EQUATIONS AND CONSTANTS FOR GRADE 12 PHYSICS

These equations make doing homework and exams a bit easier, but they are not an excuse for not learning the course
material. If you don’t know what these equations mean and how to use them, they will not help you at all.

KINEMATIC EQUATIONS: COLLISIONS: GRAVITY:

Δ𝑑® Δ®𝑣 ∑︁ ∑︁ 𝐺𝑚 1 𝑚 2 𝐺𝑚 1 𝑚 2
𝑣®avg = 𝑎®avg = 𝑝®𝑖 = 𝑝®𝑖′ (all collisions) 𝐹𝑔 = 𝑈𝑔 = −
Δ𝑡 Δ𝑡 𝑖 𝑖 𝑟2 𝑟
1 ∑︁ ∑︁ 𝐺𝑚 𝑠
Δ𝑑® = 𝑣®1 Δ𝑡 + 𝑎Δ𝑡 ® 2 𝐾𝑖 = 𝐾𝑖′ (elastic only) 𝑔= 2 𝐹®𝑔 = 𝑚 𝑔®
2 𝑟
𝑖 𝑖
1
Δ𝑑® = 𝑣®2 Δ𝑡 − 𝑎Δ𝑡 ® 2 ELECTROSTATICS:
2 1D ELASTIC COLLISION:
𝑣®1 + 𝑣®2 𝑘𝑞 1 𝑞 2 𝑘𝑞 1 𝑞 2
Δ𝑑® = Δ𝑡 𝑣 1 (𝑚 1 − 𝑚 2 ) + 2𝑚 2 𝑣 2 𝐹𝑞 = 𝑈𝑞 =
2 𝑣 1′ = 𝑟2 𝑟
𝑣 22 = 𝑣 21 + 2𝑎Δ𝑑 𝑚1 + 𝑚2 𝑘𝑞 𝑠
𝑣 (𝑚 − 𝑚 1 ) + 2𝑚 1 𝑣 1 𝐸= 2 𝐹®𝑞 = 𝑞 𝐸®
2 2
𝑣®2 = 𝑣®1 + 𝑎Δ𝑡
® 𝑣 2′ = 𝑟
𝑚1 + 𝑚2 𝑘𝑞 𝑠 Δ𝑈
SYMMETRIC PROJECTILES: 𝑉= Δ𝑉 =
𝑟 𝑞
2𝑣 𝑖 sin 𝜃 FORCES:
Total time: 𝑇 =
𝑔 parallel plate:
2 Gravity 𝐹®𝑔 = 𝑚 𝑔®
𝑣 sin(2𝜃) 𝜎 Δ𝑉
Range: 𝑅 = 𝑖 Static friction: 𝐹𝑠 ≤ 𝜇 𝑠 𝐹𝑁 𝐸= =
𝑔 𝜀0 𝑑
Kinetic friction: 𝐹𝑘 = 𝜇 𝑘 𝐹𝑁
𝑣 sin2 𝜃
2
Max height: 𝐻 = 𝑖 MAGNETISM:
2𝑔 Hooke’s Law: 𝐹®𝑠 = −𝑘 𝑥®
1 𝐹𝑚 = 𝑞𝑣𝐵 sin 𝜃
LAWS OF MOTION: Drag: 𝐹𝐷 = 𝜌𝑣 2∞𝐶𝐷 𝐴ref
2 𝐹𝑚 = 𝐼𝑙 𝐵 sin 𝜃
First law: 𝐹®net = 0® → 𝑎® = 0®
Δ 𝑝® CIRCULAR MOTION:
Second law: 𝐹®net = 𝑚 𝑎® =
Δ𝑡 𝑣2 TRAVELLING WAVE:
Third law: 𝐹®AB = −𝐹®BA 𝑎®𝑐 ⊥ 𝑣® 𝑎𝑐 =
𝑟 𝜆
MOMENTUM & IMPULSE 𝑚𝑣 2 𝑣 = 𝑓𝜆 =
𝐹𝑐 = 𝑚𝑎 𝑐 = 𝑇
𝑟
𝑝® = 𝑚®𝑣 2𝜋𝑟 1 REFRACTION:
𝑇= 𝑓 =
𝐽® = 𝐹Δ𝑡 𝑣 𝑇
𝑣2 𝑛1 sin 𝜃 1 = 𝑛2 sin 𝜃 2
𝐽®net = Δ 𝑝® tan 𝜃 = 𝑐
𝑟𝑔 𝑛=
WORK & ENERGY: 𝑣
ORBITAL MOTION: ONE-SLIT DIFFRACTION:
𝑊 = 𝐹Δ𝑑 cos 𝜃 (constant force)
1
√︂ Bright fringes:
𝑊net = Δ𝐾 𝐾 = 𝑚𝑣 2 𝑣 orb =
𝐺𝑀
2 𝑟

1

1 𝑚+ 𝜆 = 𝑊 sin 𝜃
𝑈𝑒 = 𝑘𝑥 2
√︂
𝑈𝑔 = 𝑚𝑔ℎ 2𝐺 𝑀 √ 2
2 𝑣 esc = = 2𝑣 orb  
𝑊 = −Δ𝑈 (conservative forces) 𝑟 1 𝜆𝐿
𝐺 𝑀𝑚 1 2 𝑦𝑚 = 𝑚 + 𝑚 = 1, 2, 3 · · ·
𝐾orb = = 𝑚𝑣 orb 2 𝑊
CONSERVATION OF ENERGY: 2𝑟 2
∑︁
𝐺 𝑀𝑚 Dark fringes:
𝐸 mech = 𝐾 + 𝑈𝑖 𝑈orb = − = −2𝐾orb
𝑖 𝑟
𝐺 𝑀𝑚 𝑚𝜆 = 𝑊 sin 𝜃
𝐸 sys = 𝐸 mech + 𝐸 int 𝐸 tot = 𝐾orb + 𝑈𝑔 = − = −𝐾orb 𝑚𝜆𝐿
2𝑟 𝑦𝑚 = 𝑚 = 1, 2, 3 · · ·
Δ𝐸 sys = 𝑊ext 𝑇2 𝑊
= constant
𝑟3

1
TWO-SLIT INTERFERENCE: QUANTUM MECHANICS: UNIT CONVERSIONS:
Bright fringe:
1 eV = 1.602 × 10−19 J
𝑛𝜆 = 𝑑 sin 𝜃 𝐸 = ℎ𝑓 1 kW · h = 3.6 × 106 J
(
𝑦𝑛 =
𝑛𝜆𝐿
𝑛 = 0, 1, 2, 3 · · · ℎ𝑓 −𝜑 if ℎ 𝑓 > 𝜑 1 km/h = 0.278 m/s
𝑑 𝐾max =
0 otherwise 1 m/s = 3.6 km/h
Δ𝑦𝑑
𝜆≈ 𝐸 ℎ𝑓 ℎ 1 ly = 9.461 × 1015 m
𝑥 𝑝= = =
𝑐 𝑐 𝜆
Dark fringes: ℎ MATHEMATICAL FORMULAS:
𝜆=
  𝑚𝑣 Circles:
1 ℎ
𝑛+ 𝜆 = 𝑑 sin 𝜃 𝜎𝑝 𝜎𝑥 ≥
2 4𝜋 𝐶 = 2𝜋𝑟
 
1 𝜆𝐿 𝐴 = 𝜋𝑟 2
𝑦𝑛 = 𝑛 +
2 𝑑
SI UNIT PREFIXES: Spheres:
𝑛 = 0, 1, 2, 3 · · ·
tera 1012 T
OPTICAL RESOLUTION: 𝑆 = 4𝜋𝑟 2
giga 109 G
4
𝜆 mega 106 M 𝑉 = 𝜋𝑟 3
Rectangular: 𝜃 min = kilo 103 k 3
𝑊
1.22𝜆 centi 10−2 c
Circular: 𝜃 min = milli 10−3 m 𝑚
𝐷 Density: 𝜌 =
micro 10−6 𝜇 𝑉
THIN-FILM INTERFERENCE: nano 10−9 n Small angles: tan 𝜃 ≈ sin 𝜃 ≈ 𝜃
One phase shift pico 10−12 p
  femto 10−15 f
1
Constructive: 2𝑛𝑡 = 𝑚 − 𝜆
2
USEFUL CONSTANTS:
Destructive: 2𝑛𝑡 = 𝑚𝜆

Two phase shifts Acceleration to to gravity: 𝑔 = 9.81 m/s2 (near surface of Earth)
Constructive: 2𝑛𝑡 = 𝑚𝜆 Universal gravitational constant: 𝐺 = 6.674 × 10−11 N · m2 /kg2
Coulomb’s constant: 𝑘 = 8.988 × 109 N · m2 /C2
 
1
Destructive: 2𝑛𝑡 = 𝑚 − 𝜆
2 Electron rest mass: 𝑚 𝑒 = 9.110 × 10−31 kg

SPECIAL RELATIVITY: Proton rest mass: 𝑚 𝑝 = 1.673 × 10−27 kg

Elementary charge: 𝑒 = 1.602 × 10−19 C
1
𝛾 = √︂ Speed of light in vacuum: 𝑐 = 2.998 × 108 m/s
 𝑣 2
1− Planck’s constant: ℎ = 6.626 × 10−34 J · s
𝑐
𝑡 ′ = 𝛾𝑡 = 4.136 × 10−15 eV · s

𝐿′ =
𝐿 𝑚 Earth = 5.972 × 1024 kg
𝛾 𝑟 Earth = 6.371 × 106 m
′
𝑚 = 𝛾𝑚
′
𝑚 Sun = 1.989 × 1030 kg
𝑝=𝑚𝑣
𝑟 Sun = 6.957 × 108 m
𝐸 0 = 𝑚𝑐2
′ 2 2
𝑚 Moon = 7.348 × 1022 kg
𝐸𝑇 = 𝑚 𝑐 = 𝛾𝑚𝑐
𝑟 Moon = 1.737 × 106 m
𝐾 = 𝐸𝑇 − 𝐸 0 = (𝛾 − 1)𝑚𝑐2
𝑑Earth-to-moon = 3.844 × 108 m