STPM Physics [Term 1]

Chapter 1 − PHYSICAL QUANTITIES & UNITS

Syllabus

Topic Outcome Mastery

Base quantities and i. list base quantities and their SI units: mass, length,
SI units time, current, temperature and quantity of matter;

ii. deduce units for derived quantities;

Dimensions of i. use dimensional analysis to determine the

physical quantities dimensions of derived quantities;

ii. check the homogeneity of equations using

dimensional analysis;

iii. construct empirical equations using dimensional

analysis;

Scalars and vectors i. determine the sum, the scalar product and vector
product of coplanar vectors;

ii. resolve a vector to two perpendicular

components;

Uncertainties in i. calculate the uncertainty in a derived quantity;

measurements
ii. write a derived quantity to an appropriate number
of significant figures.

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1.1 Base Quantities

Quantities and SI units

Physical quantities

Quantities that can be measured, defined with a numerical value and a unit.

The standard size for measuring physical quantity is called the unit.
unit

Base quantities

Quantities SI unit Symbol

mass kilogram kg
length metre m
time second s
electric current Ampere A
temperature Kelvin K
quantity of matter mole mol

Derived quantities

Physical quantities other than the basic quantities.

Obtained from a relation between derived quantities and other basic quantities.

Dimensions of physical quantities

Dimension is useful to relates the physical quantity to the basic quantities

Dimension of each basic quantities is denoted as;
o mass (M)
o length (L)
o time (T)
o electric current (A)
o temperature (8)
o quantity of matter (N)

Dimension of a physical quantity is denoted by “[ ]”

Example 1

1. Derive the dimensions for the following physical quantities.

i. Velocity

[>?@ABCDEFEGH]
[velocity] =
[H?FE]

I
[velocity] =
J

[velocity] = LT KL

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ii. Force

[force] = [mass] × [acceleration]

[DPCGQE RS TEBRD?HU]
[force] = [mass] ×
[H?FE]

IJVW
[force] = M
J

[force] = MLT KX

2. Express the quantities in part 1 in terms of the base units

i. Velocity

[velocity] = LT KL

Unit : m s KL

ii. Force

[force] = MLT KX

Unit : kg m s KX or N

Checkpoint 1.1

1. Which of the following physical quantities has the same dimensions as the dimensions of
impulse?

A Potential energy

B Momentum

C Kinetic energy

D Weight and force

2. For each of the following physical quantities, derive the dimensions and express its units in
terms of the base units.

i. Momentum

ii. Energy

iii. Frequency

iv. Density

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1.2 Dimension Analysis

Use of dimension analysis

Checking the homogeneity of an equation

o Addition and subtraction can be only be done on physical quantities with the same
dimensions
o Every terms of an equation must have the same dimension
o Left and right side of an equation must have the same dimension

Construct empirical equations

Example 2
L
1. Analyse the dimension of the equation \ = ]^ + `^ X
X

L
[\] = []^] + [`^ X ]
X

[\] = [displacement]

[\] = L

[]^] = LT KL ∙ T

[]^] = L

L
[`^ X ] = LT KX ∙ T X
X

L
[`^ X ] = L
X

The equation is dimensionally homogeneous.

2. Check the homogeneity of the dimensions for the following equations.

i. \ = `^ X

[\] = [displacement]

[\] = L

[`^ X ] = LT KX ∙ T X

[`^ X ] = L

The equation is dimensionally homogeneous

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STPM Physics [Term 1]

ii. \ = c^ + c^ X

[\] = [displacement]

[\] = L

[c^] = LT KL ∙ T

[c^] = L

[c^ X ] = LT KL ∙ T X

[c^ X ] = LT

3. The velocity c of waves in a ripple tank depends on the wavelength λ, surface tension e (in
N mKL ) and density f of water. Deduce an equation to show the relationship between these
quantities.

Let c = ghi e j f k

[c] = LT KL

[hi ] = Li

[e j ] = M j T KXj

[f k ] = M k LKlk

Equating dimensions on both side of the equation

LT KL = (Li )(M j T KXj )(M k LKlk )

LT KL = M jmk LiKlk T KXj

Equating indices of M

n+o =0 … eqn 1

Equating indices of L

r − 3o = 1 … eqn 2

Equating indices of T

−2n = −1 … eqn 3
L L L
Solving equation 1, 2 and 3 gives r = − X , n = X , o = − X . Thus ;

e
c = gs
hf

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4. The velocity c of sea waves depends on the wavelength h of the wave, the surface tension e
and the density f of the sea water. The following values of velocity and wavelength of the
wave are obtained.

c / ms KL 230.0 270.0 340.0 450.0 590.0

h/m 8.5 6.2 3.9 2.2 1.3
The surface tension and the density of sea water are determined by other methods and the
values obtained are

e = 4.30 ± 0.05 N mKL and f = 1450 ± 20 kg mKl .

Draw a suitable graph to deduce the proportionality constant in your equation derived in
previous example.

e 1 e
From c = gs , plot c against gives a straight line where the gradient is gs .
hf √λ f

Gradient of graph = 674

e
gs = 674
f

g = 1.238 × 10|

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Checkpoint 1.2

1. Show that the dimensions of the following equations are homogeneous.

i. Impulse, }^ = ~(c − ]) [MLT KL ]

ii. Pressure,  = ℎf [MLKL T KX ]

L
iii. Kinetic energy ‚ƒ = ~c X [MLX T KX ]
X

‡
iv. Period, „ = 2 †ˆ [T]

where ~ is mass, ^ is time, ] is initial velocity, c is final velocity,  is acceleration due to

gravity, ‰ is length, ℎ is height, f is density and } is force.

2. The pressure  of a liquid with density f and moving with a velocity c is given by

1
 = g − fc X
2
where g is a dimensional quantity. What is the dimension of g?

[MLKL T KX ]

3. The air resistance } on a vehicle depends on the velocity c of the vehicle, the density f of
air and the cross-sectional area ‹ of the vehicle. Derive an expression which relates } to c,
f and ‹. Explain any other symbols in your expression.

[} = gc X f‹]

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STPM Physics [Term 1]

1.3 Scalars and Vectors

Scalar quantity is a physical quantity which has only magnitude.

magnitude

Vector quantity is a physical quantity which has magnitude and direction.

direction

vector quantity can be represented by a line segment where the length represents
magnitude and the direction is shown by an arrow.

Two vectors Œ and  are equal if and only if |Œ| = || and direction of Œ = .

Operations involving vectors

Sum of vectors
o Parallelogram of vectors
‹
‘
 ‘
 ’
‘

‹ + =
’ = ‹ + 
‘
‹

o Triangle of vectors

‘
 ’
’ = ‹ + 
‘
‹ + = ‘


‹

o Polygon of vectors
‹
’ ‘

‹
‚‘
→ ‘
“ ’
‘
“
‘

‚‘ = ‹ + 
‘+’+“
‘

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Resolving a vector
o A vector may be separated into two components which are mutually perpendicular to
each other.

—j = — sin 8

—i = — cos 8
—
—j
—X = —i X + —j X
8
—j
tan 8 =
—i
—i

Multiplication of vector with a scalar

o Eg. ‹, 2‹, 3‹, ‹
L
X
o Length (magnitude) of the vector changes
o Multiplication with negative number reverses the direction eg: −2‹, −3‹

Vector product
o Dot product

Operation is represented by a dot “ ∙ ”

‹ ∙ 
‘ = –‹––
‘ – cos 8

8 is the angle between vector ‹ and 
‘

Dot product of two vectors gives a scalar
o Cross product

Operation is represented by a cross “ × ”

–‹ × 
‘ – = –‹––
‘ – sin 8

Cross product of two vectors gives a new vector

Example 3

1. List out the scalar and vector quantities for the following;

displacement, force, kinetic energy, velocity, power, momentum, work, speed, acceleration

Scalar Vector

Kinetic energy Displacement

Power Force

Work Velocity

Speed Momentum, acceleration

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2. For each of the following figures, state the vector ˜ in terms of vector ™ and š.

i. ii.

˜=™+› ˜=›−™

iii. iv.

˜=™−› ˜ = −(™ + ›)

3. A plane flies 120 km to the north then 50 km to the east. Find the resultant displacement of
the plane.

Resultant displacement œ = 120X + 50X = 130 km

50
tan 8 =
120
8 = 22°37Ÿ from North or 67°23Ÿ from positive r-axis

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Checkpoint 1.3

1. Four coplanar forces lying on the r-n plane act on a particle as shown in the figure below.

Determine the magnitude and direction of the resultant force. Draw an additional force
showing its direction which acts on the particle so that the resultant force is zero. State the
magnitude of this force.

[30.7 N at 208° from positive r-axis]

2. The following three horizontal forces act on a particle;

}L = 10 N due North

}X = 7 N due East

}l = 3 N due West

Determine the resultant force on the particle.

[10.8 N at 68.2° from positive r-axis]

3. A ball moves due north on the floor at a constant speed of 3.0 m sKL . It hits an object and
after that moves due east at a speed of 3.0 m s KL . Determine the change in velocity of the
ball.

[∆c = 4.2 m s KL at 45° from positive r-axis]

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1.4 Errors

A measurement is only accurate up to a certain degree dictated by the instrument and the
constraints of the observer.

Any measurement of a physical quantity has errors or uncertainty. Consider the following case;

Measuring instrument : metre ruler

Length of A4 paper : 29.7 cm

Error of the ruler : 0.1 cm

The measurement is then shown as : 29.7 ± 0.1 cm.

The error 0.1 cm represents the absolute error for the measurement of 29.7 cm. Errors can be
represented in fractional or percentage form. For the case of 29.7 ± 0.1 cm, the fractional error
is given by;
¢.L

Fractional error = = 0.003
X£.¤

Percentage error = 0.3%

For a quantity that involves addition or subtraction,

subtraction its error is obtained by the sum of absolute
error.
error If the quantity involves multiplication or division,
division the error is the sum of the fractional
error.
error

Types of errors;

Systematic errors
o Zero errors
o Instrumental error
o Incorrect assumption
o Observer
o Magnitude of error is constant
o Eliminated by improving measurement methods eg. use different instrument, have
someone else to take the measurement

Random errors
o Parallax errors
o Magnitude of error is not constant
o Reduced by taking repeated readings

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Example 4

1. In an experiment, a plastic tube with an external diameter œL was measured at

(54 ± 2) mm while its internal diameter œX was measured at (37 ± 1) mm. For the
quantity (œL − œX ), calculate the

i. maximum absolute error

∆(œL − œX ) = 2 + 1 = 3 mm

ii. maximum percentage error

œL − œX = 54 − 37 = 17 mm

3
× 100% = 18%
17
§W
2. Repeat question 1 for the quantity
§¨

i. maximum absolute error

2 1
∆(œL − œX ) = (œL − œX ) © + ª
54 37
64
∆(œL − œX ) = 17 © ª = 1.1 mm
999

ii. maximum percentage error

1.1
× 100% = 6.5%
17

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Checkpoint 1.4

1. The density of a steel ball bearing is obtained by dividing its mass with its volume. The
percentage error of the measurements for mass and diameter were 2% and 3%
respectively. What is the maximum percentage error in the density of the ball?

[11%]

2. Suggest two methods of reducing random errors when using a micrometer screw gauge to
measure the diameter of a wire.

3. What are parallax errors? Are parallax error systematic errors or random errors? Explain
your answer.

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Tutorial 1

1. Which of the following physical quantities is a scalar quantity?

A Velocity C Density

B Acceleration D Magnetic force

2. In a motion which involves uniform acceleration, the velocity c is given by the equation
c X = ` + «r where ` and « are constants and r is a variable. If `, «, and r have dimensions,
then the dimensions for the term «r in the equation are

A L C LT KX

B LT KL D LX T KX

3. The time taken for a body to fall to the floor from a tower is 2.0 ± 0.1 s. What is the height
of the tower? (Assume the acceleration due to gravity = 10 ms KL )

A 20 ± 0.2 m C 20 ± 1.5 m

B 20 ± 0.1 m D 20 ± 2 m

4. Which of the following physical quantities have the same dimensions as energy per unit
volume?

A Force C Velocity

B Acceleration D Pressure

5. Among the following statements, which is the correct statement about the error in
measurement?

A Zero error is a random error.

B Accurate measurements are measurements with low random error.

C Systematic error can be caused by instruments of low sensitivity.

D Random error can be decreased by repeating the measurements.

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6. The probable maximum magnitude and the probable minimum magnitude for the
resultant of two forces are respectively 10 N and 4 N. The magnitudes of the two forces are

A 3 N and 7 N C 4 N and 10 N

B 4 N and 6 N D 6 N and 14 N

7. The dimensions for power are

A MLT KL C MLX T KX

B MLT KX D MLX T Kl

8. Which of the following experiment techniques can reduce systematic error of the quantity
being measured?

A Measuring the diameter of a wire at different points along the wire.

B Adjusting an ammeter to read zero before measuring a current.

C Timing a large number of oscillations to find the period of a pendulum.

D Measuring the thickness of a large number of pieces of paper to find the thickness of
one piece.

9. Four physical quantities ‹, , ’ and “ are related by the equation ‹ =  + ’“. Which
statement must be correct for the equation to be dimensionally consistent?

A ‹, , ’ and “ have the same unit.

B ’“ must be numerically equal to ‹ − .

C ’“ has the same dimension as ‹ and .

D ‹, , ’ and “ all are scalar quantities.

10. The tensile strength of a wire is the maximum stress on the wire just before it breaks. What
is the dimension of tensile strength?

A MLKL T KL C MLT KL

B MLKL T KX D MLT KX

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11. The quantity ¬ is given by

}
¬ = gs
­

where g is a dimensionless constant, } and ­ represent force and mass per unit length
respectively. Determine the base units of ¬.

12. A sphere of radius ® moves at speed c in a viscous fluid. The sphere is acted on by a viscous
force } which is given by

} = g®c

Determine the dimensions of g.

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13. Five coplanar forces act on a particle, as shown in the following figure. Determine the
magnitude and direction of the resultant of these forces.

y
4N 4N

x
45°

3N
45°
2N

5N

14. A ball moves along the y-axis on the floor at a constant speed of 3.0 ms KL . It hits an object
and after that moves to positive r-axis direction at a speed of 2.0 ms KL . Determine the
change in velocity of the ball.

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15. Fermi’s energy ‚° of a metal is the energy for the state of highest energy of the occupied
conduction electron. The energy given by

‚° = gℎ i ~j ± k

Where ℎ is Planck’s constant ( J s)

~ is the mass of electron

± is the number of electrons per unit volume

g is a numerical constant

Deduce the values of r, n and o.

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