LECTURE 1

MOTION ALONG A STRAIGHT LINE

Contents: Position, displacement, average velocity, average speed, instantaneous

velocity and speed, acceleration in a motion along a straight line; Velocity and
distance travelled in uniformly accelerated (decelerated) motion; free-fall
acceleration, velocity in free-fall, falling height in free fall.

Reference: 1. D. Halliday, R. Resnick. Fundamentals of Physics, Wiley Publication,

2014, p.2, pp.13-20, pp.27-29.

Main question of Mechanics. Mechanics is a branch or section of Physics.

Mechanics studies mechanical motion and its laws and regularities. What is
mechanical motion? Mechanical motion is the change in the position of a body (or
a particle) relative to other bodies with time. Any mechanical motion occurs in space
and time. When we speak about any mechanical motion, initially, we are interested
in the following two natural questions: 1) Where does the motion happen? 2) When
does the motion happen? The question of “where” is connected with space and the
question of “when” is connected with time. So, any mechanical motion of a body
occurs in space and time. The main question of Mechanics is determination of the
position of a particle in space with time relative to other bodies. In order to determine
the position of a body we choose a reference body. A reference body or a reference
point is that one with respect to which we determine the motion of a observed body.
A reference body can be any bodies at rest. For instance, the building where you
live, the school building where you study, a tree in the park, the Sun etc. are the
typical examples for a reference body. Let us mentally imagine that a coordinate
system and a clock is fixed to the reference body. The reference body together with
the coordinate system and clock fixed to it is called the reference frame or the
frame.
A particle’s position 𝑥 is the location of the particle with respect to the origin
of a coordinate system. In the Figure 1.1, the initial position of a car is indicated by
the vector labeled 𝐱⃗ 𝟎 . The length of 𝐱⃗ 𝟎 is the distance of the car from an arbitrarily
chosen origin. At a later time, the car has moved to a new position, which is indicated
by the vector 𝐱⃗. The line described by a moving particle is called its path or its
trajectory (Figure 1.2).

Figure 1.1. The displacement ∆𝐱⃗ is a vector that points from the initial position 𝐱⃗ 𝟎
to the final position 𝐱⃗.

The displacement of the car ∆𝐱⃗ (read as “delta x” or “the change in x”) is a vector
drawn from the initial position of the path to its final position. The displacement can
be related to 𝐱⃗ 𝟎 and 𝐱⃗ by noting from the drawing that
𝐱⃗ 𝟎 + ∆𝐱⃗ = 𝐱⃗. (1.1)
 Figure 1.2. Path and displacement.

So, the displacement ∆𝐱⃗ is the difference between 𝐱⃗ and 𝐱⃗ 𝟎 , and the Greek letter
delta (∆) is used to signify this difference. Thus, displacement is a vector that points
from an object’s initial position to its final position. The magnitude of the
displacement is the shortest distance between the two positions. SI unit of
displacement is meter (m).
Consider a car moving back and forth along the x axis as in Figures 1.3 and 1.4.
When we begin collecting position data, the car is 30 𝑚 to the right of the reference
position 𝑥 = 0.
Figure 1.3. A pictorial representation Figure 1.4. A graphical
of the motion of the car representation (position–time
graph) of the motion of the car.
 Table 1.1. Position of the car at various times
(a tabular representation)

So, the formula for calculation of the displacement is as follows

∆𝐱⃗ = 𝐱⃗ − 𝐱⃗ 𝟎 (1.2)
or
∆𝐱⃗ = 𝐱⃗ 𝒇 − 𝐱⃗ 𝒊 . (1.3)

Speed and Velocity. One of the most obvious features of an object in motion is how
fast it is moving. If a car travels 200 meters in 10 seconds, we say its average speed
is 20 meters per second, the average speed being the distance traveled divided by
the time required to cover the distance:

𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞
𝐀𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝 = (1.4)
𝐄𝐥𝐚𝐩𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞

or
𝑑
v𝑎𝑣𝑔 = (1.5)
∆𝑡

where
∆𝑡 = 𝑡𝑓 − 𝑡𝑖 (1.6)
is the elapsed time. The average speed of an object is the distance traveled by the
object divided by the time required to cover the distance.
The average velocity of an object is the object’s displacement ∆𝐱⃗ divided by
the elapsed time ∆𝑡
𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭
𝐀𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 = (1.7)
𝐄𝐥𝐚𝐩𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞

∆𝐱⃗ 𝐱⃗−𝐱⃗ 𝟎
𝐯⃗ = = (1.8)
∆𝑡 𝑡−𝑡0

or
∆𝐱⃗ 𝐱⃗ 𝒇 −𝐱⃗ 𝒊
𝐯⃗ = = . (1.9)
∆𝑡 𝑡𝑓 −𝑡𝑖

Average velocity is a vector that has the same direction as the displacement.
The instantaneous velocity of the body indicates how fast the body moves
and the direction of the motion at each instant of time. The magnitude of the
instantaneous
velocity is called the instantaneous speed, and it is the number (with units) indicated
by the speedometer. When the elapsed time ∆𝑡 becomes infinitesimally small, the
average velocity becomes equal to the instantaneous velocity

∆𝐱⃗ 𝑑𝐱⃗
𝐯⃗ = lim = (1.10)
∆𝑡→0 ∆𝑡 𝑑𝑡

1
Example: The position vector is given: 𝐱⃗ = ( 𝑡 2 − 3𝑡 + 5) 𝑖. Find the
2

instantaneous velocity.
𝑑 1 𝑑 1 𝑑 𝑑(5)
Solution: 𝐯⃗ = [( 𝑡 2 − 3𝑡 + 5) 𝑖]= ( 𝑡 2 ) 𝑖 − (3𝑡)𝑖 + 𝑖=
𝑑𝑡 2 𝑑𝑡 2 𝑑𝑡 𝑑𝑡

= 𝑡𝑖 − 3𝑖 = (𝑡 − 3)𝑖.
So, the instantaneous velocity is as follows
𝐯⃗ = 𝑡𝑖 − 3𝑖 = (𝑡 − 3)𝑖 (1.11)

Knowing the magnitude of velocity, we can determine 𝑥. Using the definition (1.10),
we can write for the magnitude of the velocity
𝑑𝑥
v= . (1.12)
𝑑𝑡

and determine 𝑑𝑥 as follows:

𝑑𝑥 = v𝑑𝑡 (1.13)
If we integrate (1.13), we obtain
∫ 𝑑𝑥 = ∫ v𝑑𝑡 (1.14)

𝑥 = v𝑡 + 𝑐1 (1.15)
where 𝑐1 is the constant of integration and is determined from the initial condition
for 𝑥
𝑥(𝑡 = 0) = 𝑥0 (1.16)
where 𝑥0 is the initial distance (the distance at the beginning of time) from the origin
of the coordinate system. If we write the formula (1.15) for the time 𝑡 = 0 and
compare it with the condition (1.16), we obtain
𝑥(𝑡 = 0) = 𝑐1 = 𝑥0 . (1.17)
So, 𝑥 is determined as follows:
𝑥 = 𝑥0 + v𝑡 (1.18)
where v = const.
Acceleration. In a wide range of motions, the velocity changes from moment
to moment. To describe the manner in which it changes, the concept of acceleration
is needed. When a particle’s velocity changes, the particle is said to undergo
acceleration (or to accelerate). Average acceleration is the ratio of a change in
velocity ∆𝐯⃗ to the time interval ∆𝑡 in which the change occurs:

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲
𝐀𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧 = (1.19)
𝐄𝐥𝐚𝐩𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞

⃗
∆v ⃗𝑖
𝐯⃗𝒇 −v
⃗ 𝑎𝑣𝑔 =
𝒂 = (1.20)
∆𝑡 𝑡2

The average acceleration is a vector. It equals the change ∆v

⃗ in the velocity divided
by the elapsed time ∆𝑡, the change in the velocity being the final minus the initial
velocity. When ∆𝑡 becomes infinitesimally small, the average acceleration becomes
equal to the instantaneous acceleration

∆𝐯⃗ 𝑑𝐯⃗
⃗ = lim
𝒂 = (1.21)
∆𝑡→0 ∆𝑡 𝑑𝑡

Acceleration is the rate at which the velocity is changing. Instantaneous acceleration

a is the first time derivative of velocity v(𝑡) and the second time derivative of
position x(t):

(1.22)
The meaning of average acceleration can be illustrated by considering a plane
during takeoff. Figure 1.5 focuses attention on how the plane’s velocity changes
along the runway.
Figure 1.5. During takeoff, the plane accelerates from an initial velocity 𝐯⃗𝟎 to a
final velocity 𝐯⃗ during the time interval ∆𝑡 = 𝑡 − 𝑡0

Equations of Kinematics for Constant Acceleration

Let us rewrite the definition of acceleration (Eq. 1-6) as
𝑑𝑣 = 𝑎𝑑𝑡 (1.23)
We next write the indefinite integral (or antiderivative) of both sides:

∫ 𝑑𝑣 = ∫ 𝑎𝑑𝑡

Since acceleration a is a constant, it can be taken outside the integration. We obtain

∫ 𝑑𝑣 = 𝑎 ∫ 𝑑𝑡

or
𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑎𝑡 + 𝐶
To evaluate the constant of integration 𝐶, we let 𝑡 = 0 , at which time
𝑣(𝑡 = 0) = 𝑣0 = 𝑎 ∙ 0 + 𝐶 = 𝐶
Substituting these values into the equation Eq. 𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑎𝑡 + 𝐶 gives us
𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑣0 + 𝑎𝑡 (1.24)
This formula is true for the accelerated motion (𝑣(𝑡) > 𝑣0 ). However, if the motion
is decelerated one (𝑣(𝑡) < 𝑣0 ), then the corresponding formula will be as
 𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑣0 − 𝑎𝑡 (1.25)
And now let us calculate a particle’s change in position (the magnitude of
displacement or travelled distance) in accelerated motion by integrating its
velocity function with respect to time. It should be noted that in a motion along a
straight line the magnitude of displacement or the travelled distance coincide. Let us
write the definition of velocity (Eq. 1-4) as
𝑑𝑥 = 𝑣𝑑𝑡 (1.26)
and then take the indefinite integral of both sides to obtain

∫ 𝑑𝑥 = ∫ 𝑣𝑑𝑡

∫ 𝑑𝑥 = ∫(𝑣0 + 𝑎𝑡)𝑑𝑡

∫ 𝑑𝑥 = 𝑣0 ∫ 𝑑𝑡 + 𝑎 ∫ 𝑡𝑑𝑡

Integration now yields

1
𝑥(𝑡) = 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 + 𝐶 ′
2

where 𝐶 ′ is another constant of integration. At time 𝑡 = 0, we have 𝑥 = 𝑥0 .

Substituting these values in the last equation yields 𝑥0 = 𝐶 ′ :
1
𝑥(𝑡 = 0) = 𝑥0 = 𝑣0 ∙ 0 + 𝑎 ∙ 02 + 𝐶 ′ = 𝐶 ′
2
Replacing 𝐶 ′ with 𝑥0 in the equation 𝑥(𝑡) gives us:
1
𝑥(𝑡) = 𝑥0 + 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 (1.27)
2

As we know the difference 𝑥(𝑡) − 𝑥0 is displacement

1
𝑥(𝑡) − 𝑥0 = 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 (1.28)
2
If at the beginning of time 𝑡 = 0 the particle is at the origin of the coordinate axis,
then 𝑥(𝑡) has a simpler form
1
𝑥(𝑡) = 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 (1.29)
2

We can calculate the final velocity knowing 𝑣0 and displacement

𝑠 = 𝑥(𝑡) − 𝑥0 = 𝑥 − 𝑥0 (1.30)
For this purpose, let us determine time from the equation 𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑣0 + 𝑎𝑡

𝑣−𝑣0
𝑡= (1.31)
𝑎

𝑣 − 𝑣0 1 𝑣 − 𝑣0 2
𝑠 = 𝑥 − 𝑥0 = 𝑣0 + 𝑎( ) =
𝑎 2 𝑎

𝑣0 𝑣 − 𝑣02 𝑣 2 − 2𝑣0 𝑣 + 𝑣02 2𝑣0 𝑣 − 2𝑣02 +𝑣 2 − 2𝑣0 𝑣 + 𝑣02

= + = =
𝑎 2𝑎 2𝑎

𝑣 2 − 𝑣02
=
2𝑎
So,
𝑣 2 −𝑣02
𝑠 = 𝑥 − 𝑥0 = (1.32)
2𝑎

This formula for displacement is true for accelerated motion. If the motion is
decelerated one, the related formula for displacement will be
𝑣02 −𝑣 2
𝑠= (1.33)
2𝑎

The final velocity for the accelerated and decelerated motion will be as follows,
respectively
𝑣 2 = 𝑣02 + 2𝑎𝑠 (1.34)
or
𝑣 = √𝑣02 + 2𝑎𝑠 (1.35)
and
𝑣 2 = 𝑣02 − 2𝑎𝑠 (1.36)
or
𝑣 = √𝑣02 − 2𝑎𝑠 (1.37)

FREE-FALL ACCELERATION

If you tossed an object either up or down and could somehow eliminate the effects
of air on its flight, you would find that the object accelerates downward at a certain
constant rate. That rate is called free-fall acceleration, and its magnitude is
represented by g. The acceleration is independent of the object’s characteristics, such
as mass, density, or shape; it is the same for all objects. The value of g varies slightly
with latitude and with elevation. At sea level in Earth’s mid-latitudes, the value is
9.8 m/s2. Free fall:
1) The directions of motion are now along a vertical y-axis instead of the x-axis,
with the positive direction of y upward.
2) The free-fall acceleration is negative - that is, downward on the y-axis, toward
Earth’s center - and so it has the value -g in the equations.
Note: The free-fall acceleration near Earth’s surface is a= - g= - 9.8 m/s2, and the
magnitude of the acceleration is g = 9.8 m/s2.
In free-fall acceleration
𝑣(𝑡) = 𝑔𝑡
or
𝑣 = √2𝑔ℎ
and
1
ℎ(𝑡) = 𝑔𝑡 2
2
or
𝑣2
ℎ=
2𝑔