Momentum Defined

 Momentum is defined by the equation:

momentum = mass × velocity

p = m×v

(where p stands for momentum)

Momentum is defined as the product of mass and velocity

 The units of momentum are kg m/s (the units of mass multiplied by the units of
velocity)
 Momentum is a vector quantity - it has direction as well as magnitude
 This means that momentum can be negative as well as positive:
o If an object travelling to the right has positive momentum, an object travelling
in the opposite direction (to the left) will have negative momentum
The Conservation of Momentum
 In the absence of external forces (such as friction), the total momentum of a
system remains the same
 This means that in a collision, the sum of the momentums before the collision will be
the same as the sum of momentums after the collision
 Diagram showing the total momentum of a system before and after a collision

 In the above diagram the total momentum before and the total momentum after must
be equal:

m×u = M×V- m×v

 Note that because the red ball is travelling to the left after the collision, its
momentum will be negative - hence the minus sign in the above equation

Impulse
 When a resultant (unbalanced) force acts on a mass, the momentum of that mass
will change
 The impulse of a force is equal to that force multiplied by the time for which it acts:

impulse = F × t

 The change in momentum of a mass is equal to the impulse provided by the force:

impulse = change in momentum

F × t = mv – mu

(Where u is the initial velocity of the mass and v is the final velocity of the mass)