Angular Motion and Related Concepts

Regular Office Hours

  • Office hours today: 1:30 to 3:00 pm in Randall 1480.
  • If sick, please wear a mask.

Angular Displacement

  • Angular displacement is the angular equivalent of linear displacement.
  • Measured in radians (2 π rad = 360°; 1 rad ≈ 57.3°).
  • Defined as the difference between two angles for the same body.

Angular Quantities

  • Average Angular Velocity (ω) = Δθ/Δt.
  • Instantaneous Angular Velocity = dθ/dt at a specific point.
  • Average Angular Acceleration (α) = Δω/Δt.
  • Instantaneous Angular Acceleration = dω/dt.

Angular Quantities as Vectors

  • Treated as vectors using the right-hand rule.
  • In the x-y plane, angular vectors can only point along ± z axis.
  • Rotations defined as clockwise and counterclockwise.

Angular Motion and Acceleration

  • For a ladybug on a spinning wheel:
  • Angular velocity vector points into the page.
  • Angular acceleration vector points out of the page.
  • Linear speed (v) is related to angular speed (ω): v = rω.
  • Centripetal acceleration: a_rad = rω².
  • Tangential acceleration: a_tan = rα.

Moment of Inertia (I)

  • Defined as I = Σ(m * r²), where m is mass and r is distance from the rotation axis.
  • Moment of inertia indicates how difficult it is to change the rotation of a body.
  • Changes based on the mass distribution relative to the axis of rotation.

Kinetic Energy of a Rotating Body

  • Total KE = Σ(1/2 * m * (ri * ω)²).
  • Depends on the distribution of mass and distance from the axis of rotation.