 → ∞ then 𝑎 𝑔:.
(5) 𝑇 is symmetric in 𝑚 , 𝑚 :.
33

Concept Questions.
CQ4.1 Suppose that two external forces that are both equal in magnitude and opposite in direction act on
the same object. These two forces can never be a Newton’s third law pair.
True or False?

CQ4.2 Two springs both have spring constant 𝑘 and relaxed length 𝐿 . They are each stretched to a
length 𝑥 and then attached to two masses and a wall, as shown in the Figure below.

The masses are simultaneously released. Immediately afterward, the magnitudes of the accelerations of
the left and right masses are, respectively,
(a) 2𝑘𝑥/𝑚 and 𝑘𝑥/𝑚
(b) 𝑘𝑥/𝑚 and 2𝑘𝑥/𝑚
(c) 𝑘𝑥/𝑚 and 𝑘𝑥/𝑚
(d) 0 and 2𝑘𝑥/𝑚
(e) 0 and 𝑘𝑥/𝑚

CQ4.3 A ’doomsday’ asteroid with a mass of 𝑀 kg is hurtling through space. Unless the speed of the
asteroid is changed by about 𝑣 , it will collide with Earth and cause tremendous damage. Researchers
suggest that a small ’space tug’ sent to the asteroid’s surface could exert a gentle constant force of 𝐹.
For how long must this force roughly act?
CQ4.4 (Adapted from [1]) Astronauts in apparent weightlessness during their stay on the International
Space Station must carefully monitor their masses because significant loss of body mass is known to cause
serious medical problems. Give an example of how you might design equipment to measure the mass of
an astronaut on the orbiting space station.

Tutorial Questions.
TQ4.1 A ball weighing with mass 𝑔 is shown suspended from a system of cords. What are the tensions
in the horizontal and angled cords?
TQ4.2 The Figure below shows a block with mass 𝑚 sliding on a block with mass 𝑚 . All surfaces are

frictionless and the pulley is massless and frictionless. Find the acceleration of each block and the tension
in the string that connects the blocks.
34

TQ4.3 The masses of two blocks in the Figure below are 𝑚 and 𝑚 , respectively. Assume 𝑚 𝑚 .
The blocks are initially at rest on the floor and are connected by a massless string passing over a massless
and frictionless pulley. An upward force 𝐹 is applied to the pulley. Find the accelerations of both blocks.
#Checks: 3.

TQ4.4 (Adapted from [6]) A uniform sphere of weight 𝑊 𝑚𝑔 and radius 𝑟 is being held by a rope
attached to a frictionless wall a distance 𝐿 above the centre of the sphere.

(a) Find the tension in the rope.
(b) The force exerted on the sphere by the wall.
# Checks 2.

35

TQ 4.5 (Adapted from [6]) Someone exerts a force 𝐹 directly up on the axle of the pulley shown in the
Figure below.

Consider the pulley and string to be massless and the bearing frictionless. Two objects, mass 𝑚 and
mass 𝑚 are attached as shown to the opposite ends of the string, which passes over the pulley. The
object 𝑚 is in contact with the floor.
(a) What is the largest value the force 𝐹 may have so that 𝑚 will remain at rest on the floor?
(b) What is the tension in the string if the upward force 𝐹 2 𝑚 𝑚 𝑔?
(c) With the tension determined in part (b), what is the acceleration of 𝑚 ?

36

5. Newton’s laws (part 2).
[1]: Chapter 5.

There are two more concepts to discuss. We first discuss one more force, friction. Next we discuss how
forces work on more than one object. For that we need the concept of the centre of mass (CM), which
will become even more important in upcoming sections.
5.1 Friction.
[1]: Section 5.1
In mechanics an important force is friction. Without incorporating friction you work most of the time on
too idealized problems. If two materials are in contact with each other and you try to slide one of them
along the other you will feel a resistance. This is why you can ride a bike, why ’we’ can ’walk’ a 100 metres
in 10 seconds (not me), why balls can roll (and not slip), why Max can …, etc. We again consider the block
on the floor, see Figure below (left). (We omit the force(s) on the floor as the floor does not play a role.)
Now we exert a small force 𝐹⃗ on the block with which we try to pull it to the right. If this force is not too
large the block will not move: a friction force developes, 𝐹 , see Figure below (right). This friction acts on
the bottom of the block, but as usual we put it in the centre.
Left: The Free Body Diagram (FBD) of the block, pulled with a small force 𝐹 and a resulting friction
force, 𝐹 .
If we pull harder, still nothing happens: both 𝐹 and 𝐹 increase and still cancel out. If we increase 𝐹

more and more the block starts to accelerate. The friction force 𝐹 reached its maximum. Notice,
however, that 𝐹 is smaller in the moving case (see Figure below), than in the static case. Look at the
sizes of 𝐹 in the Figure below on the left and on the right. This is an experimental fact.
Left: The Free Body Diagram (FBD) of the block, pulled with a force 𝐹 and a resulting friction force, 𝐹 :
the block does not move. Right: If the pulling force increases more, the block starts to accelerate: the
friction force ’gives up’.

So far for our little experiment. Measurements like this lead to a model for friction forces. The friction
force depends on the materials that are in contact. They can be well described by two parameters, 𝜇
and 𝜇 (“mu‐static” and “mu‐kinetic”). Note that this is not a “law” as fundamental laws like Newton’s
laws or laws in electromagnetism, it is merely an empirical rule.

Indeed, the following heuristic works quite well:
37

(i) If the pulling force is small compared to the friction force this results in a static situation.
(ii) In such a static situation, the friction force obeys: 𝐹 𝜇 𝑁.
(iii) If the pulling force is greater than this value, as in the Figure above on the left, then 𝐹 𝜇 𝑁. Notice
that 𝐹 in the Figure above on the left (static case) is greater than on the right (moving case). Indeed
𝜇 𝜇 .

In all cases the quantity 𝑁 sets the bound on how large a friction force can be. We have given no proof
of this, but it sounds reasonable: the harder you press, the more difficult it gets.
Note that in the static case (i) we are dealing with an inequality. It is impossible that the friction force can
cause an acceleration in the direction of the friction force: it always counters a external force applied to
an object. The inequality takes care of that.
5.2 Examples with friction.
5.2.1 A ladder.
As mentioned before, Free Body Diagrams are important: they give a strutural way of investigating the
properties of mechanical systems. We will investigate this ladder‐problem in quite some detail later in the
the course: a ladder can rotate, and a full analysis requires concepts we have not yet worked with. Here
it just serves as illustration why and how friction works. The funny thing is that this intuition of how
mechanics works is not hard as you can ’feel’ how these things should work.

Example
The Figure below (left) shows a simplified sketch of a ladder put against a wall. The ladder has a weight, and it
pushes against the wall and the floor so there are 3 forces acting on the ladder, 𝐹⃗ , 𝑁⃗ and 𝑁⃗ . We know from
experience in which directions these forces act.
Q: Will the ladder be at rest, given these forces?
A: No, the vector sum of the three forces will only be zero if 𝑁 0 which cannot hold: the wall will feel the
ladder and vice versa.
Q: Will the ladder move as a whole to the right?
A: No. We know that from experiments: the ladder will slide into a horizontal position. This motion is a sort of
rotation, so this problem comes back later in the course. But the fact that 𝑁 0 is consistent with Newton’s
law as there is some mass that has moved to the right in that case.

Q: Why does the ladder (at least in some cases) not slide?
A: We are missing two friction forces. The friction force wall/ladder will not play an essential role, but the friction
floor/ladder will! See Figure above (right). (And now I understand why my window cleaners do not want to clean
my windows at the second floor in winter time.)

38

5.2.2 A block sliding downwards on a wedge.
In section 4.4.4 we discussed the sliding of a block down a wedge. We again consider the same problem,
but now we add friction.
Example
A block with mass 𝑚 is standing on a wedge (angle 𝜃 ), see Figure below, but now we have friction. The
parameters 𝜇 𝜇 for the materials at hand are given.
Q: What happens now?
A: Depends on whether the friction force is large enough to cancel 𝑅 from the previous example.
Q: Which quantity do we need to compute?
A: We need to compute the friction force. This is given by:
𝜇 𝑁 𝑖𝑓 𝜇 𝑁 𝑅
𝐹 .
𝜇 𝑁 𝑖𝑓 𝜇 𝑁 𝑅
Q: So?
A: We know 𝑁 𝑚𝑔cos𝜃; this result we showed quite some time ago, see (4.1). So there is no motion if the
static friction can cope with the pulling force 𝑅:

𝜇 𝑁 𝑅 → 𝜇 𝑚𝑔cos𝜃 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 → 𝜇 tan𝜃.
If this does not happen we see that 𝑚𝑎 𝑅 𝜇 𝑁 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝜇 𝑚𝑔cos𝜃 so that:

𝑎 𝑔 sin𝜃 𝜇 cos𝜃 𝑔 cos 𝜃 tan 𝜃 𝜇 .
# Checks 1.
(1) If 𝜇 𝜇 then it also holds mathematically that tan𝜃 𝜇 tan𝜃 𝜇 . And as 𝜇 tan𝜃 we find that
𝑎 is positive: the mass cannot go upwards, which is consistent with experiment.

5.3 Centre of mass.
[1]: section 5.5.
In many cases you want to say something about a set of objects. The laws of Newton actually still hold, if
you do it carefully.
Definition
The centre of mass 𝑟⃗ of a set of 𝑁 objects with mass 𝑚 and positions 𝑟⃗ , 𝑛 1, … , 𝑁 is defined through:
𝑀𝑟⃗ 𝑚 𝑟⃗ , with 𝑀 𝑚 .

So this is an average of positions, weighed with the masses.

39

Remark
As 𝑀 ∑ 𝑚 we can also write:
𝑀𝑟⃗ ∑ 𝑚 ⋅ 𝑟⃗ ∑ 𝑚 𝑟⃗ → ∑ 𝑚 𝑟⃗ 𝑟⃗ 0⃗,
which says that if 𝑟⃗ is the origin of your coordinate system, then the weighted sum of the coordinates must
add up to the zero‐vector.

Example
Consider a homogeneous massless bar, length 𝐿, with a mass 𝑚 on one and a mass 𝑚 on the other side, see
Figure below (left). We will compute its centre of mass.
The CM must be on the bar. Let us assume that the CM lies on a distance 𝑑 𝑥 from mass 𝑚 and
therefore on a distance 𝑑 𝐿 𝑥 from mass 𝑚 :
∑ 𝑚 𝑥 𝑥 𝑚 0 𝑥 𝑚 𝐿 𝑥 0→𝑥 𝐿 .
It holds that 𝑚 𝑑 𝑚 𝑑 , see Figure above (right), an equality we will see often in later sections.
Example
Consider a homogeneous thin bar, length 𝐿, total mass 𝑀, shown below. We will compute its centre of mass.

(a) Take a small part, length 𝑑𝑥 of the bar at position 𝑥;
(b) Its mass is then 𝑑𝑚 𝑑𝑥;
(c) 𝑥 𝑥 𝑑𝑚 𝑥 𝑥 𝑑𝑥 𝑥 𝑥 𝑥 𝑀 𝐿 𝐿𝑥 0,

from which we find: 𝑥 𝐿.

In this case, a little insight gives the same answer, using the phrase: ’Symmetry, what (or where) else can it be?’.
Remark
What holds for the position of the centre of mass, also holds for its velocity:
𝑀𝑣⃗ ∑ 𝑚 ⋅ 𝑣⃗ ∑ 𝑚 𝑣⃗ → ∑ 𝑚 𝑣⃗ 𝑣⃗ 0⃗.

Also the equation for the acceleration is useful:
𝑀𝑎⃗ ∑ 𝑚 𝑎⃗ ∑ 𝐹⃗ .
Now the various 𝐹⃗ form a collection of forces that work on particle 𝑛. The interaction between two particles is

usually symmetric: the normal forces between the two particles add up to 0⃗ (Newton’s third law), but also the
gravitational forces between two large masses (e.g. earth and sun) add up to 0⃗. So what is left over in the sum:
∑ 𝐹⃗ are only the external forces:
𝑀𝑎⃗ ∑ 𝐹⃗ .

40

Concept Questions.
CQ5.1 A block slides down a plane inclined at angle 𝜃. What should the coefficient of kinetic friction 𝜇
in terms of 𝜃 be so that the block slides with constant velocity?
CQ5.2 It is always true that static friction coefficient 𝜇 and kinetic friction coefficient 𝜇 satisfy 𝜇

𝜇 . Why is 𝜇 𝜇 physically nonsense? Can you come up with an experiment that shows this? (Hint.
Use a set up as in CQ5.1.)
Tutorial Questions.
TQ5.1 A question with numbers for a change. In the ammonia (NH ) molecule, the three hydrogen (H)
atoms form an equilateral triangle, the distance between centres of the atoms being 𝑎 16.28 ⋅ 10
m. The nitrogen (N) atom is at the apex of a pyramid, the three hydrogens constituting the base (see
Figure below).

The nitrogen/hydrogen distance is 𝑐 10.14 ⋅ 10 m and the nitrogen/hydrogen atomic mass ratio is
𝛼 13.9. Locate the centre of mass relative to the nitrogen atom.
TQ5.2
(a) Max travels in a car around a circular banked track of radius 𝑅. The angle of the bank is 𝜃, and the
coefficient of friction between the tires and the track is 𝜇. For what range of velocities does the car not
slip? Of course it is always true that Max looks for extremal speeds.

(b) What if it isn’t Max in the car but grandma (’I am not going to sit behind like grandma’)?
# Checks 1.

TQ 5.3 (Adapted from [6]) A cylindrical storage tank is initially filled with aviation gasoline. The tank is
then drained through a valve on the bottom. See Figure below.
41

(a) As the gasoline is withdrawn, describe the motion of the centre of mass of the tank and its remaining
contents.
(b) What is the depth 𝑥 to which the tank is filled when the centre of mass of the tank and its remaining
contents reaches its lowest point? Express your answer in terms of 𝐻, the height of the tank; 𝑀, its mass;
and 𝑚, the mass of gasoline it can hold.
TQ5.4 (Adapted from [1]) A block with mass 𝑚 rests on a bracket of mass 𝑚 (with 𝑚 2𝑚 ) as

shown in the Figure below.
The bracket sits on a frictionless surface. The static friction coefficient between the block and the bracket
on which it rests are 𝜇 .
(a) What is the maximum force 𝐹 that can be applied if the block is not to slide on the bracket?
(b) What is the corresponding acceleration of the bracket?

TQ5.5 A mass hangs from a massless string of length ℓ. Conditions have been set up so that the mass
swings around in a horizontal circle, with the string making a constant angle 𝛽 with the vertical, see
Figure below. What is the angular frequency, 𝜔, of this motion?

# Checks 1.
(1) What if 𝛽 is very close to 𝜋/2?
TQ5.6 Two fixed blocks of masses 𝑚 and 𝑚 , connected by a rigid rod, slide down a slope (with angle

𝜃). They experience a frictional force, characterized by two different friction coefficients 𝜇 and 𝜇 .
42

(a) Write down the equations of motion for the two blocks.
(b) Solve the resulting two coupled equations, using (i) Newton’s 3rd law, and (ii) the fact that the bar
creates a rigid coupling between the two blocks.
(c) Show in particular that the force 𝑓 exerted by block 2 on block 1 is given by:
𝑓 𝑔cos𝜃 𝜇 𝜇 ,
where 𝑔 is the gravitational acceleration.
(d) Provide a physical explanation of why 𝑓 0 (i.e. pointing down) for 𝜇 𝜇 and vice versa (and
also why 𝑓 0 if the friction coefficients are equal).

43

6. Work and Energy.
[1]: Chapter 6.
In the previous sections we discussed (1) motion and (2) forces. We now wish to make the link to energy.
6.1 Work done by constant forces.
[1]: Section 6.1
Consider a constant force 𝐹 that acts upon a mass as in shown in the Figure below.
We define the work 𝑊 done by a constant force, 𝐹⃗ , that moves a body through a displacement, 𝑠⃗, in

the direction of the force as the product of the magnitudes of the force and the displacement:
𝑊 𝐹𝑠.

This formula is only valid if 𝐹⃗ and 𝑠⃗ are parallel.
You may have seen this definition in high school. Now, why is this definition of work useful, what is its
relevance? In order to find that out we go through the details of the following example.

Example
We pull a block along the floor with a constant force 𝐹 as in the Figure above. Suppose we do this experiment
such that at 𝑡 0 the mass 𝑚 is at rest and we let the force work until a displacement 𝑠 has been reached.
Q: How long does it take to have a displacement of size 𝑠?
A: We know that 𝐹 is constant and therefore:
𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 0 𝑡 𝑡→𝑥 𝑡 𝑡 𝑠→𝑡 .

Q: What is the velocity at that particular 𝑡?
A: We know that:
𝑣 𝑡 𝑡 ⋅ .
Q: What is the change in kinetic energy?
A: The change in kinetic energy is 𝑚𝑣 , as we started from rest (𝑣 0 0). For this particular 𝑡:
𝑚𝑣 𝑚⋅ 𝐹𝑠.
Conclusion: in this experiment the work 𝑊 done by a force is exactly the same as the increase of kinetic energy
of the mass 𝑚:
𝑊 ∆𝐾.

This equation, 𝑊 ∆𝐾, derived for the special that the force (1) is constant and (2) is parallel to the
44

displacement, can be generalized to more general situations.
First assume the force is not in line with the displacement.

Suppose that instead a worker exerts a horizontal force 𝐹 on the block that is not aligned with the
resulting motion, so the force and the motion are in different directions, see Figure above (left) and
(middle).
Only the horizontal force is pulling the mass 𝑚 to the right, so the work will be:
𝑊 𝐹 𝑠 𝐹𝑠 cos 𝜃.

In fact, we omitted a few forces, see Figure above (right): the gravitational force and the normal force.
The vertical component of the force, 𝐹 , is cancelled by the gravitational and reaction force. So 𝐹 is the
resulting vector that does the work.
You may recognize the equation 𝑊 𝐹𝑠 cos 𝜃 . As 𝜃 is the angle between the force 𝐹⃗ and
displacement 𝑠⃗, we can write this equation in terms of the dot product of the force and displacement:
𝑊 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑠⃗.

Some special cases.
(i) If 𝐹 0, then 𝑊 0. For work to be done, a force must be exerted.
(ii) If 𝑠 0 then 𝑊 0. For work to be done by a force, there must be movement of the point of
application of that force through some distance.
(iii) If 𝜃 𝜋/2, then 𝑊 0. For work to be done by a force, a component of the force must act in the
direction of the displacement (or in the opposite direction). If a force is always perpendicular to the
direction of motion, then the work done by that particular force is zero. (iv) When 𝜃 0, then 𝑊
𝐹𝑠. If the force and the displacement are in the same direction 𝑊 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑠⃗ reduces to 𝑊 𝐹𝑠.
(v) When 𝜃 𝜋, then 𝑊 𝐹𝑠. If the force acts opposite to the direction of the displacement, then
that force does negative work. In a block of mass 𝑚 if lifted a distance ℎ upwards, the gravitational
force 𝑚𝑔 acts downward on the block, so the work done by gravity is 𝑚𝑔ℎ.
6.2 Work done by variable forces and arbitrary displacements.
[1]: section 6.2

We now generalize the concept of work, 𝑊, to the case of a force that may vary in space and time, but
the motion of the mass is still consistent with this force. We take a more formal route here.

In three dimensions, the kinetic energy of a particle is given by:
𝐾 𝑚 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝑚𝑣⃗ ⋅ 𝑣⃗.
Here we (again) used the dot product. Now we consider the time derivative of 𝐾:
45

𝐾 𝑡 𝑚 𝑣⃗ ⋅ 𝑣⃗
𝑚 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡
𝑚 𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑣′ 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡
𝑚 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡 𝑎 𝑡 𝑣 𝑡
𝑚𝑎⃗ ⋅ 𝑣⃗ 𝐹⃗ ⋅ 𝑣⃗ 𝐹⃗ ⋅ 𝑥⃗.

In the last step we used Newton’s second law. We now integrate over 𝑡:
⃗ ⃗
𝐾 𝑡 d𝑡 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑑𝑡 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑑𝑥⃗ ⃗

On the left hand side we see the change in kinetic energy:
𝐾 𝑡 d𝑡 𝐾 𝑡 𝐾 𝑡 𝐾 𝑡 .

We recognise the work as the right hand side of the above equation:

The work done by a force 𝐹⃗ on an object that moves from 𝑥⃗ to 𝑥⃗ in a time interval between 𝑡 and 𝑡 is
given by:
⃗
𝑊 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑑𝑥⃗ 𝐾 𝑡 𝐾 𝑡 .
⃗
It still holds that 𝑊 Δ𝐾: The work done by a force is equal to the change in kinetic energy of the thing
the force has acted on.

Example
We come back to a spring, see Figure below.

We start with the situation at 𝑡 0 with the position of the mass 𝑀 at 𝑥 𝑥 and we end when the mass
ends up in 𝑥 𝑥 . Remember also that the force is given by:
𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥.
⃗
Applying 𝑊 ⃗
𝐹 ∙ 𝑑𝑥⃗ we obtain
⃗
𝑊 𝑘𝑤𝑑𝑤 𝑘𝑤 𝑘 𝑥 𝑥 .
46

6.3 Potential energy.
[1]: Section 7.1

We start with a definition.

Definition
A force is called conservative if the work done by such a force on a particle is independent of the path taken as
the particle moves from one point to another.

Or, alternatively:
Definition
A force is conservative if the work it does on a particle is zero when the particle moves around any closed path,
returning to its initial position.

Examples of conservative forces:
(i) Constant forces;
(ii) Electric forces;
(iii) Gravitational forces;
(iv) Spring forces.
A typical non‐conservative force is friction: indeed, if you slide a box on a floor from point 𝐴 to point 𝐵
the work done is negative; if you then slide the box from point 𝐵 to point 𝐴 the work is again negative.
So the sum is not zero. Forces that are not conservative and convert mechanical energy to heat are called
dissipative.
The work done by a conservative force on a particle does not depend on the path, but it does depend on
the endpoints of the path. We can use this property to define the potential‐energy function 𝑈 that is
associated with a conservative force.
In fact the potential, if it exists – meaning, that 𝐹⃗ is conservative –, has to satisfy the following equation:
𝐹 ,𝐹 ,𝐹 .
It can be shown that:
⃗
𝑊 𝐹⃗ ∙ 𝑑𝑟⃗ 𝑈 𝑟⃗ 𝑈 𝑟⃗ .
⃗

Definition
If a force 𝐹⃗ has the property that there exist a function 𝑈 𝑟⃗ such that the above Equation holds, then:
(i) The force is conservative;
(ii) 𝑈 is the potential of that force.

Example
Consider the gravitational force in the 𝑧‐direction (upward is positive):
𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝑘 → 𝐹 𝑚𝑔.
Then
𝑊 𝐹𝑦 𝑚𝑔𝑑𝑧 𝑚𝑔𝑧 𝑚𝑔𝑧 ,
which leads to:
47

𝑈 𝑟⃗ 𝑈 𝑥, 𝑦, 𝑧 𝑚𝑔𝑧.
Note: Potential energy 𝑈 is always defined up to a constant!

𝑈 𝑟⃗ 𝑈 𝑥, 𝑦, 𝑧 𝑚𝑔𝑧 33,
would also be a legitimate potential, provided that the 33 would have the dimension of energy.

Example
Motions involving ideal springs are a second example. We have Hooke’s law (the springs must be ’ideal’, i.e.,
Hooke’s law applies). Previously we showed that if
𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥,
then 𝑊 equals:
𝑊 𝑘𝑤𝑑𝑤 𝑘𝑤 𝑘 𝑥 𝑥 .

So the force of an ideal spring is conservative and the potential is given by
𝑈 𝑟⃗ 𝑈 𝑥, 𝑦, 𝑧 𝑘𝑥 .

Example
Suppose we have a set of objects, position 𝑟⃗ , mass 𝑚 , 𝑖 1, … , 𝑁; gravity works on all of them. So for each
particle 𝑖 we compute its potential energy: 𝑈 𝑚 𝑔𝑧 → 𝑈 ∑ 𝑚 𝑔𝑧 We defined the centre of mass
earlier: 𝑀𝑟⃗ ∑ 𝑚 𝑟⃗ with 𝑀 the total mass, i.e., 𝑀 ∑ 𝑚 .

If we consider the 𝑧 component of this equation we get
𝑀𝑧 ∑ 𝑚𝑧.

We can combine the two into
𝑈 ∑ 𝑚 𝑔𝑧 𝑀𝑔𝑧 ,

which explains the relevance of this concept.

6.4 Conservation of Energy.
[1]: section 7.2

The principle of conservation of energy states that the total energy of a closed system remains
constant. If the only forces acting on a mechanical system are conservative, no mechanical energy is
converted to other forms, and the total mechanical energy is conserved.

Example
A common example of a conservative force is gravity: a body moving under the influence of gravity alone
conserves the sum of its kinetic and potential energies, i.e.,
1
𝐾 𝑈 𝑚𝑣 𝑚𝑔𝑧 constant.
2

This is not new magic, but it follows from Newton’s second law:
𝑑𝑣
𝑚𝑎⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝑘 → 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝑔 → 𝑚 𝑚𝑔.
𝑑𝑡

48

We first multiply the last equation with 𝑣 and manipulate further. For the left hand side this gives:
𝑑𝑣 1 𝑑𝑣 𝑑 1
𝑚𝑣 𝑚 𝑚𝑣 ,
𝑑𝑡 2 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 2

and for the right hand side:
𝑑𝑧 𝑑
𝑚𝑔𝑣 𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔𝑧 .
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

So:
𝑑 1 𝑑 𝑑 1 1
𝑚𝑣 𝑚𝑔𝑧 → 𝑚𝑣 𝑚𝑔𝑧 0 → 𝑚𝑣 𝑚𝑔𝑧 𝐾 𝑈 constant.
𝑑𝑡 2 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 2 2

So in essence the law of conservation of energy is the same as Newton’s second law, but it is simpler to
use. Mathematically Newton’s second contains acceleration which is the first derivative of velocity and
also the second derivative of position. The law of conservation of energy only contains velocity which is
the first derivative of position.

In terms of differential equations: Newton’s second law is a second order differential equation,
conservation of energy a first order differential equation. The latter is easier to solve.

Conservation of energy is an important tool in solving mechanical problems. You should take care,
however. Sometimes it seems that you can use this conservation law, while you cannot.

49

Concept Questions.

CQ6.1 (Adapted from [6]) A cord is used to lower vertically a block of mass 𝑀 a distance 𝑑 at a constant
downward acceleration of 𝑔, see Figure below.
(a) Find the work done by the cord on the block.
(b) Find the work done by the force of gravity.

CQ6.1 (Adapted from [6]) 2 The magnitude of the force of attraction between the positively charged
proton and the negatively charged electron in the hydrogen atom is given by
𝐹 𝑘 ,
where 𝑒 is the electric charge of the electron, 𝑘 is a constant, and 𝑟 is the separation between
electron and proton. Assume that the proton is fixed. Imagine that the electron is initially moving in a
circle of radius 𝑟 about the proton and jumps suddenly into a circular orbit of smaller radius 𝑟 ; see
Figure below.
(a) Calculate the change in kinetic energy of the electron, using classical forces (Newton’s 2 law).
(b) Using the relation between force and potential energy, calculate the change in potential energy of the
atom.
(c) By how much has the total energy of the atom changed in this process? (This energy is often given off
in the form of radiation.)

CQ6.3 Consider a block of mass 𝑚 on a floor. We give it an initial velocity 𝑣 in the horizontal direction.
Due to the friction the box slows down and comes to rest. Does the work of the friction force and the
change in kinetic energy coincide?

CQ6.4 (Adapted from [1]) An object, mass 𝑚 in the Figure below, is released from rest at a height of 𝐻
on a curved frictionless ramp. At the foot of the ramp is a spring of force constant 𝑘. The object slides

2
This description of the hydrogen atom is severely oversimplified and wrong from an electrodynamics point of
view, so please take this with a (lots of) grain(s) of salt.
50

down the ramp and into the spring, compressing it a distance 𝑥 before coming momentarily to rest.
(a) Find 𝑥.
(b) Describe the motion of the object (if any) after the block momentarily comes to rest?

Tutorial Questions.
TQ6.1 A chain is held on a frictionless table with one‐fourth of its length hanging over the edge, as shown
in the Figure below.
(a) If the chain has a length ℓ and a mass 𝑚, how much work is required to pull the hanging part back

on the table?
(b) What is the potential energy difference in the two situations: (i) as in Figure and (ii) the whole chain
on the table?
TQ6.2 A boy called Max with mass 𝑚 is sitting on top of a spherical hump of ice with mass 𝑚 and radius

𝑅, see Figure below.
He slides down (assume the ice is frictionless), at what height (or angle 𝜙) does the boy lose contact with
the ice?

TQ6.3 (Adapted from [1]) A ball is attached to a horizontal cord of length ℓ, of which the other end is
fixed, see Figure below. A peg is located at a distance ℓ 𝑟 below the point of attachment of the cord.

51

(a) If the ball is released, what will be its speed at the lowest point of its path?
(b) What will be the speed of the ball when it reaches the top of its circular path about the peg? (c) Show
that it is necessary that 𝑟 ℓ if the ball is to make a complete circle about the peg.

TQ6.4 (Adapted from [2]) A man of height ℎ is bungee jumping from a platform situated a height ℎ
above a lake. One end of an elastic rope is attached to his foot and the other end is fixed to the platform.

He starts falling from rest in a vertical position. The length and elastic properties of the rope are chosen
so that his speed will have been reduced to zero at the instant when his head reaches the surface of the
water. Ultimately the jumper is hanging from the rope, with his head ℎ above the water. Find the
unstretched length of the rope in terms of ℎ, ℎ , ℎ .

TQ6.5 (Adapted from [1]) The block with mass 𝑚 in the Figure below slides down a frictionless curved
ramp, starting from rest at a height of 𝐻.
The block then slides over a length of 𝐿 on a rough horizontal surface before coming to rest. (a) What is
the speed of the block at the bottom of the ramp?
(b) What is the energy dissipated by friction?
(c) What is the coefficient of kinetic friction between the block and the horizontal surface?
TQ6.6 (Adapted from [1]) The cable of an elevator with mass 𝑀 has broken, and the elevator is moving
downward at a steady speed of 𝑣 . A safety braking system that works on friction prevents the downward
speed from increasing.
(a) At what rate is the braking system converting mechanical energy to thermal energy?
(b) While the elevator is moving downward at 𝑣 , the braking system fails and the elevator is in free‐fall
for a distance of ℓ before hitting the top of a large safety spring with force constant of 𝑘. After the
elevator hits the top of the spring, find the distance 𝑑 that the spring is compressed before the elevator
is brought to rest.

52

7. Momentum.
[1]: Chapter 8.
7.1 Momentum, Conservation of Momentum.
[1]: Section 8.1.

When Newton devised his second law, he considered the product of mass and velocity as a measure of an
object’s “quantity of motion”. Today, we call the product of a particle’s mass and velocity linear
momentum:

Definition
An object with mass 𝑚 and velocity 𝑣⃗ has linear momentum 𝑝⃗, defined as 𝑝⃗ 𝑚𝑣⃗.

Next we consider the time derivative of the momentum:
⃗ ⃗ ⃗
𝑚 𝑚𝑎⃗ 𝐹⃗ .
⃗
We can conclude: 𝐹⃗ ,

in fact Newton presented his second law in this way, not as 𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗.

The Law of Conservation of Linear Momentum.
When the sum of the external forces acting on a system of particles remains zero, the rate of change of the total
momentum remains zero and the total momentum of the system remains constant. That is,
∑ 𝐹⃗ 0⃗ → 𝑝⃗ ∑ 𝑚 𝑣⃗ 𝑀𝑣⃗ constant.
In some cases we deal with systems where bodies move freely, and then are subjected to large forces 𝐹
that act only for short times, so the interaction time 𝑡 → 0 (e.g., collisional forces). Because of Newton’s
third law (“action equals minus reaction”) the bodies will exchange momentum, but the total momentum
is conserved. And, if there is no deformation or heat production, the total energy is conserved as well.
Remark
This is a very short section. But there are millions of questions/exercises that go with it. The main questions to
answer each time:
(i) Does the law of conservation of energy hold?
(ii) Does the law of conservation of momentum hold?
(iii) Start computing!

53

7.2 Collisions.
[1]: Section 8.3

Collisions are a nice application of the law of conservation of energy and / or law of conservation of
momentum.

Example
A mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣 collides with a mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣 , head‐on (so essentially a one‐
dimensional problem) and fully elastic. We now compute the resulting velocities 𝑢 and 𝑢 .

Momentum conservation gives:
𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 ,

and energy conservation yields (the collision is fully elastic):
𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 .
Seems rather hopeless, but it is doable. We first rewrite both equations such that the masses on both sides are
equal:
𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑣 , 𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑚 𝑣 ,

or equivalently
𝑚 𝑣 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑣 , 𝑚 𝑣 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑣 .

Using 𝑥 𝑦 𝑥 𝑦 𝑥 𝑦 we get:
𝑚 𝑣 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑣 , 𝑚 𝑣 𝑢 𝑣 𝑢 𝑚 𝑢 𝑣 𝑢 𝑣 ,
and we can now divide the two equations (!):
→𝑣 𝑢 𝑣 𝑢 .
We now can replace our non linear equation by this linear one, leading to 2 equations with 2 unknowns. We now
solve these equations; boring, here is the answer.
𝑢 ,𝑢 .
Note that the answer are identical if you interchange 1 and 2. Symmetry!
Example
A mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣 collides with a mass 𝑚 at rest, head‐on (so essentially a one‐dimensional
problem) and fully elastic. We use the example above:
𝑢 ,𝑢 .
54

Example
A mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣 collides with a mass 𝑚 with velocity 𝑣 , head‐on (so essentially a one‐
dimensional problem) and fully elastic, but now in the centre of mass system, so:
𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑣 0.
We copy the general solution for 𝑢 but replace 𝑚 𝑣 → 𝑚 𝑣 :
𝑢 →𝑢 𝑣 ,
and of course (symmetry!), the same for the other mass:
𝑢 𝑣 ,𝑢 𝑣 .
Example
A mass of 1 𝑘𝑔 with velocity 1 𝑚/𝑠 collides with a mass of 2 𝑘𝑔 with velocity 2𝑚/𝑠 , head‐on (so
essentially a one‐dimensional problem) and fully elastic. We analyse what will happen.

Use the result of the first example and just put the numbers in.
𝑢 1⋅ 1 2 2⋅2⋅ 2 3,
𝑢 2 ⋅ 2 1 2⋅1⋅1 0.
We now look at what is going on in the center of mass (CM) frame.
(i) We first compute the CM velocity:
𝑚 𝑣 𝑣 𝑚 𝑣 𝑣 0→1 𝑣 2 2 𝑣 0→𝑣 1.
So the velocties in the CM frame are: 𝑣′ 𝑣 𝑣 2, 𝑣′ 𝑣 𝑣 1.

(ii) After the collision in the CM frame: 𝑢′ 𝑣′ 2, 𝑢′ 𝑣′ 1.

(iii) And back to the original frame:
𝑢 𝑢′ 𝑣 2 1 3, 𝑢 𝑢′ 𝑣 1 1 0

55

Concept Questions.
CQ7.1 (Adapted from [4]) You are stuck in outer space and want to propel yourself as fast as possible in
a certain direction by throwing an object in the opposite direction. You note that every object you’ve ever
thrown in your life has had the same kinetic energy. Assuming that this trend continues, you should
(a) throw a small object with a large speed;
(b) throw a large object with a small speed;
(c) It doesn’t matter.
CQ7.2 (Adapted from [4]) Two people stand on opposite ends of a long sled on frictionless ice. The sled is
oriented in the east‐west direction, and everything is initially at rest. The western person then throws a
ball eastward toward the eastern person, who catches it. The sled
(a) moves eastward, and then ends up at rest;
(b) moves eastward, and then ends up moving westward;
(c) moves westward, and then ends up at rest;
(d) moves westward, and then ends up moving eastward;
(e) does not move at all.
CQ7.3 (Adapted from [4]) On a frictionless table, a mass 𝑚 moving at speed 𝑣 collides with another

mass 𝑚 initially at rest. The masses stick together. How much energy is converted to heat?
(a) no energy.
(b) 𝑚𝑣
(c) 𝑚𝑣
(d) 𝑚𝑣
(e) 𝑚𝑣

CQ7.4 (Adapted from [4]) A very light ping‐pong ball bounces elastically head‐on off a very heavy bowling
ball that is initially at rest. The fraction of the ping‐pong ball’s initial kinetic energy that is transferred to
the bowling ball is approximately:
(a) 0, (b) 1/4, (c) 1/2, (d) 3/4, (e) 1
CQ7.5 (Adapted from [4]) In a one‐dimensional elastic collision, ball 1 collides with ball 2, which is initially

at rest. Can the masses be chosen so that the final speed of ball 2 is larger than the initial speed of ball
1?
CQ7.6 (Adapted from [4]) A mass 𝑚 moves with a given speed and collides (not necessarily head‐on)
elastically with another mass 𝑚 that is initially at rest, as shown in the Figure below.
Which of the Figures shows a possible outcome for the two velocities? (The velocities are drawn to scale.)

56

Tutorial Questions.
TQ7.1 (Adapted from [2]) Two elastic balls of masses 𝑚 and 𝑚 are placed on top of each other (with

a small gap between them) and then dropped onto the ground, see Figure below. What ratio of masses
makes the upper ball to bounce as high as possible?
Consider the process as two consecutive collisions: 𝑚 bounces on Earth first, and next 𝑚 and 𝑚

collide. Air resistance is neglected and the balls are considered as perfectly elastic.
TQ7.2 We consider a two dimensional elastic collision of two masses.
(a) Assume we are in the centre of mass of the two masses. The data before collision is given by mass 𝑀,
velocity 𝑈⃗ and mass 𝑚, velocity 𝑢⃗ .
Show that:
𝑈⃗ 𝑈 cos𝜃𝚤̂ 𝑈 sin𝜃𝚥̂, 𝑢⃗ 𝑢 cos𝜃𝚤̂ 𝑢 sin𝜃𝚥̂,
is a solution for the collision problem for any angle 𝜃, see Figure below.
(b) We are now not in the centre of mass. A mass 𝑀 collides with velocity 𝑉 elastically with a stationary

mass 𝑚. If 𝑀 𝑚, then it is possible for 𝑀 to bounce directly backwards. However, if 𝑀 𝑚, then
there is a maximum angle of deflection of 𝑀. Find this angle.
TQ7.3 Two cars A and B each have a mass 𝑀 and collide on the icy pavement of an intersection. Before
the collision, car A was travelling due east ( 𝑥) and car B was travelling due south ( 𝑦). The direction of
motion of each car after collision is measured from the snow tracks as shown in the Figure below, giving
𝜙. We know car A had a speed of 𝑉 m/s just before the collision and that after the collision car A was
braking so that the car slid over a length 𝐿 before stopping. Assume that the coefficient of kinetic friction
between the car wheels and the pavement is 𝜇.
57

Determine the speed of car B before the collision.
TQ7.4 (Adapted from [6]) A ballistic pendulum (see Figure below) is a device that was used to measure
the speeds of bullets before electronic timing devices were available.

It consists of a large block of wood of mass 𝑀, hanging from two long pairs of cords. A bullet of mass 𝑚
is fired into the block, and the block‐bullet combination swings upward, its centre of mass rising a vertical
distance ℎ before the pendulum comes momentarily to rest at the end of its arc.
(a) What is the initial speed of the bullet if the block rises to a height ℎ?
(b) What fraction of the initial kinetic energy is lost in this collision?
TQ7.5 (Adapted from [6]) Two ice sleds with mass 𝑀 are placed a short distance apart, one directly
behind the other, as shown in the Figure below.
A cat with mass 𝑚, standing on one sled, jumps across to the other and immediately back to the first.
Both jumps are made at a speed of 𝑣 relative to the sled the cat is standing on when the jump is made.
Find the final speeds of the two sleds.

If you still want to get simple expressions out of it, put 𝑚 𝑀 5 as my tomcat Leo (a well filled red
one) and my sleds happen to be all 5𝑘𝑔 each.
TQ7.6 (Adapted from [6]) A block of mass 𝑚 slides along a frictionless table with a velocity 𝑣 . Directly

in front of it, and moving in the same direction, is a block of mass 𝑚 moving at velocity 𝑣 𝑣 . A
massless spring with a force constant 𝑘 is attached to the backside of 𝑚 , as shown in the Figure below.

When the blocks collide, what is the maximum compression of the spring?
Hint: At the moment of maximum compression of the spring, the two blocks move as one.

TQ7.7 The space shuttle launches a satellite with mass 𝑚 by ejecting it from the cargo bay. The ejection
mechanism is activated and is in contact with the satellite time Δ𝑡 to give it a velocity of 𝑣 in the 𝑧‐
58

direction relative to the shuttle. The mass of the shuttle is 𝑀.
(a) Determine the component of velocity of the shuttle in the minus 𝑧‐direction resulting from the
ejection.
(b) Find the average force that the shuttle exerts on the satellite during the ejection
TQ7.8 (Adapted from [6]) A bullet with mass 𝑚 is fired horizontally at two blocks resting on a frictionless
tabletop, as shown in the Figure below (a).

The bullet with mass 𝑚 passes through the first block, with mass 𝑀 , and embeds itself in the second,
with mass 𝑀 . Final speeds are 𝑣 and 𝑣 , respectively, are thereby imparted to the blocks, as shown
in the Figure above (b). Neglecting the mass removed from the first block by the bullet, find the speed of
the bullet immediately after emerging from the first block and the original speed of the bullet, 𝑣 .
TQ7.9 (!) (Adapted from [6]) A uniform flexible chain of length 𝐿, with weight per unit length 𝜆, passes

over a small, frictionless peg; see Figure below.

It is released from a rest position with a length of chain 𝑥 hanging from one side and a length 𝐿 𝑥
from the other side. Find the acceleration 𝑎 as a function of 𝑥.
TQ7.10 (Adapted from [6]) A steel ball of mass 𝑚 is fastened to a cord 𝐿 long and is released when the

cord is horizontal. At the bottom of its path, the ball strikes a steel block with mass 𝑀, initially at rest on
a frictionless surface (see Figure below). On collision, one‐half the mechanical kinetic energy is converted
to internal energy and sound energy. Find the final speeds.
59

8. Rotations, moment of inertia.
[1]: Chapter 9.
Refresh your memory on circular motion in section 3. The angular velocity of a point mass about another
point is defined as
𝜔 ,
where 𝑣 is the linear velocity of the mass perpendicular to the line joining the two points, and 𝑟 is the

length of this line. For a mass to move in a circle of radius 𝑟 with speed 𝑣, a centripetal acceleration is
required:
𝑎 𝜔 𝑟,
directed towards the centre of the circle. By Newton’s second law this requires a centripetal force:
𝐹 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝜔 𝑟,
directed towards the centre of the circle, where 𝑚 is the mass of the body.
Angular acceleration 𝛼 = rate of change of angular velocity. If the angular velocity changes by 𝑑𝜔 at a

uniform rate in time 𝑑𝑡, we have
𝛼 ,

where 𝑎 𝛼𝑟 is the tangential acceleration, in the direction of the velocity. If 𝛼 is constant, there is
a complete analogy with the case of constant linear acceleration 𝑎:
𝛼 ∼ 𝑎 ⟷ 𝜔 ∼ 𝑣 ⟷ 𝜃 ∼ 𝑥.

In section 3, we discussed circular motion by choosing the 𝑥 𝑦 plane. The generalization to three dime‐
nsions is straightforward. The motion can occur in any plane in our three dimensional world. For this
reason we choose 𝜔 to be a vector, 𝜔⃗ in the direction of the axis of rotation, see Figure below. So if
the motion takes place in the 𝑥 𝑦 plane, 𝜔⃗ is directed along the 𝑧‐direction.
60

8.1 Rotations.
Suppose we have a thin bar with mass 𝑚 lying on a fritionless table. Now we give the bar a little
momentum 𝑚𝑣 by applying a force 𝐹⃗ for a small time Δ𝑡. If we aim the force right in the middle of the
bar, as shown in the Figure below (left) it will translate to the right.

If we hit the same bar not exactly in the middle as in the Figure below (left) the bar will still move as a
whole, but it will also start to rotate, see Figure below (right).
Obviously our assumption that all masses are point masses is not correct. A force can act on different
points of a massive object and the motion of that object will not be the same. The orientation of a piece
of material, in this case a bar, can also change.
In section 5 we introduced the concept of the centre of mass, CM, of an object. We showed that the centre
of mass of an object satisfied the Newton laws. Indeed, we also showed there the centre of mass of a thin
bar lies in the middle of bar. This justifies why the arrow in the Figure above (right) is drawn in the center:
the position of the centre of mass will move with velocity 𝑣.

But is also clear that we miss something: the bar somehow rotates around this centre of mass with an
angular velocity and at this moment it is clear what its value, 𝜔, is. Before we can figure out what
equations will give rise to rotations we define some important concepts in this lecture.
8.2 Kinetic energy.
[1]: Section 9.2
The kinetic energy of a particle with mass 𝑚 moving with velocity 𝑣⃗ equals:

𝐾 𝑚 𝑣⃗ ∙ 𝑣⃗ 𝑚 𝑣 .
Now consider a massive undeformable object. That object rotates with a angular velocity 𝜔 around
some axis which we denote by 𝜔⃗. This is a vector of size 𝜔 and it coincides with the axis of rotation.
61

Particle 𝑛 is part of this object. It also rotates around 𝜔⃗, hence we can rewrite the kinetic energy of
particle 𝑛 as:
𝐾 𝑚 𝑣⃗ ∙ 𝑣⃗ 𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑟 𝜔 ,
where 𝑟 is the distance of 𝑚 to the vector 𝜔⃗. (Indeed, the points on 𝜔⃗ have velocity 0.) So:

𝐾 𝐾 𝐾 ⋯ 𝐾 ∑ 𝑚 𝑟 𝜔 𝐼𝜔 , with 𝐼 ≡ ∑ 𝑚 𝑟 .
The quantity 𝐼 is called the moment of inertia. The Figure below shows in top view examples for 𝑁 1
(left) and 𝑁 3 (right) – 𝜔⃗ points into (or out of) your paper or screen.
Figure: Rotation of one resp. more than one point around the axis of rotation which is throug 𝑂 and
perpendicular to the paper/screen (top view).

Definition
A set of 𝑁 masses, 𝑚 , 𝑛 1, … , 𝑁 that rotates rigidly around a fixed axis 𝜔⃗, have a moment of inertia, 𝐼,
given by:
𝐼 ∑ 𝑚 𝑟 with 𝑟 the distance of 𝑚 to the axis of rotation, 𝜔⃗.
Definition
The rotational kinetic energy, 𝐾 of set of 𝑁 masses that have a moment of inertia, 𝐼, is given by:
𝐾 𝐼|𝜔⃗| 𝐼𝜔 .
Theorem
The total kinetic energy of a rigid object is given by:
1 1
𝐾 𝐾 𝐾 𝑚𝑣 𝐼 𝜔
2 2

62

8.3 Computation of the moment of inertia.
[1]: Section 9.3

In practice we have infinitely many points in a solid; then we can compute 𝐼 with an integral, just in the
case of the centre of mass.
Example
Consider a homogeneous thin bar, length 𝐿, mass 𝑀, that rotates around the mid point 𝑂, i.e., the centre of
mass, see Figure below.

We wish to compute the moment inertia of the bar:
𝐼 ∑ 𝑚 𝑟 .
The procedure is the same as we saw in the computation of the centre of mass: you convert the sum to an integral.
(a) Take a small part, length 𝑑𝑥 of the bar at position 𝑥, see Figure above.
(b) Its mass is 𝑑𝑚 𝑀 𝑑𝑥.
/ /
(c) 𝐼 𝑥 𝑑𝑚 /
𝑥 𝑑𝑥 𝑥 𝑀𝐿 .
/

Example
Consider a homogeneous thin bar, length 𝐿, mass 𝑀, that rotates around the end point 𝑂. We compute the
moment inertia of the bar:
𝐼 𝑥 𝑑𝑚 𝑥 𝑑𝑥 𝑥 𝑀𝐿 .
Note that the computation is almost the same, the only difference being the range of integration.

Theorem
The parallel‐axis theorem relates the moment of inertia about an axis through the centre of mass to the moment
of inertia about a second, parallel axis, see Figure below.

It holds that:
𝐼 𝐼 𝑀ℎ .

Consider the moments of inertia of the bars in the two examples above, which rotated around the center
of mass (the middle of the bar) or one of the end points:
𝐼 𝑀𝐿 , 𝐼 𝑀𝐿 𝑀𝐿 𝑀𝐿 𝐼 𝑀 𝐿 .
So we verified the theorem for this special case.
63

8.4 A list of moments of inertia of certain shapes.

This is not a course in calculus (heavy integration and that sort of things): usually you consult a book or
internet to find moments of inertia of objects.

Do not learn this by heart:
Stick of length 𝐿, mass 𝑀 around centre 𝐼 𝑀𝐿

Stick of length 𝐿, mass 𝑀 around end 𝐼 𝑀𝐿
A thin plate of size 𝐴 𝐵, axis through the centre of mass 𝐼 𝑀 𝐴 𝐵
Ring of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around centre 𝐼 𝑀𝑅
Ring of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around diameter 𝐼 𝑀𝑅
Disk of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around centre 𝐼 𝑀𝑅
Disk of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around diameter 𝐼 𝑀𝑅
Spherical shell of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around diameter 𝐼 𝑀𝑅
A sphere of radius 𝑅, mass 𝑀 around diameter 𝐼 𝑀𝑅

What you need to know is how to apply the parallel axis theorem. See the next two examples.

Example
The moment of inertia of the object shown in the Figure below (left) can be found in the table:
𝐼 𝑀 𝐴 𝐵 .

We can now compute the moment of inertia of the object shown in the Figure above on the right:
𝐼 𝑀 𝐴 𝐵 𝑀𝐴 𝑀 4𝐴 𝐵 ,
By using the parallel axis theorem once in this case.
Example
We compute the moment of inertia of the object shown in the Figure below.

64

𝐼 𝑀𝐿 𝑅 𝐿 𝑅 𝑀 .
We used the parallel axis theorem twice in this case.

A sphere or a cylinder (so ’something round’) can move on a horizontal surface in many ways. (a) If there
is no friction between object and surface the object will move as it starts (use Newton’s first law).
(b) If there is friction, this force will eventually lead to rolling, i.e., moving without slip. In this final motion
there is a relation between the velocity of the centre of mass, 𝑣 and the angular velocity 𝜔 . If the
diameter of the object is 𝑅 we have:
𝑣 𝑅𝜔 .
Indeed, if the object completes one spin we have an angular increase of 𝜃 𝜔 2𝜋, whereas the
distance traveled is equal to circumference of the object 𝑑 2𝜋𝑅. We return to this in the next sections.

65

Concept Questions.
CQ8.1 Rank the following wheels on size of the moment of inertia from low to high. The masses are equal
and assume that darker regions indicate higher densities.
CQ8.2 (Adapted from [4]) You give a quick push on three identical sticks at the locations shown below.
Your force is constant, and it acts over the same small distance Δ𝑥 in each case. Which stick has the
largest resulting CM velocity?
(a) 𝐴
(b) 𝐵
(c) 𝐶
(d) They all have the same CM velocity.

CQ8.3 (Adapted from [4]) You give a quick push on three identical sticks at the locations shown below.
Your force is constant, and it acts over the same small time interval Δ𝑡 in each case. Which stick has the
largest resulting CM velocity?
(a) 𝐴
(b) 𝐵
(c) 𝐶
(d) They all have the same CM velocity.

Tutorial Questions.

TQ8.1 (Adapted from [6]) Two particles, each with mass 𝑚, are fastened to each other and to a rotation
axis by two rods, each with length 𝐿 and mass 𝑀, as shown in the Figure below.
The combination rotates around the rotation axis with angular velocity 𝜔. Obtain an algebraic expression
for the moment of inertia of the combination about this axis. The size of the two masses can be
negelected.
66

TQ8.2 (Adapted from [1]) A uniform thin rod of mass 𝑚 and length 𝐿 is free to rotate about a fixed
horizontal axis perpendicular to and through one end of the rod. It is held horizontal and released. What
is the speed of the centre of mass of the rod when the rod is (momentarily) vertical?

TQ8.3 A merry‐go‐round with a moment of inertia equal to 𝐼 and a radius of 𝑟 rotates with negligible
friction at 𝜔 . A child initially standing still next to the merry‐go‐round jumps onto the edge of the
platform straight toward the axis of rotation causing the platform to slow to 𝜔 . What is her mass?
# Checks 1.
TQ8.4 (Adapted from [1]) A marble of mass 𝑀 and radius 𝑅 rolls without slipping down the track on

the left from a height ℎ , as shown in the Figure below.

The marble then goes up the frictionless track on the right to a height ℎ . Find ℎ .
TQ8.5 (Adapted from [1]) An object is rolling without slipping. What percentage of its total kinetic energy
is its translational kinetic energy if the object is
(a) a uniform sphere?
(b) a uniform cylinder?
(c) a hoop?
TQ8.6 (Adapted from [6]) A rigid body is made of three identical thin rods fastened together in the form
of a letter H, see Figure below.

The body is free to rotate about a horizontal axis that passes through one of the legs of the H. The body
is allowed to fall from rest from a position in which the plane of the H is horizontal. What is the angular
speed of the body when the plane of the H is vertical?

TQ8.7 (Adapted from [6]) In this problem we seek to compute the moment of inertia of a disk of mass 𝑀
and radius 𝑅 about an axis through its centre and perpendicular to its surface. Consider a mass element
𝑚 in the shape of a ring of radius 𝑟 and width 𝑟 (see Figure below).
67

(a) What is the mass 𝑑𝑚 of this element, expressed as a fraction of the total mass 𝑀 of the disk?
(b) What is the moment of inertia 𝑑𝐼 of this element?
(c) Integrate the result of part (b) to find the moment of inertia of the entire disk.

68

9. Torque.
[1]: Chapter 9.
We discussed the concept of kinetic energy of a rotating object and derived the analogue of mass in the
rotational setting, which turned out to be moment of inertia. We need the analogy of force and
momentum when rotations occur. Here we consider torques, which is the proper concept related to force.
So we now focus on how the angular velocity can change, according to
𝛼 𝜔′ 0.
Our starting position is a very thin rod with a mass 𝑚 at its end and we give it a velocity 𝑣 / angular

velocity 𝜔 𝑣/𝑅. The other end is fixed in pivot 𝑃 but the bar is free to rotate (see Figure below).
We now wish to accelerate the mass, still moving in a circle of radius 𝑅: so we apply some force 𝐹⃗ to

the mass.
So, standard procedure: an FBD for mass 𝑚:

The rod must ballance the centrifugal force:
𝑁⃗ 𝑁⃗ 0⃗ → 𝑁 𝑁 .
Effectivily here is one force remaining, a force 𝐹⃗ which is tangent to the circle. Now we use Newton’s
second law:
𝐹 𝐹sin𝜙 𝑚𝑣′ 𝑚𝑅𝜔′ 𝑚𝑅𝜃′′.
and as the moment of inertia 𝐼 𝑚𝑅 we can rewrite this as:
𝐹 𝑅 𝑚𝑅 𝜃′′ 𝐼𝜃′′ 𝐼𝛼.
If we compare this with Newton’s second law 𝐹 𝑚𝑎 we now see that the driving mechanism for
angular acceleration is the product of the tangential force times the distance to the rotation axis: this
defines the so called torque:
𝜏 𝐹 𝑅 𝑅𝐹 sin 𝜙 𝐼𝛼.

Note that 𝜏 can act clockwise (CW) or counterclockwise (CCW), just like a force in one dimension can
point in two directions.
69

Example
In both situations in the Figure below we can write for the torque:
𝜏 𝑇 𝑇 𝑅 𝐶𝐶𝑊 𝑇 𝑇 𝑅 𝐶𝑊

Example
Both situations in the Figure below are the same: the torque is
𝜏 𝐹𝑑 𝐶𝑊 .

But it should be equal to the third as well if the theory is consistent:
𝜏 𝐺𝑅 𝐹𝑅 𝐹𝑅sin𝜃 𝐹𝑑 𝐶𝑊
And it is.

70

Example
Consider a mass 𝑀 is attached to very thin rod of length 𝐿 and in horizontal position (𝜃 0) we let it go, see
Figure below (left).
(a) The distance to the rotation point is 𝐿, so 𝐼 𝑀𝐿 . The rod is very thin and we neglect its mass.

(b) The vertical force is 𝐹 𝑀𝑔, pointing downwards.
(c) We choose the potential energy in the horizontal position equals 𝑈 0. Then in the position of the Figure
we have 𝑈 𝐿𝑀𝑔sin𝜃.
(d) The kinetic energy in the horizontal position equals 𝐾 , 0.
(e) Energy conservation tells us
𝐾 , 𝐼𝜔 𝐿𝑀𝑔sin𝜃.
1 2
Note that 𝜔 and 𝜃 are related: 𝜔 𝜃′, so 𝐼𝜃′ 𝐿𝑀 sin 𝜃 𝐹𝐿 sin 𝜃.
2

(f)We can differentiate this with respect to time:
𝐼𝜃′𝜃′′ 𝐹𝐿cos𝜃𝜃′
which becomes after dividing by 𝜃′:
𝐹𝐿cos𝜃 𝐼𝜃′′
Indeed we find the torque 𝜏 𝐹𝐿cos𝜃.
Example
A thin bar of mass 𝑀 and length 𝐿 is pivoted at one end and let go.

(a) A thin bar, mass 𝑀, length 𝐿, rotation in end has a moment of inertia 𝐼 𝑀𝐿 .
(b) The vertical force is 𝐹 𝑀𝑔, centre of mass is half way the bar: gravity essentially works on the centre of
mass.
(c) As before, the potential energy lost equals the kinetic energy gained:
1 1 1
𝑀𝑔𝐿sin𝜃 𝐹𝐿sin𝜃 𝐼𝜔2 .
2 2 2
Differentiate with respect to time 𝑡:
1 1
𝐹𝐿cos𝜃 ⋅ 𝜃′ 𝐼𝜔 ⋅ 𝜔′ → 𝐹𝐿cos𝜃 ⋅ 𝜔 𝐼𝜔𝛼.
2 2
Indeed 𝜏 𝐹𝐿cos𝜃 𝐼𝛼.

71

Remark

Note that we can compute 𝜏 also from first principles. The torque "the force making the thing rotate times the
arm" (the arm being the distance to the rotation point):
𝜏 𝑔𝑥cos𝜃 𝑚 𝑔𝑥cos𝜃 𝑥 𝑚𝑔𝐿 cos𝜃

Example
Consider the Atwood machine, but now the pulley has a mass, see Figure below.
(a) The spool has mass 𝑀.
(b) Assume there is no slip (if this would not be the case the mass 𝑀 would be irrelevant).
(c) What do you guess? Is there conservation of energy?

Consequences.
(i) Now 𝑇 𝑇
(ii) The three accelerations are connected.

Choices.
(a) Take 𝑎, the acceleration of 2𝑚 downwards;
(b) Then the acceleration of 𝑚 is 𝑎 upwards;
(c) The disk has a acceleration counter clockwise 𝛼 𝑎/𝑅.

Therefore:
𝑚 𝑎 𝑚 𝑔 𝑇,
𝑚 𝑎 𝑇 𝑚 𝑔,
𝐼𝛼 𝑅 𝑇 𝑇 .

Three equations with three unknowns: 𝑇 , 𝑇 , 𝑎.
𝑚 𝑎 𝑚 𝑔 𝑇 ,𝑚 𝑎 𝑇 𝑚 𝑔, 𝐼/𝑅 𝑎 𝑇 𝑇 .
Three equations with three unknowns: 𝑇 , 𝑇 , 𝑎.
𝑇 𝑚 𝑔 𝑎 ,𝑇 𝑚 𝑎 𝑔 → 𝐼/𝑅 𝑎 𝑚 𝑔 𝑎 𝑚 𝑎 𝑔 ,
and therefore: 𝑎 /
𝑔.
Energy conservation? At 𝑡 0: everything in rest; energy 0
72

(i) At time 𝑡: velocities are 𝑣 𝑎𝑡, 𝜔 ;
(ii) Gain in kinetic energy:
𝐾 𝑚 𝑚 𝑣 𝑚 𝑚 𝑎 𝑡

𝐾 𝐼𝜔 𝐼/𝑅 𝑎 𝑡 .

1
(iii) At time 𝑡: 𝑚 (𝑚 ) has gone down (up) 𝑎𝑡2 ;
2
(iv) ’Gain’ in potential energy:
𝑈 𝑚 𝑚 𝑎𝑔𝑡 .
(v) Total gain/loss:
∑ / 𝑎𝑡 𝑚 𝑚 𝑎 𝐼/𝑅 𝑎 𝑚 𝑚 𝑔 0
(vi) Despite friction, no energy loss.
As we noticed previously, spheres and cylinders can move in several ways: they can slide and roll or do
any combination of that. One special motion was rolling, which lead to the no slip conditions for a circular
(round) object with radius 𝑅:
𝑥 𝑅𝜃.
But if this holds it must also be true that
𝑣 𝑅𝜔, 𝑎 𝑅𝛼.

Example
A round object (a ball, or a cylinder) is rolling (no slip) down an inclined hill. Show that in this process energy is
conserved despite the fact that there is (must be!) a friction force, see Figure below.
The no slip condition reads 𝑎 𝑅𝛼. The forces downhill give: 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝐹 𝑚𝑎.
The friction force 𝐹 is the force that exerts a torque for rotation around the mid point of the object, 𝐴:

𝜏 𝑅 𝐼 𝛼 𝐼 𝑅 𝑎→𝐹 𝐼 𝑅 𝑎,
and we can solve 𝑎: 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝐹 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝐼 𝑅 𝑎 𝑚𝑎 → 𝑎 , 𝐹

Example
The same problem as above, different “rotation point”. The forces downhill still give
𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝐹 𝑚𝑎.
Now we consider the point 𝐵 as rotation point. Then 𝐹 gives no torque (the ’arm’ is 0) but 𝑚𝑔𝑅sin𝜃 does:

𝜏 𝑚𝑔𝑅sin𝜃 𝐼 𝛼 𝐼 𝑚𝑅 𝛼 𝐼 𝑚𝑅 𝑅 𝑎,
which gives the same 𝑎 and 𝐹 as above, as it should. Note the use of the parallel axes theorem. The rotation

axis is now not through the CM.
73

Example
The same problem as above, but now we wish to see if conservation of energy is valid. Due to the no slip condition
we expect that energy is conserved.
At 𝑡 0 we let the object go. We know 𝑎 . Then:

𝑣 𝑎𝑡, 𝜔 𝛼𝑡 𝑎𝑡𝑅 .
What about the height of the ball?
𝑣 𝑎𝑡, 𝜔 𝛼𝑡 𝑎𝑡𝑅 →ℎ 𝑎𝑡 sin𝜃.
The change in kinetic energy 𝐾 is (remember 𝑎 ):

Δ𝐾 𝑚𝑣 𝐼 𝜔 𝑚𝑎 𝑡 𝐼 𝑎 𝑡 𝑅 𝑚 𝐼 𝑅 𝑎 𝑡

𝑚 𝐼 𝑅 𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑔𝑎𝑡 sin𝜃.

The change in potential energy is:
Δ𝑈 𝑚𝑔ℎ 𝑎𝑡 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃.
So we have energy conservation: Δ𝐾 Δ𝑈 0
Example
Let us play pool! Assume there is no friction. How should you hit the cue ball such that it rolls (so not slides)?
We have for a sphere 𝑀𝑅 , and therefore:
∑𝜏 𝐼𝛼 → 𝐹𝑑 𝐼𝛼 𝐼 𝑀𝑅 𝑀𝑅𝑎, 𝐹 𝑀𝑎.
Eliminating 𝐹 gives: 𝑀𝑎𝑑 𝑀𝑅𝑎 → 𝑑 𝑅.
Note that is a very special case: only with this way of hitting, the ball will slide (and only in the beginning in case
there is friction).

Newton’s second law applied to rotational motion of a particle of mass 𝑚 about a fixed point 𝑂 says:
𝐹 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝑟𝛼,
where 𝑎 𝛼𝑟 is the tangential acceleration. If we multiply this result by 𝑟 we get:
74

𝜏 𝑟𝐹 𝑚𝑟𝑎 𝑚𝑟 𝛼,

where 𝜏 is the torque about 𝑂. We can also write this as:
𝑑
𝜏 𝑚𝑟 𝛼 𝑚𝑟 𝜔 .
𝑑𝑡

Thus if the torque about 𝑂 vanishes, the quantity 𝑚𝑟 𝜔 is conserved. This quantity is called angular
momentum, and is the topic of the next section.
A rigid body is one in which the distances between any of its constituent particles remain constant at all
times. The motion of such a rigid body can be decomposed into the linear motion of its centre of mass,
and rotations about the centre of mass. The centre of mass motion is equal to that of a point object of the
same mass as the body. In a rigid body, the angular velocity about the centre of mass is necessarily
uniform. Newton’s second law applied to the rotational motion about the centre of mass yields:
∑𝜏 ∑ 𝑚 𝑟 𝛼 𝐼𝛼,
where 𝜏 is the torque on the 𝑖 th particle of mass 𝑚 and at distance 𝑟 to the centre of mass, and a

sum as taken over all constituent particles of the rigid body. For angular motion, the moment of inertia
about the centre of mass 𝐼 ∑ 𝑚𝑟 plays the same role as mass in linear motion. If the total torque
vanishes, then the angular momentum 𝐼𝜔 is conserved. This is analogous to the conservation of (linear)
momentum for an isolated system on which no external forces act. The kinetic energy of rotation with
angular velocity 𝜔 about a point 𝑂 is:
𝑇 𝐼𝜔 ,
where 𝐼 is the relevant moment of inertia. The rate of increase of 𝑇 is given by the work done by the

torques 𝜏 , which is ∑ 𝜏 𝜃, where 𝜃 is the angle traveled in the direction of the torque.

75

Concept Questions.
CQ9.1 (Adapted from [4]) Consider a ball that rolls down a plane (which has friction) without slipping.
And consider a block that slides down a different plane, which is frictionless. Both planes are inclined at
the same angle. The acceleration of the CM of the ball is smaller than the acceleration of the block because
(circle all that apply):
(a) the component of 𝑔 pointing down the plane is smaller in the case of the ball;
(b) the ball has one contact point with its plane, whereas the block has a whole surface of contact points
with its plane;
(c) there is a friction force on the ball pointing up the plane;
(d) energy is contained in the rotational motion of the ball.

CQ9.2 (Adapted from [4]) The objects shown below are released from rest, all from the same initial
angle. They are all pivoted on the ground, and the CM’s are all the same distance 𝑑 from the pivot. The
total mass of each object is the same (although this assumption isn’t necessary). Dotted lines denote
massless sticks. Which object falls the fastest?
CQ9.3 (Adapted from [4]) You pull on a roll of toilet paper with a given force 𝐹 and observe the angular
acceleration 𝛼. A few days later when the radius is half of what it was, you pull with the same force 𝐹.
(For simplicity, ignore the hollow tube; assume that the toilet paper goes all the way down to zero radius.)
The ratio of the new 𝛼 to the old 𝛼 is:
(a) 1;
(b) 2;
(c) 4;
(d) 8;
(e) 16.

Tutorial Questions.
TQ9.1 (Adapted from [6]) A flywheel completes 𝑁 revolutions as it slows from an angular speed of 𝜔
to a complete stop.
(a) Assuming constant acceleration, what is the time required for it to come to rest? What is the angular
acceleration?
(b) How much time is required for it to complete the first one‐half of the 𝑁 rev?
TQ9.2 (Adapted from [1]) Two large gears that are being designed as part of a large machine are shown
in the Figure; each is free to rotate about a fixed axis through its centre.
76

The radius and moment of inertia of the smaller gear are 𝑟 and 𝐼 , respectively, and the radius and
moment of inertia of the larger gear are 𝑟 and 𝐼 , respectively. The lever attached to the smaller gear
is 𝐿 m long and has negligible mass.
If a worker will apply a force 𝐹 to the end of the lever, as shown, what will be the angular accelerations
of the two gears?
# Checks 2.

TQ9.3 (Adapted from [1]) A uniform solid cylinder of mass 𝑀 and radius 𝑅 is at rest on a slab of mass

𝑚, which in turn rests on a horizontal, frictionless table.

If a horizontal force is applied to the slab, it accelerates and the cylinder rolls without slipping. Find the
acceleration of the slab in terms of 𝑀, 𝑚, 𝑅, and 𝐹.
TQ9.4 (Partly adapted from [1]) A round object (a ball, or a cylinder) is roling (no slip) down an inclined
hill. In the notes we showed that in this process energy is conserved despite the fact that there is a friction
force.
As the chief design engineer for a major toy company, you are in charge of designing a ’loop‐the‐loop’ toy
for youngsters. The idea, as shown in the figure, is that a ball of mass 𝑚 and radius 𝑟 will roll down an
inclined track and around the loop without slipping. The ball starts from rest at a height ℎ above the
tabletop that supports the whole track. The loop radius is 𝑅. Determine the minimum height ℎ, in terms
of 𝑅 and 𝑟, for which the ball will remain in contact with the track during the whole of its loop‐the‐loop
journey. (Do not neglect the size of the ball’s radius when doing this calculation.)

The moment of inertia of a sphere of radius 𝑟 and mass 𝑚 is: 𝐼 𝑚𝑟 .
77

TQ9.5 (Adapted from [1]) A cylinder with mass 𝑀 and radius 𝑟, initially at rest, is free to rotate about
the axis of the cylinder. A rope of negligible mass is wrapped around it and pulled with a force of 𝐹.
Assuming that the rope does not slip, find:
(a) the torque exerted on the cylinder by the rope,
(b) the angular acceleration of the cylinder,
(c) the angular speed of the cylinder after time 𝑡.
TQ9.6 (Adapted from [1]) A grinding wheel is initially at rest. A constant external torque of 𝜏 is applied
to the wheel for time 𝑡 , giving the wheel an angular speed of 𝜔. The external torque is then removed,
and the wheel comes to rest 𝑡 later.
So given are 𝜔, 𝜏, 𝑡 , 𝑡 . Find the moment of inertia of the wheel, and the frictional torque, which is

assumed to be constant.

TQ9.7 (Adapted from [6]) A solid cylinder of length 𝐿 and radius 𝑅 has a mass 𝑚. Two cords are
wrapped around the cylinder, one near each end, and the cord ends are attached to hooks on the ceiling.
The cylinder is held horizontally with the two cords exactly vertical and is then released (See Figure below).

(a) Compute the tension in each cord as they unwind.
(b) Compute the linear acceleration of the cylinder as it falls.

TQ9.8 (Adapted from [6]) A hoop rolling down an inclined plane of inclination angle 𝜃 keeps pace with
a block sliding down the same plane. Show that the coefficient of kinetic friction between block and plane
is given by 𝜇 tan𝜃.
TQ9.9 (Adapted from [1]) A uniform thin rod of mass 𝑚 and length 𝐿 is free to rotate about a fixed

horizontal axis perpendicular to and through one end of the rod. It is held horizontal and released.
Immediately after it is released, what is the acceleration of the centre of the rod, and the initial
acceleration of the free end of the rod?
TQ9.10 (Adapted from [1]) A uniform horizontal disk of mass 𝑀 and radius 𝑅 is spinning about the
vertical axis through its centre with an angular speed 𝜔. When the spinning disk is dropped onto a
horizontal tabletop, kinetic‐frictional forces on the disk oppose its spinning motion. Let 𝜇 be the
coefficient of kinetic friction between the disk and the tabletop.
(a) Find the torque d𝜏 exerted by the force of friction on a circular element of radius 𝑟 and width d𝑟.
(b) Find the total torque exerted by friction on the disk.
(c) Find the time required for the disk to stop rotating.

78

TQ9.11 (Adapted from [6]) An apparatus for testing the skid resistance of automobile tires is constructed
as shown in the Figure below.

The tire is initially motionless and is held in a light framework that is freely pivoted at points 𝐴 and 𝐵.
The moment of inertia of the wheel about its axis is 𝐼, its mass is 𝑚, and its radius 𝑟. The tire is placed
on the surface of a conveyor belt that is moving with a surface speed 𝑣, such that 𝐴𝐵 is horizontal.
If the coefficient of kinetic friction between the tire and the conveyor belt is 𝜇 , what time will be
required for the wheel to achieve its final angular velocity?

79

10. Angular momentum.
[1]: Chapter 10
In the previous section we introduced torque with the aid of examples. In this lecture we dive into ’real
three dimensional mechanics.’
Therefore we need a little more vector math here. We start with cross products.
If 𝑐⃗ 𝑎⃗ 𝑏⃗, the properties of 𝑐⃗ are:

(a) 𝑐⃗ ⊥ 𝑎⃗, 𝑐⃗ ⊥ 𝑏⃗;

(b) You use the right hand for the direction (see Figure below);

(c) The size of 𝑐⃗ is |𝑐⃗| |𝑎⃗||𝑏⃗|sin𝜙, with 𝜙 the angle between 𝑎⃗ and 𝑏⃗.

(d) Note that 𝑐⃗ 𝑎⃗ 𝑏⃗sin𝜙 0⃗ if 𝑎⃗ and 𝑏⃗ are parallel as in that case sin𝜙 0.

10.1 Real three dimensional mechanics: Torque.
Torque 𝜏 is a also a vector just like forces are vectors, and angular velocity and angular acceleration.

Definition
The torque 𝜏⃗ is defined as
𝜏⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝐹⃗
where 𝑟⃗ is the vector that connects the point where we want to know the torque and the rotation axis, and 𝐹⃗
the force at that point.

80

Example
Consider the (old) example in the Figure below.

The rotation takes place in the paper/screen; so 𝜔⃗ points upward, i.e., outward from paper/screen. We wish to
compute the torque with the definition given above:
𝜏⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝐹⃗ 𝑟𝐹sin𝜙𝑘,
with 𝑘 a unit vector out of your paper/screen, which is also in the same direction as 𝜔⃗.

We also know:
𝜏⃗ 𝐼𝜔⃗′ 𝐼𝛼⃗,
which implies that the angular velocity increases.
So we now have the connection between vectors force, 𝐹⃗ , and torque, 𝜏⃗ . A force takes care of
acceleration of the centre of mass. What about the equivalent of momentum?
10.2 Real three dimensional mechanics: Angular momentum.
Remember that one way of getting a relation between force and momentum was the following:
𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗ 𝑚𝑣⃗ 𝑝⃗.
So the question is, can we find a quantity, say 𝐿⃗, with the property
𝜏⃗ 𝐿⃗.
Indeed it exists and it is called angular momentum.
𝐿⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ → 𝐿⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ .

The first term on the right vanishes:
𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑣⃗ 𝑚𝑣⃗ 0⃗,
since the cross product of to parallel (or the same) vectors is zero. Therefore:
𝑑 𝑑 𝑑
𝐿⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑟⃗ 𝐹⃗ 𝜏⃗.
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

81

Remark
Note that angular momentum is coordinate dependent, it depends on where we choose our of reference, the
origin. For example, if we take:
𝑟⃗ 1,0,0 , 𝑝⃗ 0,1,0 → 𝐿⃗ 0,0,1 .
But if we shift our origin to the left over a distance ℓ we have:
𝑟⃗ ℓ 1,0,0 , 𝑝⃗ 0,1,0 → 𝐿⃗ 0,0, ℓ 1 .
This is not that strange as this quantity depends on the coordinate system. Usually we relate all quantities,
𝐿⃗ and 𝜏⃗ with respect to the rotation axis. In fact, if we have rigid body that rotates jointly around one
axis we can describe this as a number of particles with a fixed angular velocity (consult section 8.2 for the
similar quantity, kinetic energy). For each particle we know that velocity and the position to the axis are
perpendicular:
𝐿 |𝐿⃗ | 𝑚 |𝑟⃗ 𝑣⃗ | 𝑚 |𝑟⃗ ||𝑣⃗ | 𝑚 |𝑟⃗ | 𝜔.
Using the definition of the moment of inertia, we immediately see that:
𝐿 ∑ 𝐿 ∑ 𝑚 |𝑟⃗ | 𝜔 𝐼𝜔.
10.3 Real three dimensional mechanics: Translation and Rotation.
Consider an object with mass 𝑀 that is both translating and rotating. The angular velocity is 𝜔 and the

velocity of the CM is 𝑣 . The position of the CM, with respect to the origin, is 𝑅⃗ . Then the total
angular momentum of this object, relative to the origin, is given by (no proof):
𝐿⃗ 𝑀𝑅⃗ 𝑣⃗ 𝐿⃗ .

10.4 Real three dimensional mechanics: Newton laws.
Newton’s 𝟏𝒔𝒕 law.
If the total torque on an object add up to 0⃗ (the zero vector), then this object moves with constant angular
velocity.
Newton’s 𝟐𝒏𝒅 law.

The angular acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net torque acting on it, and the reciprocal of
the moment of inertia of the object is the constant of proportionality. Thus, 𝜏⃗ 𝐼𝛼⃗.
Remark
In case the level arm, 𝑟, is constant during an amount of time we can write:
𝑡
𝜏 𝐿 → ∆𝐿 𝜏𝑑𝑡 𝐹𝑟𝑑𝑡 𝑟 𝐹𝑑𝑡 𝑟 ∆𝑝.
𝑑𝑡
And like the Law of Conservation of Momentum also holds for Angular Momentum provided the torque
is zero:
The Law of Conservation of Angular Momentum.
When the sum of the external torques acting on a system of particles remains zero, the rate of change of the total
angular momentum remains zero and the total angular momentum of the system remains constant. That is,
∑ 𝜏⃗ 0⃗ → 𝐿⃗ 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡.

82

Linear motion Rotation
mass 𝑚 moment of inertia 𝐼
kinetic energy 1 rotational kinetic energy 1
𝑚𝑣 𝐼𝜔
2 2
momentum 𝑝⃗ 𝑚𝑣⃗ angular momentum 𝐿⃗ 𝑚𝑟⃗ 𝑣⃗ 𝐼𝜔⃗
law 𝑑 law 𝑑
𝐹⃗ 𝑝⃗ 𝑚𝑎⃗ 𝜏⃗ 𝐿⃗ 𝐼𝛼⃗
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

83

Concept Questions.

CQ10.1 A disk spins as shown in the Figure below with its CM at rest.
The angular momentum of this disk, relative to the point 𝑃 shown, is (circle all that apply)
(a) zero, because the CM is at rest;
(b) zero, because for every point with velocity 𝑣⃗, there is a point with velocity 𝑣⃗;
(c) nonzero, because the first term in 𝐿⃗ 𝑀𝑅⃗ 𝑣⃗ 𝐿⃗ is zero, and the second term is
nonzero;
(d) nonzero, because points moving downward are farther from 𝑃 than points moving upward.
CQ10.2 (Adapted from [4]) A springboard diver (f) undergoes a forward rotation with her body and
extended arms in a straight line, forming what we will model crudely as a uniform stick. She then ’tucks’
by touching her fingers to her toes, the effect of which is to fold her body‐plus‐arms in half. The ratio of
her new angular speed to her old angular speed is
(a) 1/2
(b) 1
(c) 2
(d) 4
(e) 8
CQ10.3 (Adapted from [4]) On a frictionless horizontal table, a uniform stick is pivoted at its middle, and
a ball collides elastically with one end, as shown in teh Figure below.

During the collision, what are all the quantities that are conserved in the stick‐plus‐ball system? (a) 𝐿
around the pivot
(b) 𝐿 around the pivot, 𝐸
(c) 𝐿 around the pivot, 𝑝, 𝐸
(d) 𝐿 around the point of collision, 𝐸
(e) 𝐿 around the point of collision, 𝑝, 𝐸
CQ10.4 (Adapted from [1]) A uniform rod of mass 𝑀 and length 𝐿 is pivoted at one end and hangs as

shown in the figure so that it is free to rotate without friction about its pivot. It is struck by a sharp
horizontal blow a distance 𝑥 below the pivot, as shown in the Figure below.
84

Show that, just after the rod is struck, the speed of the centre of mass of the rod is given by 𝑣
3𝑥𝐹 Δ𝑡 / 2𝑀𝐿 , where 𝐹 and Δ𝑡 are the average force and duration, respectively, of the blow.

Tutorial Questions.
TQ10.1 (Adapted from [1]) A block of mass 𝑀 is lifted at a constant speed of 𝑣 by a steel cable that

passes over a massless pulley to a motor‐driven winch (see Figure below).

The radius of the winch drum is 𝑟.
(a) What is the tension in the cable?
(b) What torque does the cable exert on the winch drum?
(c) What is the angular speed of the winch drum?
TQ10.2 A block with mass 𝑀 moves to the right across the cylinder. The axis of the cylinder is fixed. The
block initially moves to the right with speed 𝑣 , the cylinder is originally ar rest.

The block goes over the cylinder to the other side (indicated by the dotted line). When the block makes
contact with the cylinder for the first time, slip occurs. However, the friction is large enough to stop
slipping before the block loses contact with the cylinder. The cylinder has radius 𝑅 and a mass 𝑚.
(a) Compute 𝑣 .
(b) Compare the final velocity with the starting velocity and explain the difference.
TQ10.3 (Adapted from [1])
A small blob of putty of mass 𝑚 falls from the ceiling and lands on the outer rim of a turntable of radius
𝑅 and moment of inertia 𝐼 that is rotating freely with angular speed 𝜔 about its vertical fixed‐
symmetry axis.
85

(a) What is the post‐collision angular speed of the turntable‐putty system?
(b) After several turns, the blob flies of the edge of the turntable. What is the angular speed of the
turntable after the blob’s departure?

TQ10.4 A large wooden turntable in the shape of a flat uniform disk has a thickness 𝑡, a radius 𝑅 and a
mass 𝑀. The turntable is rotating with an initial angular velocity 𝜔 about a vertical axis through its
centre. Suddenly, an extraordinary tiny cubic dust‐block with mass 𝑚 makes a soft landing on the
turntable at a point very near the outer edge and starts to rotate with the turntable immediately.

(a) Find the angular speed of the turntable after the dust‐block lands.
(b) Compute the kinetic energy of the system before and after the dust‐block lands.
(c) Is the kinetic energy the same, lower or larger before and after the landing? Why? (d) Suppose the
turntable is slippery but not frictionless. Explain in words how this would change (or not change) your
answers to questions (a) and (b).
TQ10.5 (Adapted from [6]) A uniform flat disk of mass 𝑀 and radius 𝑅 rotates about a horizontal axis

through its centre with angular speed 𝜔 .
(a) What is its angular momentum?
(b) A chip of mass 𝑚 breaks off the edge of the disk at an instant such that the chip rises vertically above
the point at which it broke off (see Figure). How high above the point does it rise before starting to fall?

(c) What is the final angular speed of the broken disk?

86

11. Statics.
[1]: Chapter 12
11.1 Zero force and torque.
In this section we will deal with objects that are at rest, or static. If an object is at rest, then it has zero
linear acceleration and zero angular acceleration. So the net force and net torque must both be zero:
∑ 𝐹⃗ 0 and ∑ 𝜏 0.
The converse isn’t true, of course. That is, if the net force and torque are both zero (which means that the
object is in equilibrium, by definition), then the object need not be static. It can be moving with constant
linear velocity and/or constant angular velocity about the centre of mass. But we will deal only with static
objects here. So this entire section can be summarized by saying that if an object is static, then the net
force and net torque must both be zero.
11.2 Choosing an origin.
In addition to choosing subsystems, another choice that you will need to make for each subsystem is the
choice of origin around which the torque is calculated. You can pick different origins for different
subsystems. It is often a good idea to choose your origin as the point at which the most forces act, because
these forces will then provide zero torque around that origin (because the lever arm is zero), so there will
be fewer unknowns in the 𝜏 0 equation.

You might be worried that even if you have demanded that the torque is zero around one particular choice
of origin, it might not be zero around another choice. The following fact dispels this worry: Given an object
for which ∑ 𝐹⃗ 0, then if ∑ 𝜏 0 around one choice of origin, then ∑ 𝜏 0 around any other
choice of origin.

This means that you are free to pick the most convenient point as your origin. It is intuitively clear in the
case of static objects: If an object is static, which implies that it isn’t angularly accelerating around a given
origin, then it isn’t angularly accelerating around any other choice of origin either. Said in another way, a
static object is static in a given frame no matter how you look at it.
87

Concept Questions.

CQ11.1 You hold a book at rest against a vertical wall by applying a force upward at an angle, as shown in
the Figure below.
The static friction force from the wall on the book:
(a) points upward;
(b) points downward;
(c) is zero;
(d) The direction cannot be determined from the given information.
CQ11.2 One end of a stick with mass 𝑚 and length ℓ is pivoted on a wall, and the other end rests on a

frictionless floor, as shown in the Figure below.

Let 𝐹 and 𝐹 be the vertical forces on the left and right ends of the stick, respectively. Then: (a) 𝐹
𝐹
(b) 𝐹 𝐹
(c) 𝐹 𝐹 𝑚𝑔/2
(d) 𝐹 𝐹 𝑚𝑔
(e) 𝐹 𝐹 𝑚𝑔cos𝜃

CQ11.3 A ladder leans against a wall at a 60∘ angle, as shown in the Figure below.
The floor is frictionless, but there is friction with the wall. Assume that the coefficient of friction is large
(say, 𝜇 10). Is it possible for this setup to be static?
88

CQ11.4 A uniform stick with mass 𝑚 rests on two supports at its ends, as shown in the Figure below.
The forces exerted by the supports on the stick are equal because (circle all that apply).
(a) the total upward force from the supports must be 𝑚𝑔;
(b) the torques around the center of the stick must cancel;
(c) the setup has left‐right symmetry.

Tutorial Questions.
TQ11.1 Find an expression for the forces 𝐹 and 𝐹 needed to balance the pizza in the Figure below.
TQ11.2 A person, 2 m long, is sleeping on a bench as shown in the Figure below. The centre of mass is
1.5 m from his feet. The scale denotes 600 N. What is the person’s weight?

TQ11.3 (Adapted from [6]) Two identical uniform frictionless spheres, each of weight 𝑊 𝑚𝑔, rest as
shown below at the bottom of a fixed, rectangular container. The line of centres of the spheres makes an
angle 𝜃 with the horizontal.

Find the forces exerted on the spheres:
(a) by the container bottom;
(b) by the container sides, and;
(c) by one another.

TQ11.4 (Adapted from [6]) A ladder whose length 𝐿 and mass 𝑚 rests against a wall. Its upper end is a
distance ℎ above the ground, as shown in the Figure below. The centre of mass of the ladder is one‐third
of the way up the ladder.
89

A firefighter with mass 𝑀 climbs halfway up the ladder. Assume that the wall, but not the ground, is
frictionless. What forces are exerted on the ladder by the wall and by the ground?
Given is that 𝐿 12 m, 𝑚 45 kg, ℎ 9.3 m, 𝑀 72 kg.
TQ11.5 (Adapted from [2]) An empty cylindrical beaker of mass 100 g, radius 30 mm and neg‐ligible

wall thickness, has its centre of gravity 100 mm above its base. To what depth should it be filled with
water so as to make it as stable as possible? Hint: Under what conditions does adding a little more water
inevitably raise the overall centre of gravity?
TQ11.6 (Adapted from [2]) Four identical bricks are placed on top of each other at the edge of a table. Is
it possible to slide them horizontally across each other in such a way that the projection of the topmost
one is completely outside the table? Hint: The process should be started from the top! The correct strategy
is to slide the topmost brick as far as possible and then do the same thing with the two uppermost,
considered as a unit, and so on downwards.

TQ11.7 Consider a person of mass 𝑚 on a diving board as shown in the Figure below. Compute the
reaction forces indicated in the Figure.
Diving: left a sketch, the two right pictures show the simplified model of the problem.

90

12. Oscillations.
[1]: Chapter 14
12.1 Hooke’s law.

Consider a force that depends on position according to: 𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥.
A force of this form (proportional to 𝑥 ) is said to obey Hooke’s law. The force is negative if 𝑥 is
positive, and positive if 𝑥 is negative. So it is a restoring force; it is always directed back toward the
equilibrium point (the origin). since 𝐹 𝑑𝑈/𝑑𝑥, the associated Hooke’s‐law potential energy is:
𝑈 𝑥 𝑘𝑥 .
Hooke’s‐law forces are extremely important because they are ubiquitous in nature, due to the fact that
near an equilibrium point (which is where systems generally hang out), any potential‐energy function
looks essentially like a parabola; see Figure below.

So we can always approximate 𝑈 𝑥 as 𝑘𝑥 /2 for some value of 𝑘 (although this approximation will,
of course, break down for sufficiently large 𝑥 ). We’ll often use a spring as an example of a Hooke’s‐law
force, but there are countless other examples pendulums, objects floating in water, electrical circuits, etc.

12.2 Simple harmonic motion.

If we have a Hooke’s‐law force, 𝐹 𝑘𝑥, then Newton’s second law becomes:
𝑑
𝐹 𝑚𝑎 → 𝑘𝑥 𝑚𝑎 → 𝑚 𝑥 𝑘𝑥.
𝑑𝑡

What is the solution, 𝑥 𝑡 , to this equation? There are many ways to solve it, but the easiest way is to
just note that we want to find a function whose second derivative is proportional to the negative of itself.
And we know that sines and cosines have this property. So let’s try a solution of the form:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 .

Plugging this into 𝑚𝑥 𝑘𝑥 (note the notation 𝑥 𝑥) gives:
𝑘
𝑚 𝜔 𝐴 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 𝑘𝐴 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 →𝜔 ,
𝑚

where we have canceled the common factor of 𝐴cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 . We see that the expression for 𝑥 𝑡 is
a solution to 𝐹 𝑚𝑎, provided that 𝜔 𝑘/𝑚. 𝐴 and 𝜙 can take on arbitrary values, and the
91

solution is still valid. The sinusoidal motion is called simple harmonic motion.

The quantity 𝜔 is the angular frequency of the oscillatory motion. The argument 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 of the cosine
in the equation above is an angle measured in radians (not degrees), and 𝜔 is the rate at which this angle
increases (so you could also call 𝜔 the ‘angular speed’ or ‘angular velocity’. But ‘angular frequency’ is
more common).
You can quickly verify that 𝑥 𝑡 2𝜋/𝜔 𝑥 𝑡 , which means that the motion repeats itself after every

time interval of:
𝑇 2𝜋 .
The time 𝑇 is the period of the oscillation. The frequency of the oscillation, in cycles per second (that is,
in ‘Hertz’) is:
𝑣 .
We see that 𝜔 is larger than 𝑣 by a factor of 2𝜋. This is due to the fact that there are 2𝜋 radians in

each cycle. Note: The term ‘frequency’, instead of the full ‘angular frequency’, is often used when referring
to 𝜔. So the word ‘frequency’ is somewhat ambiguous in practice. But as long as you write down the
symbol 𝜔 or 𝑣, it will be clear what you’re referring to.
12.3 Initial conditions.
Aside from the time 𝑡, there are three parameters in the expression for 𝑥 𝑡 , namely 𝐴, 𝜔, and 𝜙.
The angular frequency 𝜔 is determined by 𝑘 and 𝑚 via 𝜔 𝑘/𝑚, and these are in turn
determined by the setup; someone has to give you a particular spring and a particular mass.

In contrast, the values of 𝐴 and 𝜙 are not determined by 𝑘 and 𝑚; that is, they are not determined
by the setup. The 𝑥 𝑡 is a solution to 𝑚𝑥 𝑘𝑥 for any arbitrary values of 𝐴 and 𝜙. If we want to
determine what the actual values of these two parameters are, we must specify two initial conditions,
most commonly the initial position 𝑥 and the initial velocity 𝑣 at time 𝑡 0.

Differentiating 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 , we see that the velocity is given by:
𝑑𝑥
𝑣 𝑡 𝜔𝐴sin 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 .
𝑑𝑡

Letting 𝑡 0 in this expression for 𝑣 𝑡 and also in the expression for 𝑥 𝑡 we find that the initial
conditions at 𝑡 0, namely 𝑥 𝑥 0 and 𝑣 𝑣 0 , can be written as:
𝑥 𝐴cos𝜙 and 𝑣 𝜔𝐴sin𝜙.
These two equations can be solved for 𝐴 and 𝜙. These two parameters are:

(i) 𝐴 is the amplitude of the motion. It is the largest value that 𝑥 𝑡 achieves; 𝑥 𝑡 bounces back and
forth between 𝐴 and 𝐴.
(ii) 𝜙 is the phase of the motion. It dictates where in the cycle of motion the mass is at 𝑡 0. A larger
value of 𝜙 means that the mass is further along in the cycle at 𝑡 0. The phase 𝜙 depends on the
choice of origin for time. If we pick a different instant when we set our clock equal to zero, we obtain a
different value of 𝜙 for the same motion.

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12.4 Some oscillating systems

We can apply the same methodology that we have used for masses attached to springs to a number of
other oscillating systems. Here we give a few examples. Torsional pendulums and balance wheels inside
mechanical watches, see Figure below, are systems that perform rotational oscillations.

Torsional pendulum (left) and balance wheel in a mechanical watch (right).

Rotation away from the equilibrium position 𝜃 0 results in a restoring torque 𝜏 𝜅𝜃, where 𝜅 is
the torsianol constant of the suspension wire or spring. We can then write down the following equation
of motion:

𝑑
𝜏 𝐼 𝜃 𝜅𝜃,
𝑑𝑡

where 𝐼 is the moment of inertia. This is essentially the same mathematical equation 𝜃 𝑡 that we
encountered earlier for simple harmonic linear motion 𝑚 𝑥 𝑘𝑥, and we already know the
solution:
𝜅
𝜃 𝑡 𝜃 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 →𝜔 .
𝐼

A mass 𝑚 suspended by a rope or rod attached to a pivot point forms a pendulum, see Figure below.

We can write again an equation of motion, now with a restoring torque 𝜏 𝐿𝑚𝑔 sin 𝜙 due to the
gravitational force acting on the mass:

93

𝑑
𝜏 𝐼 𝜙 𝐿𝑚𝑔 sin 𝜙.
𝑑𝑡

This equation contains a term sin 𝜙, and as a result the movement of the pendulum is not a simple
harmonic oscillation. However, for small angles, we can make the approximation sin 𝜙 𝜙, such that
𝑑 𝑑 𝑑 𝑔
𝐼 𝜙 𝑚𝐿 𝜙 𝐿𝑚𝑔 𝜙 → 𝜙 𝜙,
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡 𝐿

with solution:
𝑔
𝜙 𝑡 𝜙 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝛿 → 𝜔 .
𝐿
12.5 Damped oscillations

In practice oscillating systems always experience some damping, for example because of air resistance
or friction. In linear damping, the damping force is taken to be proportional to the velocity. This is a
good approximation for, e.g., air resistance, as you can verify easily by swinging your arm/hand back and
forth at different speeds. For 1D motion of a mass 𝑚 attached to a damped spring, we then get the
following equation:
𝑑 𝑥 𝑑𝑥
𝑚 𝑘𝑥 𝑏 ,
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

where the damping force is 𝐹⃗ 𝑏𝑣⃗ , and 𝑘 is the spring constant. We can write this also as:
𝑑 𝑥 𝑑𝑥
𝑚 𝑏 𝑘𝑥 0.
𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

We see that we have a differential equation containing a weighted sum of a function and its first plus
second derivatives, which yields zero. What we need, then, is a function of which the first and second
derivatives are essentially the same function with a weight factor. We know such functions:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 ,

so let us try these as a solution. Inserting 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 in the differential equation yields:
𝑚𝐴𝑟 𝑒 𝑏𝐴𝑟𝑒 𝑘𝐴𝑒 0.

When we divide the equation by 𝐴𝑒 we have:
𝑚𝑟 𝑏𝑟 𝑘 0,

with two solutions for 𝑟:
𝑏 √𝑏 4𝑚𝑘
𝑟, .
2𝑚

So our trial function 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 is indeed a solution of the differential equation for these two values
𝑟 , , such that the general solution is:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 𝐵𝑒 .

Looking at the expression for 𝑟 , , se see that we may get three different kinds of behavior.

94

Overdamped systems
√
If 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, then 𝑟 , are negative real numbers,
𝑏 𝑏2 4𝑚𝑘 𝑏 𝑏2 4𝑚𝑘
𝑟1 2𝑚
and 𝑟2
2𝑚
,

Such that 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 𝐵𝑒 describes exponential decay of the system back to the
equilibrium position 𝑥 0. The system performs no oscillations.

Underdamped systems
√
If 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, then 𝑟 , are complex numbers,
𝑏 𝑘 𝑏 2 𝑏 𝑘 𝑏 2
𝑟1 2𝑚
𝑖 𝑚 2𝑚
and 𝑟2
2𝑚
𝑖 𝑚 2𝑚
,

and 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 𝐵𝑒 describes oscillations with exponential decaying amplitude:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴 𝑒 cos 𝜔′ 𝑡 𝛿 ,

with 𝜔 . Here we have used Euler’s formula 𝑒𝑖𝑡 cos 𝑡 𝑖 sin 𝑡.

There is yet another particularly interesting case, which occurs when 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, such that 𝑟
𝑟 . Then our solution would be 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 . There is a problem with this however,
because a general solution to a second order differential equation requires two linearly independent
functions. This means that our initial guess is not good enough.

We found for 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0 that our solutions contain an exponential decay 𝑒 . If we now fix 𝑏
and slowly change 𝑘 to make 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 eventually go to zero we expect to keep this exponential
decay (this does not depend on 𝑘), while the oscillatory part should disappear since we are
transitioning from underdamped to overdamped oscillations. Hence we may try a solution:
𝑏
𝑥 𝑡 𝑒 𝑢 𝑡 →𝑥 𝑡 𝑒 𝑢 𝑡 with 𝛽 .
2𝑚

Calculating the first and second derivatives gives:
𝑥 𝑡 𝑒 𝑢 𝑡 𝛽𝑢 𝑡 ,

𝑥 𝑡 𝑒 𝑢 𝑡 2𝛽𝑢 𝑡 𝛽 𝑢 𝑡 ,

Such that substitution into 𝑚𝑥 𝑏𝑥 𝑘𝑥 0 𝑥 𝑥 𝑥 with 𝛽 yields:
𝑘 𝑏
𝑒 𝑢 𝑡 𝑢 𝑡 𝑢 𝑡 0.
𝑚 2𝑚

Since 𝑒 0 we must have:
95

𝑘 𝑏
𝑢 𝑡 𝑢 𝑡 𝑢 𝑡 0.
𝑚 2𝑚

But we started this whole endeavor for 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, i.e. , such that we get:
𝑢 𝑡 0→𝑢 𝑡 𝐴 𝐵𝑡.

Our general solution is then:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 𝐵𝑡𝑒 ,

Which consists of two linearly independent functions. This behavior, which occurs for 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, is
called critical damping.

Critically damped systems
√
If 𝑏 4𝑚𝑘 0, then 𝑟 , becomes:
𝑏
𝑟1 𝑟2 2𝑚
,
And the solution to the equation of motion is:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴𝑒 𝐵𝑡𝑒 .

12.6 Quality factor
For an underdamped mass spring system we found the following solution:
𝑥 𝑡 𝐴 𝑒 cos 𝜔 𝑡 𝛿 ,
With a decay time constant 𝜏 𝑚/𝑏. The amplitude of the oscillation decays exponentially in time. The
energy in the oscillator is proportional to the amplitude squared, so the energy will also decrease
exponentially in time:
1 1
𝐸 𝑘 𝐴 𝑒 𝑘𝐴 𝑒
2 2
The quality factor 𝑄 can be defined as:
𝑄 𝜔 𝜏
Note that 𝑄 is a dimensionless number.
In case of weak damping, so that the energy loss per cycle ∆𝐸 is a small fraction of the energy 𝐸, 𝑄 is
inversely proportional to the fractional energy loss per cycle:
∆𝐸 2𝜋

𝐸 𝑄

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Concept Questions.

CQ12.1 The expression for the angle of an oscillating pendulum (with a small amplitude) is 𝜃 𝑡
𝜃 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 .
True or False: The angular velocity 𝜃 is equal to the angular velocity 𝜔.

CQ12.2 The position of a particle is given by 𝑥 𝑡 𝑥 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜋/6 , where 𝑥 6𝑚 and 𝜔 2𝑠 .
The maximum speed the particle achieves is:
(a) 3𝑚/𝑠
(b) 6𝑚/𝑠
(c) 12𝑚/𝑠
(d) 24𝑚/𝑠
(e) 36𝑚/𝑠
CQ12.3 If you plot the functions cos𝜔𝑡 and cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜋/4 , the cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜋/4 curve will be shifted

relative to the cos(𝜔𝑡 curve. Which way is it shifted?
(a) to the right;
(b) to the left.
CQ12.4 Which of the pendulums shown below has the largest frequency of small oscillations? The objects
all have the same mass, and the CM’s are all the same distance from the support. The (massless) rods are
glued to each object to form rigid systems.

(a) A
(b) B
(c) C
(d) They all have the same frequency.

CQ12.5 Two damped spring‐mass oscillating systems have identical spring constants and damping
constants. However, system A has a four times larger mass than system B, i.e., 𝑚 4𝑚 . How do their
decay times compare?
(a) 𝜏 4𝜏
(b) 𝜏 2𝜏
(c) 𝜏 𝜏
(d) Their decay times cannot be compared given the information provided.

97

Tutorial Questions.
TQ12.1 (Adapted from [4]) Homogeneous linear differential equations have the property that the sum, or
any linear combination, of two solutions is again a solution. (’Homogeneous’ means that there is a zero
on one side of the equation.) Consider, for example, the second‐order linear differential equation
(although the property holds for any order),
𝐴𝑥′′ 𝐵𝑥′ 𝐶𝑥 0.
Show that if 𝑥 𝑡 and 𝑥 𝑡 are solutions, then the sum 𝑥 𝑡 𝑥 𝑡 is also a solution. Show that

this property does not hold for the nonlinear differential equation, 𝐴𝑥′ 𝐵 𝑥′ 𝐶𝑥 0.

TQ12.2 (Adapted from [4]) Using the form of 𝑥 𝑡 𝐴 cos 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 (along with the derivative, 𝑣 𝑡
𝜔𝐴sin 𝜔𝑡 𝜙 , show that the total energy (kinetic plus potential) of simple harmonic motion takes
on the constant value of 𝑘𝐴 /2.

TQ12.3 (Adapted from [4]) Consider an extended pendulum whose CM is a distance ℓ from the pivot, as
The pendulum’s mass is 𝑚, and its moment of inertia around the pivot is 𝐼 . Find the frequency of small

oscillations, under linearization in the angle (small‐angle approximation).
TQ12.4 (Adapted from [4]) A mass 𝑚 is attached to a spring with spring constant 𝑘 and oscillates on

a horizontal table with amplitude 𝐴. At an instant when the spring is stretched by 𝐴/2, a second mass
𝑚 is dropped vertically onto the original mass and immediately sticks to it. What is the amplitude of the
resulting motion?
TQ12.5 (Adapted from [4]) The system shown in the Figure below lies on a frictionless horizontal table.
Both masses are 𝑚, and the two spring constants are 𝑛𝑘 (where 𝑛 is a numerical factor) and 𝑘.
The springs have the same relaxed length. Assuming that it is possible to set up initial conditions so that
the masses oscillate back and forth with the two springs always having equal lengths at any given instant,
what is 𝑛?

TQ12.6 (Adapted from [4]) In Figure masses 𝑀 and 𝑚 are connected by a spring with spring constant
𝑘 and relaxed length ℓ.
98

The system lies on a frictionless table. The masses are pulled apart so that the spring is stretched a distance
𝑑 relative to equilibrium, and then the masses are simultaneously released from rest. Find the position
of 𝑚 as a function of time (let 𝑥 0 be its equilibrium position). Hint: What is the CM of the system
doing?
TQ12.7 (Adapted from [4]) Two identical horizontal springs with spring constant 𝑘 and relaxed length

zero are connected to each other and to two walls a distance 2ℓ apart, as shown in the Figure below.
A mass 𝑚 is then attached to the midpoint and is slowly lowered down to its equilibrium position, where
it sits at rest. At this equilibrium position, the mass is a distance 𝑧 below the initial line of the springs,
as shown (so 𝑧 is defined to be a positive number).
(a) What is 𝑧 ?
(b) If the mass is given a kick in the vertical direction, what is the frequency of the resulting oscillations?

TQ12.8 (Adapted from [4]) A uniform solid cylinder with mass 𝑚 and radius 𝑅 is connected at its
highest point to a spring (at its relaxed length) with spring constant 𝑘, as shown in the Figure below.
If the cylinder rolls without slipping on the ground, what is the frequency of small oscillations? Careful,
the top of the cylinder moves more than the center!

TQ12.9 (Adapted from [4]) A uniform wheel is free to roll without slipping on a board, which in turn is free
to slide on a frictionless table. A spring with spring constant 𝑘 connects the axle of the wheel to a nail
stuck in the board, as shown in the Figure below.
Both the wheel and the board have mass 𝑚, and the nail is massless. The wheel is moved away from the
equilibrium position, and then the system is released from rest. What is the frequency of the oscillatory
motion?

99

TQ12.10 (Adapted from [4]) The axle of a uniform cylinder with mass 𝑚 and radius 𝑅 is connected to a
spring with spring constant 𝑘, as shown in the Figure below.
A horizontal board with mass 𝑚 rests on top of the cylinder, and the board also rests on top of a
frictionless support near its left end.
(a) The system is displaced from equilibrium. If there is no slipping between the cylinder and the board,
or between the cylinder and the ground, what is the frequency of the oscillatory motion?
(b) If the amplitude of the oscillation of the center of the cylinder is 𝐴, what is the maximum value of the
friction force between the cylinder and the board?

TQ12.11 (Adapted from [4]) A uniform disk with mass 𝑚 and radius 𝑅 lies on a frictionless horizontal
table and is free to rotate about a pivot at its center. A spring with spring constant 𝑘 and relaxed length
zero has one end attached to a point on the rim of the disk and the other end bolted down on the table
at a distance 𝑅 from the rim, as shown in the Figure below.
If the disk is initially in the equilibrium position shown and is then given a tiny angular kick, what is the
frequency of small oscillations?
TQ12.12 (Adapted from [4]) A coin with radius 𝑅 is pivoted at a point that is a distance 𝑑 from its
center. The coin is free to swing back and forth in the vertical plane defined by the plane of the coin. What
value of 𝑑 yields the largest frequency of small oscillations?

TQ12.13 (Adapted from [4]) A uniform stick with mass 𝑚 and length ℓ lies on a frictionless horizontal
surface (so you can ignore gravity in this problem). It is pivoted at a point a distance 𝑥 from its center. A
spring (at its relaxed length) with spring constant 𝑘 is attached to the far end of the stick, perpendicular
to the stick, as shown in the Figure below.
If the stick is given a tiny kick, what value of 𝑥 yields the largest frequency of small oscillations?
100

TQ12.14 (Adapted from [4]) A uniform board with mass 𝑀 and length 𝐿 is pivoted at its center, as
Its right end is connected to a spring with spring constant 𝑘. The relaxed length is such that the system is
in equilibrium when the board is horizontal. The board is given a tiny vertical kick at one of its ends.
Throughout this problem, assume that all oscillations are small, and make suitable approximations
cos𝜃 1, sin𝜃 𝜃, where 𝜃 is the angle the board makes with the horizontal).
(a) What is the frequency of the resulting small oscillations?
(b) Assume that the (small) angular amplitude is 𝜃 . A small block with mass 𝑚 ≪ 𝑀 is placed on top of
the board near the center, as shown in the right diagram the Figure above. Assume that the top of the
board is frictionless, so that the block is free to slide back and forth. And assume that 𝑚 is so small that
the presence of the block doesn’t affect the motion of the board. If initial conditions have been set up so
that the block oscillates back and forth between the points with horizontal coordinates 𝑥 𝑥 (with
the pivot at 𝑥 0), what is 𝑥 ? Hint: What is the 𝐹 𝑚𝑎 equation for the block? ?
(c) Describe what the collective motion of the block and the board looks like by drawing four pictures:
when the board is (1) tilted upward the most, then (2) horizontal, then (3) tilted downward the most, then
(4) horizontal again.

TQ12.15 (Adapted from [1]) A linearly damped oscillator has a quality factor 𝑄 20.
(a) By what fraction does the energy decrease during each cycle?
(b) Find an expression for the oscillation frequency 𝜔 as a function of 𝑄. Find the percentage difference
between 𝜔 and 𝜔 for 𝑄 20. Hint: use the approximation 1 𝑥 / 1 𝑥 for small 𝑥.

TQ12.16 (from exam 2018) In this assignment we consider a linear speed indicator in a car. The pointer
is suspended by a spring and moves due to a force 𝐹 as indicated in the figure below. The pointer has
mass 𝑚. The spring has a spring constant 𝐾. The force 𝐹 is generated electronically and is
proportional to the rotation velocity of the wheels.

(a) Derive the equation of motion for the pointer. (10 points)
The pointer is kept in a fixed position 𝑥 𝐴 for 𝑡 0. At 𝑡 0 the pointer is released (𝐹 0) and it
will start to perform a harmonic oscillation.
(b) Derive an expression for the position of the pointer as a function of time. What is the frequency of
the oscillation? Show that your answer is indeed a solution to the equation found in (a).
101

As a continuously vibrating pointer does not result in an easy to read instrument we decide to add a
damper as indicated in the figure below. The damper is based on viscous damping, i.e. with a damping
force proportional to the velocity of the pointer. The damping constant is tuned such that critical
damping is obtained.

(c) Derive the equation of motion for the system with damper.
Again, the pointer is released from a position 𝑥 𝐴 at time 𝑡 0.
(d) Derive the condition for the viscous damper in order to have critical damping, i.e. such that the
pointer returns to the rest position in the shortest possible amount of time when the external force 𝐹
is zero.
(e) Derive an expression for the position of the pointer as a function of time for the system with damper.

TQ12.17 (from exam 2019) Consider a thin rod with length 𝐿 and mass 𝑀, which has a sphere with
mass 𝑀 attached at the bottom, as shown in the figure below. The rod can rotate around its center
point 𝐴, where
it is suspended by a nail. The sphere has radius 𝑅. The moment of inertia 𝐼 of the rod with sphere
with respect to rotation around 𝐴 can be written as 𝐼 𝑐𝑀, where 𝑐 is a constant that depends on
𝐿 and 𝑅.

(a) Find an expression for the constant 𝑐 in terms of 𝐿 and 𝑅.
The rod‐sphere system is rotated over a small angle 𝜃 and released at time 𝑡 0, so 𝜃 0 𝜃 .
Due to the gravitational acceleration 𝑔, the system then starts to oscillate around the vertical position.
(b) Derive the equation of motion for the rod‐sphere system.
(c) Find an expression for the angle 𝜃 of the rod‐sphere system as a function of time. What is the
frequency of the oscillation? Show that your answer is indeed a solution to the equation found in (b).
The motion slowly damps out due to the air friction around the sphere. It appears that this friction
can be described as:
𝐹 , 𝑏∙𝑣
With 𝑏 a constant that depends only on the size of the sphere.
102

(d) Derive the equation of motion for the system with damping.
Again, the system is released from a position 𝜃 at time 𝑡 0.
(e) Derive the condition for the constant 𝑏 in order to have critical damping, i.e. such that the system
returns to the rest position in the shortest possible amount of time.
(f) The system is actually slightly underdamped, since the motion slowly damps out. Find an expression
for the angle 𝜃 of the underdamped system as a function of time

103

References
[1] P.A. Tipler and G. Mosca, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 6th edition, ISBN‐13: 978‐0‐
7167‐8964‐2, W.H. Freeman and Company, 2008.
[2] P. Gnädig, G. Honyek and K.F. Riley, 200 Puzzling Physics Problems, Cambridge University
Press, 1st edition, ISBN‐10: 0521773067, 2001.
[3] D. Morin, Introduction to Classical Mechanics: With Problems and Solutions, Cambridge University
Press, doi:10.1017/CBO9780511808951, 2008.
[4] D. Morin, Problems and Solutions in Introductory Mechanics, CreateSpace Independent Publishing
Platform, ISBN‐13: 978‐1482086928, ISBN‐10: 1482086921, 2014.
[5] P. Gnädig and G. Honyek and M. Vigh, 200 More Puzzling Physics Problems, Cambridge
University Press, 1st edition, ISBN‐10: 1107503825, 2016.
[6] D. Halliday and R. Resnick and K. S. Krane, Physics, Volume 1 and 2, 5th edition, ISBN:
0‐471‐32057‐9
104

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# Checks 𝑛: asks for 𝑛 tests with which you can validate your final result, or invalidate it. Note that the

Answers 𝑡 ‐𝑡 cannot be right, only 𝑡 can (but need not). We of course know

The expressions 𝑡 , 𝑡 contain a mass, which cannot enter the solution as an ℳ cannot be canceled. Next 𝑡

Because 𝑡 2𝜋/𝑡 this expression is the only expression that might fit:

Before looking at the answer below, make a guess whether the expressions (a) until (g) can or cannot be the

Who can be right, who is absolutely wrong, student 𝑎 or student 𝑏?

If 𝑚 → ∞ student 𝑏 predicts 𝑣 𝑉, 𝑣 2𝑉. This factor of 2 seems peculiar, but it can be explained (and

CQ1.1 A spring with spring constant 𝑘 has a mass 𝑚 on its end (see Figure below).

The spring force is 𝐹 𝑥 𝑘𝑥, where 𝑥 is the displacement from the equilibrium position. What does

For an object located at 𝑥 𝑡 we define the acceleration 𝑎 𝑡 , as

Note that the definitions of 𝑣 and 𝑎 also must be consistent with their dimensions:

The displacement of the particle from 𝑡 0 at 𝑡 𝜋/𝜔, 𝜋/𝜔, 2𝜋/𝜔 is

The average velocity from 𝑡 0 at 𝑡 𝜋/𝜔, 𝜋/𝜔, 2𝜋/𝜔 is

CQ2.4 (From [6]) The position of an object as a function of time 𝑡 is given by 𝑥 𝛽𝑡 . Find:

TQ2.4 A rock is dropped from a cliff of height 𝐿. How long does it take to fall (ignoring friction) (a) the

For an object located at 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 we define the acceleration 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 , as

𝑥 0 and 𝑦′′ 𝑔.

Note that these two equations are ’decoupled’. That is, there is no mention of 𝑦 in the equation for 𝑥′,

When the object is at its highest point, 𝑦 / the velocity is 𝑣 cos𝜃, 0 : the vertical velocity is 0.

𝑒̂ cos𝜃, sin𝜃 , 𝑒̂ sin𝜃, cos𝜃 .

Then 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 𝑅𝑒̂ , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝜔𝑅𝑒̂ , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝜔 𝑅𝑒̂ .

Check? Dimensions fits? Yes, ℒ/𝛵 ℒ ⋅ ℒ/𝛵 , continue.

CQ3.1 Given two vectors, 𝑎⃗ 4𝚤̂ 3𝚥̂ and 𝑏⃗ 6𝚤̂ 8𝚥̂, find the magnitudes and the angle they make

CQ3.2 (From [6]) The velocity of a particle moving in the 𝑥𝑦 plane is given by:

TQ3.1 Suppose you paint a dot on the rim of a rolling wheel, radius 𝑅. Compute 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 of the

Write 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 𝑟⃗ 𝑡 , 𝑎⃗ 𝑡 𝑣⃗ 𝑡 in terms of the vectors 𝑒̂ 𝑡 and 𝑒̂ 𝑡 .

Here, 𝑣 is the initial horizontal velocity, 𝑣 is the initial vertical velocity, and 𝑧 corresponds to the

Newton’s 𝟏𝒔𝒕 law. If the total force on an object adds up to 0⃗ (the zero vector), then this object moves with

Newton’s 𝟐𝒏𝒅 law. The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it, and the

and assuming that the force acts upon object for a short time Δ𝑡 we can write it into a convenient approximation

Note the definition of the 𝑥‐ and 𝑦‐direction on the top right; always start with that when making such

Check that Newton’s law for the two blocks in the Figure below (right) gives 𝑚𝑎 𝑚𝑦′′ 𝑚𝑔.

(i) Gravity is pointing downward in the 𝑦‐direction, which is 𝚥̂, so

(ii) We pull up, so we take 𝐹⃗ to be pointing upward, which is 𝚥̂, so

And this is what you expect. But notice that the result is also correct if 𝐹 𝑚𝑔 or 𝑔 . Indeed, then

(i) 𝐹 𝑚𝑔𝐹⃗ 𝑚𝑔𝚥̂,

The ′𝐹 𝑚𝑎′ equation for :

The ′𝐹 𝑚𝑎′ equation for :

Let us do the math. The vector 𝑇⃗ and 𝐹⃗ add up to the resulting (red) vector, 𝑅⃗. This vector must be

When sin𝜃 𝜃 when 𝜃 is small (in radians!), as sin𝜃 cos𝜃 1. So if 𝜃 is small, we have

A: Yes, : 𝑅 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃𝑎 𝑔sin𝜃

Q: It is clear that this fits for the case 𝑚 𝑚 . So what if 𝑚 is smaller than 𝑚 ?

TQ4.2 The Figure below shows a block with mass 𝑚 sliding on a block with mass 𝑚 . All surfaces are

If we pull harder, still nothing happens: both 𝐹 and 𝐹 increase and still cancel out. If we increase 𝐹

If this does not happen we see that 𝑚𝑎 𝑅 𝜇 𝑁 𝑚𝑔sin𝜃 𝜇 𝑚𝑔cos𝜃 so that:

Now the various 𝐹⃗ form a collection of forces that work on particle 𝑛. The interaction between two particles is

CQ5.2 It is always true that static friction coefficient 𝜇 and kinetic friction coefficient 𝜇 satisfy 𝜇

TQ5.4 (Adapted from [1]) A block with mass 𝑚 rests on a bracket of mass 𝑚 (with 𝑚 2𝑚 ) as

TQ5.6 Two fixed blocks of masses 𝑚 and 𝑚 , connected by a rigid rod, slide down a slope (with angle

We define the work 𝑊 done by a constant force, 𝐹⃗ , that moves a body through a displacement, 𝑠⃗, in

would also be a legitimate potential, provided that the 33 would have the dimension of energy.

(a) If the chain has a length ℓ and a mass 𝑚, how much work is required to pull the hanging part back

TQ6.2 A boy called Max with mass 𝑚 is sitting on top of a spherical hump of ice with mass 𝑚 and radius

Note that the answer are identical if you interchange 1 and 2. Symmetry!

So the velocties in the CM frame are: 𝑣′ 𝑣 𝑣 2, 𝑣′ 𝑣 𝑣 1.

CQ7.3 (Adapted from [4]) On a frictionless table, a mass 𝑚 moving at speed 𝑣 collides with another

CQ7.5 (Adapted from [4]) In a one‐dimensional elastic collision, ball 1 collides with ball 2, which is initially

TQ7.1 (Adapted from [2]) Two elastic balls of masses 𝑚 and 𝑚 are placed on top of each other (with

Consider the process as two consecutive collisions: 𝑚 bounces on Earth first, and next 𝑚 and 𝑚

(b) We are now not in the centre of mass. A mass 𝑀 collides with velocity 𝑉 elastically with a stationary

TQ7.6 (Adapted from [6]) A block of mass 𝑚 slides along a frictionless table with a velocity 𝑣 . Directly

TQ7.9 (!) (Adapted from [6]) A uniform flexible chain of length 𝐿, with weight per unit length 𝜆, passes

TQ7.10 (Adapted from [6]) A steel ball of mass 𝑚 is fastened to a cord 𝐿 long and is released when the