Chapter 3

Vectors
Vectors
Vectors have two parts, magnitude and
direction
Can be described with arrows
Length of arrow is proportional to
the magnitude
5 meters at
30°
Vectors Scalars
displacement distance
velocity speed
acceleration temperature
force mass
momentum energy
Displacement vs distance

Distanc
e

Displaceme
nt

Displacement is a vector
that points from the initial
position to the final
Notation for Vectors

Variables that represent vectors have

little arrows over them. This is
important so we know if a quantity is
a vector  is or a scalar.
a vector

A is a scalar

Important because  means something

very different than .
This will be very important in two
dimensions
Adding Vectors A + B = ?

Add vectors graphically by chaining

them together head to tail.

A is four units B is two units

long long

How long is the Six units long

sum?
Which direction does To the right
it point?
Subtracting Vectors A - B = ?

The negative of a vector points in the opposite
direction. To subtract, add the negative.

A is four units -B is two units

long long
How long is the Two units long
sum?
Which direction To the right
does it point?

Any two vectors can be added with this

construction.
Examples
This vector diagram could represent
walking 4 m east then 2 m west. The
“net displacement” is the vector sum,
or 2 m east.
Displacement describes position
relative to the origin and is a vector
The distance traveled would be 6
meters and is a scalar.

Adding perpendicular Vectors
Describe the sum of these two vectors.

A is four units B is two units

long long
How long is the = 4.5 units
sum? long
Which direction does it
point? atan(2/4) = 27° above
horizontal
You can move vectors →
around as long as you 𝐵
don’t change length or
orientation. →
𝐴
More than 2 vectors
In the morning, you walk 3 blocks east and 6
blocks north. In the afternoon, you walk 2
block east and 1 block south. What is your
total displacement (distance and direction)?

Add the x and y

displacements separately to
get two perpendicular
vectors.
The x-displacement is 3+2=5
blocks
The y-displacement is 6-1=5
blocks
Using Components
52 + 52 = 7.07
blocks
atan(5/5)=
→
𝑅 → 45°
The displacement vector is 7.07
𝑅𝑦
blocks long at 45° “north of
→
𝑅𝑥 east.”
Notice the angle is with respect to
some reference
Rx = 5 blocks east is the x-component
of R
Ry = 5 blocks north is the y-
Components
Our goal is to find two
perpendicular vectors whose
vector sum
→ is the
→ desired
→ vector
→ 𝑅 = 𝑅𝑥 + 𝑅𝑦
𝑅 →
𝑅𝑦
→ Then we can use  to find the
𝑅𝑥
magnitude and arctan to find the
angle
 Coordinate Systems
To find a vector’s components
we first need a coordinate
system.
We can choose the orientation
of the coordinate system to suit
our needs, but the components
will change.
Lets rotate this coordinate system and see what
happens.
Coordinate Systems
This is the same displacement
y axis
vector as before but its
components are now 6 “up”
and 3.75 “right.”
62 + 3.752 = 7.1 𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑠

( 3.75 )
x axis 6
𝜃 = atan = 58°

The components depend on the

coordinate system. The resultant vector
has the same magnitude.
The angle is different because it is
measured from a different x-axis.
Example
For blocks sliding on
ramps we will choose a
y
coordinate system parallel
to the ramp.
x

A vector representing weight will be

split into components.
Angles
Angles are usually assumed to be relative
to the x-axis and measured counter-
clockwise. If this is not the case, make sure
to describe how the angle is measured.
90
y °

180 θ
0
° x °

270
°
Finding Vector Components
Use the definitions of the
sine and cosine to find
y A components.
𝐴 𝐴
𝑦 𝑥
Ay sin(𝜃) = cos(𝜃) =
𝐴 𝐴
θ
Ax x Ay = Asin θ Ax =
Acos θ
These equations assume θ
is measured counter
clockwise from the x-axis.
 Finding Vector Components
Find the x and y
components of A if it is 12
y
m long and θ is 58°.
A Ax Ay
cos θ = sin θ =
A A
θ
x Ax = Acos θ Ay = Asin θ

Ax = 6.4 Ay = 10
m m
Finding Vector Components
Find the x and y components
y
of A if it is 5 m long and θ is -
22°.𝐴 = 𝐴𝑐𝑜𝑠(𝜃) = 5cos(−22°) = 4.6 𝑚
θ 𝑥
x
𝐴𝑦 = 𝐴𝑠𝑖𝑛(𝜃) = 5sin(−22°) = − 1.8 𝑚
A

sin(22) = +1.8
You can tell from the diagram that Ay should
point down.
Unit vectors
So far we have been describing vectors
with magnitude and angle, similar to polar
coordinates.
You can also describe a vector with
components using unit vectors. This is
similar to Cartesian coordinates.
A unit vector has a length of one and
serves the purpose of describing direction
There are special unit vectors for each axis.
points in the x-
direction
points in the y-
direction
 points in the z-
Unit vector example
Using unit vectors, the components of the
previous example would be:

The vector  could be
described as:
= 
y
This form is useful for doing
θ math with vectors: adding,
x
subtracting, or even taking
A derivatives.
Converting between forms
is like converting between
polar and Cartesian
coordinates.
Adding Vectors with Components
Find C where C = A + B
y A is 10 m at -30° and B
C is 9 m at 105°.
B
30° x

A 105°

→
Remember: 𝐶 = (𝐴𝑥 + 𝐵𝑥)^𝑖 + (𝐴𝑦 + 𝐵𝑦)^𝑗 = 6.4^𝑖 + 3.7^𝑗

Cx Cy
𝐶= 𝐶𝑥2 + 𝐶𝑦2 = 7.4𝑚

𝐶𝑦
( 𝐶𝑥 )
𝜃 = atan = 30°
Arctangent is tricky
Tan(-45°)=Tan(135°)=-1
So atan(-1) could be either -45° or 135°!
Your calculator will probably tell you -45°
If your vector has a negative x-component, add
180° to your angle. Draw a picture to make sure!

90
y °
135°
180 0
° -45° x °

270
°
 “N” stands for Newton. It is

Vector Example the unit of force you will see

in chapter 5.

Add the following vectors.


Bonus: What additional force would result in a net
force of zero?
Steps
1. Draw a picture

2. Convert to component form

→
𝐹2
3. Add the components →
𝐹1
4. Convert resultant to polar form

5. Compare with your picture

Try this yourself.

Check your
result on the
 

Vector Example
Step 2: Convert to
Step 1: Draw a
picture  component form

→ 
→ 𝐹2
𝐹3

Step 3: Add the

→
components
→
𝐹1 𝐹 = − 53𝑁 ^𝑖 + 190.3N^𝑗
3

Step 4: Convert to
polar
𝐹3 = 532 + 190.32 = 197.5𝑁

( −53 )
−1 190.3
𝜃 = tan = − 74.4° ???
Fix that angle
Because the vector points to
the left, the arctangent is
wrong. You can fix this by
→ adding 180°. Also notice
→ 𝐹2
𝐹3 that the absolute value
gives you the angle from
74.4° the –x axis.
θ=-74.4+180=105.6°
→ This agrees with the picture
𝐹1
Bonus
The force that would balance 
and  is the negative of their
→ sum (-). The negative of a
𝐹2 vector points in the opposite
direction. In polar, add 180°.
→
𝐹1 For components, multiply by -
1. →
− 𝐹3 = 53𝑁 ^𝑖 − 190.3N^𝑗

→ or
− 𝐹3 →
− 𝐹3 = 197.5𝑁 @ 285.6°

Notice 285.6° = -
74.4°
Power of Symmetry
y Two forces of equal size
30°
act on an object at the
x
angles
What shown.
direction does the
30°
sum of these point?
By symmetry, the y
components are equal and
add to zero.
Without doing any math we know the sum
points in the +x direction.