3.4: Notation
( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\)
In this section I am going to suppose that we
In the Figure III.5, I have drawn just two of the particles, (the rest of them are left to your imagination) and the centre of mass C of the system.
A given particle may have an external force
I am going to establish the following notation for the purposes of this chapter.
- Mass of the
th particle = - Total mass of the system
- Position vector of the
th particle referred to a fixed point O: - Velocity of the
th particle referred to a fixed point O: or (Speed = ) - Linear momentum of the
th particle referred to a fixed point O: - Linear momentum of the system:
- External force on the
th particle: - Total external force on the system:
- Angular momentum (moment of momentum) of the
th particle referred to a fixed point O: - Angular momentum of the system:
- Torque on the i th particle referred to a fixed point O:
- Total external torque on the system with respect to the origin:
Kinetic energy of the system: (We are dealing with a system of particles – so we are dealing only with translational kinetic energy – no rotation or vibration):
Position vector of the centre of mass referred to a fixed point O:
The centre of mass is defined by
Velocity of the centre of mass referred to a fixed point O:
For position vectors, unprimed single-subscript symbols will refer to O. Primed single-subscript symbols will refer to C. This will be clear, I hope, from Figure III.5.
Position vector of the
Position vector of particle
(Internal) force exerted on particle
(Internal) force exerted on particle
If the force between two particles is repulsive (e.g. between electrically-charged particles of the same sign), then
According to Newton’s Third Law of Motion (Lex III),
Total angular momentum of system referred to the centre of mass C:
Total external torque on system referred to the centre of mass C:
For the velocity of the centre of mass I may use either
O is an arbitrary origin of coordinates. C is the centre of mass.
Note that
and therefore
that is to say
Note also that
Note further that
That is, the total linear momentum with respect to the centre of mass is zero.
Having established our notation, we now move on to some theorems concerning systems of particles. It may be more useful for you to conjure up a physical picture in your mind what the following theorems mean than to memorize the details of the derivations.