Parallel and Perpendicular Vectors

Parallel Vectors in Space

The vectors 𝐴⃗ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵⃗⃗ and are parallel if, and only if, they are scalar multiples of one another.
A special relationship forms between two or more vectors when they point in the same direction or in opposite
directions. When this is the case, we say that the vectors are parallel. This can be represented mathematically.
𝐴=𝑘 𝐵 ⃗⃗, where 𝑘 is a nonzero real number. When two vectors are parallel, the angle between them is
either 00 or 1800.

Perpendicular Vectors in Space

The second special relationship that can occur between two vectors is when the directions of the two vectors
form a 900 angle. When this happens, we say that the two vectors are perpendicular to one another. In order
to identify when two vectors are perpendicular, we can use the dot product.
The vectors 𝐴⃗ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 ⃗⃗ are perpendicular if, and only if, their dot product is equal to zero: that is, 𝐴⃗ . 𝐵
⃗⃗ = 0.
In the case that the vectors 𝐴⃗ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 ⃗⃗ are perpendicular, 𝜃=90∘.Therefore, cos𝜃= 0, and so 𝐴⃗ . 𝐵
⃗⃗ = 0.
Another way in which we can define the dot product of two vectors
𝐴⃗ = (𝑎𝑥 , 𝑎𝑦 , 𝑎𝑧 ) 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵⃗⃗ = (𝑏𝑥 , 𝑏𝑦 , 𝑏𝑧 ) is given by the formula:
𝐴⃗ . 𝐵
⃗⃗ = 𝑎𝑥 𝑏𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦 𝑏𝑦 + 𝑎𝑧 𝑏𝑧
If the vectors are perpendicular, then this sum of the products of the corresponding components will equal
zero:
𝑎𝑥 𝑏𝑥 + 𝑎𝑦 𝑏𝑦 + 𝑎𝑧 𝑏𝑧 = 0

WORKED EXAMPLES 1

Answer
In order to solve this problem, we can use the fact that when two vectors are parallel to one another, they are
scalar multiples of one another. Therefore,

where 𝑐 is just a constant that can be found.

By equating the coefficients of each of the vector components, we end up with three equations:
2=6
7 = cn
m = -21c
We can solve the first of these equations to find 𝑐. 𝑐 =1/3.
Now, we simply need to substitute this value into the other two equations and solve for the missing values. To
find 𝑛, we have 7 = 𝑛/3; 𝑛 = 21.
To find 𝑚, we have 𝑚 = −21/3; 𝑚 = −7.
We have now reached our solution, which is that the values of 𝑚 and 𝑛 that make the vectors parallel are 𝑚 =
−7 and 𝑛 = 21.
We can check our solution by checking that the ratios of corresponding components of the two vectors are
equal.
For two parallel vectors, it should be true that 2/6 = 7/𝑛 = 𝑚/−21.

If we substitute in the values we obtained, we get 2/6 = 7/21= −7/−21, which all simplify down to 1/3.This
confirms that our solution is correct.
WORKED EXAMPLES 2
WORKED EXAMPLES 3
NOTE