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Chapter 1 Measurement
Chapter 1 Measurement
Physical quantity:
-
Base Quantity
Conventional Symbol
SI Base Unit
Length
l/
metre
Mass
kilogram
kg
Time
second
Amount of substance n
mole
mol
Electric current
ampere
Temperature
Kelvin
candela
cd
Luminous intensity* L
Derived quantities:
-
Obtained from a combination of various base quantities and units are determined
from the relation between base and derived quantities
Eg: Area (m2), Density (Kg m-3)
Prefixes of Units
Prefi
x
Multiple
Symbol
Example
femt
o
10-15
10 fm (size of a
nucleus)
pico
10-12
100 pm (size of
atom)
nano
10-9
400 to 700 nm
(wavelength of
visible light) 0.1 nm
(size of atom)
micr
o
10-6
20 m (diameter of
human hair)
milli
10-3
mm (wire diameter)
centi
10-2
2 cm (wavelength of
microwave)
deci
10-1
3 dl (capacity of 1
cup)
kilo
103
70 kg (mass of a
man)
mega
106
giga
109
80 GB (gigabytes)
Tm, astronomical
dist.
Distance between
Earth and Sun = 0.15
Tm
tera
1012
Random Errors
-
Systematic Errors
-
have the same magnitude and sign when measurements are repeated.
Characteristics:
o Error is constant in size & always has same sign.
o Cannot be reduced through repetition of measurements. However, it can be
eliminated if detected and corrected.
Causes:
o Zero error of instrument
o Incorrect calibration of instrument
o Incorrect experimental technique
Avoiding systematic error
o Checking for zero error before taking readings
o Plotting a graph. If the graph does not cut the expected intercept, the shift is
probably due to systematic error.
Precision
-
how close the repeated measured values are to each other, without regard to the true
value
measure of how reproducible the results are
affected by random errors
Uncertainty
-
When a measurement is made, the value will always carry an uncertainty (depends on
calibration of instrument, precision of instrument)
Only used when the error carries a sign
Always given to 1 sig fig due to it being an estimated value
Decimal point on measurement follows the decimal point in uncertainty (1.00
0.02A)
Types of uncertainties
-
Absolute
o Denoted by symbol (has the same unit as quantity)
o E.g.: m = 0.2kg = (6.1/100) x 3.3kg
Relative
o Denoted by the (has no units)
o E.g.: m = 6.1% = (0.2/3.3) x 100%
Consistency check
-
Vector quantity
-