Vector Algebra

PEU 228
Lecture 1

Tamer Abuelfadl
Email: [email protected]

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 1 / 18

 Introduction

1 Course Outline
2 Grading
3 Motivation
4 Vectors and Scalars
5 Dot product
6 Cross product
7 Applications and examples
8 Scalar triple product
9 Vector triple product
10 Problems
11 Scalar elds and vector elds
Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 2 / 18
Course Outline

Vector Algebra
Line, Surface and Volume Integrals
Gradient, Divergence and Curl
Sux Notation and its Applications
Integral Theorems
Curvilinear Coordinates
Applications of Vector Calculus
Reference
P. C. Matthews, Vector calculus. Berlin ; New York: Springer, 1998.
Grading

Item Percentage (%)

Two Midterms (60% best+40% 35
lowest)
Homework Assignments 15
Project 10
Final Exam (You must have at least 40
35% in the nal to pass the course)

Late assignments receive no credit.

MIDTERM EXAM DATES: Two 50 minutes exam will be given on the
following dates: 6th week, 10th week.
There will be no makeup for missed exams.
FINAL EXAM: There will be a nal in the course. The nal will be a
comprehensive exam given during nals week and will cover all of the
subject material.
75% attendance is required. No Makeup for the midterms.
Motivation

Through this course you will learn about these terms: Field, Flux, Curl
(Rotation), Gradient, Conservative Field, Solenoidal Field, Irrotational
Field.
A lot of the mathematical formulation is simplied with the
introduction of the nabla dierential operator ∇.
 Vectors and Scalars

Denition
A vector is a physical quantity which has both magnitude and direction.
Examples of such quantities, including velocity, force and electric eld.

Denition
A scalar is a physical quantity which has magnitude only.
Examples of scalars include mass, temperature and pressure.

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 6 / 18

Vector Algebra
Vector Algebra

Vector: has both direction and magnitude.

Magnitude is denoted by |A| or A.
Vector addition
A+B = B+A
Multiplication by a scalar
α (A + B ) = α A + α B
Component form:A = A 1 e 1 + A2 e2 + A3 e3

A+B = (A1 e1 + A2 e2 + A3 e3 ) + (B1 e1 + B2 e2 + B3 e3 )

= (A1 + B1 ) e1 + (A2 + B2 ) e2 + (A3 + B3 ) e3
Dot product
Denition
Scalar dot product of vectors a and b
denoted by a · b,
a · b = ab cos θ , a · b = a · bk = abk ,
where bk = b cos θ

Commutative A · B = B · A
Distributive on addition a · (b + c) = a · b + a · c

√
The magnitude of the vector is written |a| = a·a =
q
a12 + a22 + a32
A=A e 1 1 + A2 e2 + A3 e3 , B = B e +B e +B e
1 1 2 2 3 3

A·B = A B 1 1 + A2 B2 + A3 B3
Cross product
Denition
Vector cross product of vectors a and b denoted by a × b,
a × b = ab sin θ u,
where u is a unit vector perpendicular to a and b and in
direction following right-hand rule.

Not commutative a × b = −b × a
a × b = a × b⊥
Distributive a × (b + c) = a × (b + c)⊥ =
a × b⊥ + a × c⊥ = a × b + a × c
Cross product

Component
form: A=A e +A e +A e ,
1 1 2 2 3 3 B=B e 1 1 + B2 e2 + B3 e3

e e e 
 
 1 2 3

A × B =  A1 A2 A3 

 B1 B2 B3 
= (A2 B3 − A3 B2 ) e1 + (A3 B1 − A1 B3 ) e2 + (A1 B2 − A2 B1 ) e3
Applications of the dot product

Work done against a force

A constant force F acts on a body and that the
body is moved a distance d. Then the work
done against the force is given by,
W = −F · d

Equation of a plane

r · a = constant
Applications of the cross product

Solid body rotation

v =Ω ×r

Equation of a straight line

r = a+λu
r×u = a×u
Scalar triple product

a·b×c = a b c
1 2 3 − a1 b3 c2 + a2 b3 c1 − a2 b1 c3 + a3 b1 c2 − a3 b2 c1
 
 a1 a2 a3 
a · b × c =  b1 b2 b3 
 
 c1 c2 c3 
 Vector triple product

a × (b × c) = b (a · c) − c (a · b)
Example
Show that,
(a × b) · (c × d) = (a · c) (b · d) − (a · d) (b · c)

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 14 / 18

 Problems

Find the angle between the body diagonals of a cube.

Solution

A = ^x + ^y −^z, B = ^x + ^y +^z,
√
A=B = 3
A · B = 1 + 1 − 1 = 1,
A · B = AB cos θ = 3 cos θ ,
1
cos θ = =⇒ θ = 70.528779◦
3

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 15 / 18

 Problems

Find the angle between the body diagonals of a cube.

Solution

A = ^x + ^y −^z, B = ^x + ^y +^z,
√
A=B = 3
A · B = 1 + 1 − 1 = 1,
A · B = AB cos θ = 3 cos θ ,
1
cos θ = =⇒ θ = 70.528779◦
3

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 15 / 18

 Problems

Use the cross product to nd the components of the unit vector ^
n
perpendicular to the plane shown in the gure.

Solution

 ^
 x ^y ^z
 

A × B =  −1 2 0  = 6^
x + 3^y+ 2^z,


 −1 0 3



|A × B| = 7

^n = |AA × B = 6^x + 3^y + 2^z

× B| 7 7 7

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 16 / 18

 Problems

Use the cross product to nd the components of the unit vector ^
n
perpendicular to the plane shown in the gure.

Solution

 ^
 x ^y ^z
 

A × B =  −1 2 0  = 6^
x + 3^y+ 2^z,


 −1 0 3



|A × B| = 7

^n = |AA × B = 6^x + 3^y + 2^z

× B| 7 7 7

Tamer Abuelfadl (Email: [email protected]) Lecture 1 PEU228 16 / 18

Examples

Example
(Matthews Example 1.10) Show that if three vectors lie in a plane, then
their scalar triple product is zero.

Example
(Matthews Example 1.11) A particle with mass m and electric charge q
moves in a uniform magnetic eld B. Given that the force F on the particle
is F = q v × B, where v is the velocity of the particle, show that the particle
moves at constant speed.
Scalar elds and vector elds
Denition
A scalar or vector quantity is said be a eld if it is a function of position.

Scalar Field Vector Field

T (x, y ) = x 2 + y 2 u(x, y ) = y e 1 + x e2