Chapter 2: Units and Measurement Introduction From ancient times to the present there has been a need for

measuring things accurately. In India a carpenter buys wood by the cubic foot, petrol is sold by the litre gold by the gram land by the acre, vegetables by the kg and cable by the metre. In the United States, a carpenter pays for wood by the board-foot, petrol is sold by the gallon, and a jeweler sells gold by the ounce, land is sold by the acre, fruits and vegetables are sold by the pound, and electric cable is sold by the yard. uyers and sellers have always tried to cheat each other by wrongly representing the !uantity of the product e"changed. #hen the ancient $gyptians built the pyramids, they measured the stones they cut using body dimensions every worker could easily understand. Small distances were measured in digits %the width of a finger& and longer distances in cubits %the length from the tip of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger' ( cubit ) *+ digits&. ,he -omans were famous road builders and measured distances in paces %( pace ) two steps&. .rchaeologists have uncovered ancient -oman roads and found milestones marking each (/// paces %mil is 0atin for (///&. ,he 1anes were a seafaring people and interested in knowing the depth of water in shipping channels. ,hey measured soundings in fathoms %the distance from the tip of the middle finger on one hand to the tip of the middle finger on the other& so navigators could easily visuali2e how much clearance their boats would have. In $ngland distances were defined with reference to body features of the king. . yard was the circumference of his waist' an inch was the width of his thumb, and a foot the length of his foot. Scientists today prefer to use the metric system. ,he metric system did not evolve from a variety of ancient measurement systems, but was a logical, simplified system developed in $urope during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. ,he metric system is now the mandatory system of measurement in every country of the world e"cept the United States, 0iberia and urma %3yanmar&. In (45/, an international conference was called to standardi2e the metric system. ,he international System of Units %SI& was established in which all units of measurement are based upon seven base units6 meter %distance&, kilogram %mass&, second %time&, ampere %electrical current&, 7elvin %temperature&, mole %!uantity&, and candela %luminous intensity&. ,he metric system simplifies measurement by using a single base unit for each !uantity and by establishing decimal relationships among the various units of that same !uantity. For e"ample, the meter is the base unit of length and other necessary units are simple multiples or sub-multiples6 ,he table shows the SI prefi"es and symbols. ,hroughout this book we use the metric system of measurement.

Table 1: SI Prefixes and Symbols Factor (/(+ (/ (/ (/ (/ (/ (/ (/ (/

(8

Decimal Representation (,///,///,///,///,///,/// (,///,///,///,///,/// (,///,///,///,/// (,///,///,/// (,///,/// (,/// (// (/ ( /.( /./( /.//( /./// //( /./// /// //( /./// /// /// //( /./// /// /// /// //( /./// /// /// /// /// //(

Prefix e"a peta tera giga mega kilo hecto deka deci centi milli micro nano pico femto atto

Symbol $ 9 , : 3 k h da d c m m n p f a

(/(*
4

(/5
;

(/*
(

(//
-(

(/-*
-;

(/-5
-4

(/-(*
-(8

(/-(+

Unit: . unit of measurement is a definite amount of a physical !uantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical !uantity. .ny other value of the physical !uantity can be e"pressed as a simple multiple of the unit of measurement. Fundamental or ase Units and !eri"ed Units: . fundamental unit of measurement is a defined unit that cannot be described as a function of other units. <ot all !uantities re!uire a unit of their own. Using physical laws, units of !uantities can be e"pressed as combinations of units of other !uantities. ,hus only a small set of base units is re!uired, the other units are derived units. International System of Units ,he International System of Units %SI& defines seven fundamental units of measurement. SI Fundamental Units ,he International System of Units %SI& defined seven basic units of measure from which all other SI units are derived. ,hese SI base units or commonly called metric units are6

Measure ,ime 0ength or distance 3ass $lectric =urrent ,emperature 0uminous Intensity .mount of Substance

Unit Second 3eter or 3etre 7ilogram .mpere 7elvin =andela 3ole

Symbol s m kg . 7 cd mol

#rea of Science .ll .ll 9hysics 9hysics 9hysics >ptics =hemistry

Plane an$le: -adian describes the plane angle subtended by a circular arc as the length of the arc divided by the radius of the arc. >ne radian is the angle subtended at the center of a circle by an arc that is e!ual in length to the radius of the circle. 3ore generally, the magnitude in radians of such a subtended angle is e!ual to the ratio of the arc length to the radius of the circle' that is, ? ) s @r, where ? is the subtended angle in radians, s is arc length, and r is radius. .s the ratio of two lengths, the radian is a pure number and the symbol AradA is usually omitted. In the absence of any symbol radians are assumed, and when degrees are meant the symbol B is used. . complete revolution is *C radians %shown here with a circle of radius one and thus circumference *C&. It follows that the magnitude in radians of one complete revolution %;5/ degrees& is the length of the entire circumference divided by the radius, or *Cr @r, or *C. ,hus *C radians is e!ual to ;5/ degrees, meaning that one radian is e!ual to (+/@C degrees. Solid #n$le: In geometry, a solid angle %symbol6 D& is the two-dimensional angle in three-dimensional space that an object subtends at a point. It is a measure of how large the object appears to an observer looking from that point. In the SI System of Units, a solid angle is a dimensionless unit of measurement called a steradian %symbol6 sr&. Measurement of %en$th Measurement of %ar$e !istances: Parallax Method In order to calculate how far away a star is, astronomers use a method called paralla". ecause of the $arthEs revolution about the sun, near stars seem to shift their position against the farther stars. ,his is called paralla" shift. y observing the distance of the shift and knowing the diameter of the $arthEs orbit, astronomers are able to calculate the paralla" angle across the sky. ,he smaller the paralla" shift, the farther away from earth the star is. ,his method is only accurate for stars within a few hundred light-years of $arth. #hen the stars are very far away, the paralla" shift is too small to measure.

Measurement of &ery Small !istances: ''See power point (an$e of %en$ths Measurement of Mass Unified #tomic Mass Unit:,he standard F throughout chemistry, physics, biology, etc F is the unified atomic mass unit %symbol u&. It is defined as (@(* %one-twelfth& of the mass of an isolated carbon-(* atom. ,he symbol amu, which stands for atomic mass unit is defined in terms of o"ygen .s itGs a unit of mass, the atomic mass unit %u& has a value, in kilograms ) (.55/ 8;+ H+*%+;& " (/-*H kg. ,he kilogram is defined in terms of a bar of platinum-iridium alloy, sitting in a vault in 9aris. It is important to recogni2e that the unified atomic mass unit is not an SI unit, but one that is accepted for use with the SI. ,he kilogram and unified atomic mass unit are related via a primary SI unit, the mole, which is defined as the amount of substance of a system which contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in /./(* kilogram of carbon (*. ,he number of atoms there are in a mole of an element is given by .vogadroGs number. ,he 1alton %symbol 1, or 1a& is the same as the unified atomic mass unit. In microbiology and biochemistry, many molecules have hundreds, or thousands, of constituent atoms, so itGs convenient to state their masses in terms of Ithousands of unified atomic mass unitsG, so the convention is to use k1a %kilodaltons&. (an$e of Masses Measurement of Time Jumans have been measuring time for a relatively short period in our long history. ,he desire to synchroni2e our activities came about 8,/// or 5,/// years ago as our nomadic ancestors began to settle and build civili2ations. efore that, tome was divided only into daylight and night, with days for hunting and working and nights for sleeping. ut as people began to feel the need to coordinate their actions, they needed a unified system of keeping time. ,he second %symbol6 s& is the base unit of time in the International System of Units and is also a unit of time in other systems of measurement' it is the second division of the

hour by si"ty, the first division by 5/ being the minute. etween .1 (/// and (45/ the second was defined as (@+5,K// of a mean solar day. etween (45/ and (45H, it was defined in terms of the period of the $arthEs orbit around the Sun. ut it is now defined more precisely in atomic terms. .stronomical observations of the (4th and */th centuries revealed that the mean solar day is slowly lengthening, thus the sunFearth motion is no longer considered a suitable basis for definition of time. #ith the advent of atomic clocks, it became feasible to define the second based on fundamental properties of nature. Since (45H, the second has been defined to be the duration of 4(4*5;(HH/ periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium (;; atom. #hen e"posed to certain fre!uencies of radiation, such as radio waves, the subatomic particles called electrons that orbit an atomEs nucleus will AjumpA back and forth between energy states. =locks based on this jumping within atoms can therefore provide an e"tremely precise way to count seconds. ,ime is one of the seven fundamental physical !uantities in the International System of Units. ,ime is used to define other !uantities, such as velocity and acceleration. #ccuracy) Precision of Instruments and *rrors in Measurement *rror: $rror is the actual difference between a measured value and the known standard value. In other words, the errors in e"perimental data are those that are always unknown to some e"tent and carry some amount of uncertainty. . reasonable definition of e"perimental uncertainty may be taken as the possible value the error may have. ,he uncertainty may vary a great deal depending upon the circumstances of the e"periment. #ccuracy: ,he accuracy of a measurement system is the degree of closeness of measurements of a !uantity to that !uantityEs actual value. 9recision6 ,he precision of a measurement system, is the degree to which repeated measurements under unchanged conditions show the same results. Systematic *rrors ,here may be certain fi"ed errors which will cause repeated readings to be in error by roughly some amount for some unknown reasons. ,hese are called systematic errors and are inherent errors of instruments or methods. ,hese errors always give a constant deviation. >n the basis of the sources of errors, systematic errors may be divided into following sub-categories6 Instrumental *rrors <o apparatus can be constructed to satisfy all specifications completely. ,his is the reason of giving guarantees within a limit. ,herefore, a manufacturer always mentions the minimum possible errors in the construction of the instruments. Imperfections in *xperimental Techni+ue or Procedure Following are some of the reasons of errors in results of the indicating instruments6 %a& =onstruction of the Scale6 ,here is a possibility of error due to the division of the scale not being uniform and clear. %b& Fitness and Straightness of the 9ointer6 If the pointer is not fine and straight, then it always gives the error in the reading. %c& 9aralla"6 #ithout a mirror under the pointer there may be paralla" error in reading. %d& $fficiency or skill of the observer 6 $rror in the reading is largely dependent upon the skill of the observer in reading the measurement accurately.

Personal *rrors It is due to the variation in final adjustment of the measuring apparatus. ,he error varies from person to person. (andom *rrors .fter corrections have been applied for all the parameters whose influences are known, there is some deviation left. ,hese are random errors and their magnitudes are not constant. 9ersons performing the e"periment have no control over the origin of these errors. ,hese errors may be either positive or negative. In the case of random errors, the law of probability may be applied. :enerally, these errors may be minimi2ed by taking the average of a large number of readings. %east Count *rror ,he A0east =ountA of any measuring e!uipment is the smallest !uantity that can be measured accurately using that instrument. ,hus 0east =ount indicates the degree of accuracy of measurement that can be achieved by the measuring instrument. .ll measuring instruments used in physics have a least count. . meter rulerEs least count is /.( centimeter' an electronic scale may have a least count of /.//(g, a vernier caliper a least count of /./* millimeters. #bsolute *rror) (elati"e *rror and Percenta$e *rror .bsolute $rror6 .bsolute error is defined as the magnitude of difference between the actual and the individual values of any !uantity in !uestion. Say we measure any given !uantity for n number of times and a(, a* , a; L..an are the individual values then6 .rithmetic mean am ) Ma(Na*Na;N .....anO@n am)

n
i= 1

i =n

ai

1efinition of absolute error6 ,he magnitude of the difference between the individual measurements and the true value of the !uantity is called the absolute error of the measurement. y definition6 Pa() am F a( Pa*) am F a* L am F an 3ean .bsolute $rror ) Pamean)

a / n
i =1 i

i =n

<ote6 #hile calculating absolute mean value, we do not consider the N- sign in its value. (elati"e *rror or Fractional *rror: ,his is defined as the ration of mean absolute error to the mean value of the measured !uantity6 Qa )mean absolute value@mean value ) Pamean@am Percenta$e *rror: It is the relative error measured in percentage. 9ercentage $rror )mean absolute value@mean value " (//) Pamean@am"(//

Si$nificant Fi$ures ,he number of significant figures in a result is simply the number of figures that are known with some degree of reliability. ,he number (;.* is said to have ; significant figures. ,he number (;.*/ is said to have K significant figures. (ules for decidin$ the number of si$nificant fi$ures in a measured +uantity: %(& .ll non2ero digits are significant6 (.*;K g has K significant figures, (.* g has * significant figures. %*& Reroes between non2ero digits are significant6 (//* kg has K significant figures, ;./H m0 has ; significant figures. %;& 0eading 2eros to the left of the first non2ero digits are not significant' such 2eroes merely indicate the position of the decimal point6 /.//(o = has only ( significant figure, /./(* g has * significant figures. %K& ,railing 2eroes that are also to the right of a decimal point in a number are significant6 /./*;/ ml has ; significant figures, /.*/ g has * significant figures. %8& #hen a number ends in 2eroes that are not to the right of a decimal point, the 2eroes are not necessarily significant6 (4/ miles may be * or ; significant figures, 8/,5// calories may be ;, K, or 8 significant figures. ,he potential ambiguity in the last rule can be avoided by the use of standard e"ponential, or Ascientific,A notation. For e"ample, depending on whether the number of significant figures is ;, K, or 8, we would write 8/,5// calories as6 8./5 S (/K calories %; significant figures& 8./5/ S (/K calories %K significant figures&, or 8./5// S (/K calories %8 significant figures& y writing a number in scientific notation, the number of significant figures is clearly indicated by the number of numerical figures in the EdigitE term as shown by these e"amples. *xact ,umber: .n e"act number is e"act if it is known with complete certainty. 3ost e"act numbers are integers6 e"actly (* inches are in a foot, there might be e"actly *; students in a class. $"act numbers are often found as conversion factors or as counts of objects. $"act numbers can be considered to have an infinite number of significant
7

figures. ,hus, the number of apparent significant figures in any e"act number can be ignored as a limiting factor in determining the number of significant figures in the result of a calculation. (ules for mathematical operations: In carrying out calculations, the general rule is that the accuracy of a calculated result is limited by the least accurate measurement involved in the calculation. %(& In addition and subtraction, the result is rounded off to the last common digit occurring furthest to the right in all components. .nother way to state this rule is as follows6 in addition and subtraction, the result is rounded off so that it has the same number of digits as the measurement having the fewest decimal places %counting from left to right&. For e"ample6 (// %assume ; significant figures& N *;.5K; %8 significant figures& ) (*;.5K;, which should be rounded to (*K %; significant figures&. <ote, however, that it is possible two numbers have no common digits %significant figures in the same digit column&. %*& In multiplication and division, the result should be rounded off so as to have the same number of significant figures as in the component with the least number of significant figures. For e"ample, ;./ %* significant figures& S (*.5/ %K significant figures& ) ;H.+/// which should be rounded to ;+ %* significant figures&. (ules for roundin$ off numbers %(& If the digit to be dropped is greater than 8, the last retained digit is increased by one. For e"ample, (*.5 is rounded to (;. %*& If the digit to be dropped is less than 8, the last remaining digit is left as it is. For e"ample, (*.K is rounded to (*. %;& If the digit to be dropped is 8, and if any digit following it is not 2ero, the last remaining digit is increased by one. For e"ample, (*.8( is rounded to (;. %K& If the digit to be dropped is 8 and is followed only by 2eroes, the last remaining digit is increased by one if it is odd, but left as it is if even. For e"ample, ((.8 is rounded to (*, (*.8 is rounded to (*. ,his rule means that if the digit to be dropped is 8 followed only by 2eroes, the result is always rounded to the even digit. ,he rationale for this rule is to avoid bias in rounding6 half of the time we round up, half the time we round down. Sample problems on si$nificant fi$ures (. *. ;. K. ;H.H5 N ;.4/H N **5.K ) T ;(4.(8 - ;*.5(K ) T (/K.5;/ N *H./+;5* N /.5( ) T (*8 - /.*; N K.(/4 ) T

8. 5. H. +. 4. (/. ((. (*.

*./* S *.8 ) T 5//./ @ 8.*;/* ) T /.//;* S *H; ) T %8.8&; ) T /.885 S %K/ - ;*.8& ) T K8 S ;.// ) T #hat is the average of /.(H/H, /.(H(;, /.(H*/, /.(H/K, and /.(H(8T #hat is the standard deviation of the numbers in !uestion ((T (;. ;.// " (/8 - (.8 " (/* ) T %:ive the e"act numerical result, and then e"press that result to the correct number of significant figures&.

.nswer key to sample problems on significant figures (. *. ;. K. 8. 5. H. +. 4. ;H.H5 N ;.4/H N **5.K ) *5+.( ;(4.(8 - ;*.5(K ) *+5.8K (/K.5;/ N *H./+;5* N /.5( ) (;*.;* (*8 - /.*; N K.(/4 ) (*4 %assuming that (*8 has ; significant figures&. *./* S *.8 ) 8./ 5//./ @ 8.*;/* ) ((K.H /.//;* S *H; ) /.+H %8.8&; ) (.H " (/* /.885 S %K/ - ;*.8& ) K

(/. K8 S ;.// ) (.K " (/* ,his answer assumes that K8 has two significant figures' however, that is not unambiguous, because there is no decimal point, and because it is not e"pressed in scientific notation. If K8 is an e"act number %e.g., a count&, then the result should be (.;8 " (/*. ((. #hat is the average of /.(H/H, /.(H(;, /.(H*/, /.(H/K, and /.(H(8T ,he average of these numbers is calculated to be /.(H((+, which rounds to /.(H(* . (*. #hat is the standard deviation of the numbers in !uestion ((T

,he result that you get in calculating the standard deviation of these numbers depends on the number of digits retained in the intermediate digits of the calculation. For e"ample, if you used /.(H(* instead of the more accurate /.(H((+ as the mean in the standard deviation calculation that would be wrong %donEt round intermediate results or you will introduce propagated error into your calculations&. ,he 3athworks 3.,0. std function gives 5.;H4588(5;/4K5;4e-//K 3icrosoft $"cel gives /.///5;H4588(5;/4K5K//////////// . Jewlett-9ackard 8/: calculator gives 5.;H4588(5;/4e-/K ,hese results should be rounded to /.///5;+/, which is 5.;+/ " (/-K %e"pressed in scientific notation&. (;. ;.// " (/8 - (.8 " (/* ) T %:ive the e"act numerical result, and then e"press that result to the correct number of significant figures&. 1oing the math right is the first step. ,hen, click here to send your answer and to receive an answer key and e"planation by email. !imensions of Physical -uantities !imensions: 9hysical dimension is a generic description of the kind of !uantity being measured. 9hysical dimension is an inherent and unvarying property for a given !uantity. . given !uantity can only ever have one specific physical dimension. ,he converse, however, is not true6 different physical !uantities can have the same physical dimension. ,hey are the powers %or e"ponents& to which the units of base !uantities are raised for representing a derived unit of that !uantity. $"amples6 1imensional formula of volume M3/0;,/O 1imensional formula of velocity M3/0,U(O 1imensional formula of acceleration M3/0,U*O *xamples: V ,he height of a building, the diameter of a proton, the distance from the $arth to the 3oon, and the thickness of a piece of paper all involve a measurement of a length, 0, of some kind. ,hey are all measured in different ways, and might have their values assigned using different units, but they all share the common feature of being a kind of length. V ,ime intervals, timestamps, or any other measurement characteri2ing duration, all share the common feature of having a physical dimension of time, ,. Wou will never be able to assign a value to a time coordinate using units of lengthXlength and time are fundamentally distinct and ine!uivalent physical dimensions. #hen we talk about a !uantityGs physical dimension, using symbols such as 0 for length, or , for time, we are not using those symbols to represent an actual variableXwe will not assign any particular values or use any specific units for those symbols. Instead, when we write, Ythis !uantity has physical dimension 0Z, the symbol 0 really just means YLhaving a length unitZ. ,o make this distinction e"plicit, we will henceforth set aside symbols in s!uare brackets whenever making a statement about physical dimensions. So6 all distances, lengths, heights, and widths have dimension of length, M0O, all timestamps and time intervals have dimension of time, M,O, and so forth. ,he physical dimension of a !uantity is determined by how we measure that !uantityXand to do that, we need to define an appropriate unit for the measurement. #e can make different
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choices for the units we use %e.g. the SI system versus the ritish $ngineering system, $&, but whatever those alternative unit choices are, they must all have the same physical dimension. For e"ample6 meters, inches, furlongs, and nautical miles are all very different units, but the all share the common feature of being lengths, M0O. !imensional Formulae and !imensional *+uations 1imensional Formula6 1imensional formula of a derived physical !uantity is the Ye"pression showing powers to which different fundamental units are raisedZ. $"6 1imensional formula of Force F ) M3[(0[(,[\-*]O 1imensional e!uation6 #hen the dimensional formula of a physical !uantity is e"pressed in the form of an e!uation by writing the physical !uantity on the left hand side and the dimensional formula on the right hand side, then the resultant e!uation is called 1imensional e!uation. $"6 1imensional e!uation of $nergy is $ ) M3[(0[*,[\-*]O . ^uestion6 Jow can you derive 1imensional formula of a derived physical !uantity. .ns6 #e can derive dimensional formula of any derived physical !uantity in two ways i& Using the formula of the physical !uantity6 $"6 let us derive dimensional formula of Force. Force F) ma' substitute the dimensional formula of mass m _M3O ' acceleration _M0,[\*]O #e get F _ M3OM0 ,[\-*]O' F _M3[(0[(,[\-*]O . ii& Using the units of the derived physical !uantity. $"6 let us derive the dimensional formula of momentum. Unit of 3omentum % p & _ Mkg-m sec[\-(]O ' kg is unit of mass _ M3O ' is unit of length _ M0O ' sec is the unit of time _M,O Substitute these dimensional formulas in above e!uation we get p _M3[(0[(,[\-(]O. V ^uantities having no units, can not possess dimensions6 ,rigonometric ratios, logarithmic functions, e"ponential functions, coefficient of friction, strain, 9oissonGs ratio, specific gravity, refractive inde", -elative permittivity, -elative permeability. .ll these !uantities neither possess units nor dimensional formulas. V ^uantities having units, but no dimensions6 9lane angle, angular displacement, solid angle. ,hese physical !uantities possess units but they does not possess dimensional formulas. V ^uantities having both units ` dimensions6 ,he following !uantities are e"amples of such !uantities.
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.rea, aolume,1ensity, Speed, aelocity, .cceleration, Force, $nergy etc. !imensional #nalysis and its #pplications 1imensional .nalysis >nly !uantities with like dimensions may be added%N&, subtracted%-& or compared %),b,c&. ,his rule provides a powerful tool for checking whether or not e!uations are dimensionally consistent. It is also possible to use dimensional analysis to suggest plausible e!uations when we know which !uantities are involved. $"ample of checking for dimensional consistency =onsider one of the e!uations of constant acceleration, s ) ut N (@* at*. %(& ,he e!uation contains three terms6 s, ut and (@*at *. .ll three terms must have the same dimensions. s6 displacement ) a unit of length, 0 ut6 velocity " time ) 0,-( " , ) 0 (@*at* ) acceleration " time ) 0,-* " ,* ) 0 .ll three terms have units of length and hence this e!uation is dimensionally valid. >f course this does not tell us if the e!uation is physically correct, nor does it tell us whether the constant (@* is correct or not. Chec.in$ the !imensional Consistency of *+uations ased on the principle of homogeneity of dimensions only that formula is correct in which the dimensions of the various terms on one side of the relation are e!ual to the respective dimensions of these terms on the other side of the relation. $"ample6 =heck the correctness of the relation t = 2
l where l is length and t is time period of g

a simple pendulum' g is acceleration due to gravity. Solution6

t = 2 l g

1imension of 0.J.S ) t ) , 1imension of -.J.S )

L LT 2

%*C is a constant&'

T 2 =T

1imensionally, 0.J.S ) -.J.S' therefore, the given relation is correct. $!uations in physics must be dimensionally consistent. It is e"tremely useful to perform a dimensional analysis on any doubtful e!uation according to the following rules6 ,wo !uantities can only be added or subtracted if they are of the same dimension. ,wo !uantities can only be e!ual if they are of the same dimension. <ote that only the dimension needs to be the same, not the units. It is perfectly valid to write (* inches ) ( foot because both of them are lengths, 0 ) 0, even though their units

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are different. Jowever, it is not valid to write " inches ) t seconds because they have different dimensions, 0 and ,. !educin$ (elationships amon$ Physical -uantities $"ample6 ,he centripetal force, F acting on a particle moving uniformly in a circle may depend upon the mass %m&, velocity %v& and radius %r& of the circle. 1erive the formula for F using the method of dimensions. Solution6 0et F ) kmavbrc L %i& #here, k is the dimensionless constant of proportionality, and a, b, c are the powers of m, v, r respectively. >n writing the dimensions of various !uantities in %i&, we get M3(0(,U*O ) 3a M0,U(Ob 0c ) 3a0b,Ub0c or 3(0(,U* ) 3a0b N c,Ub >n applying the principle of homogeneity of dimensions, we get a ) (, b) *, b N c ) ( L%ii& From %ii&, c ) ( U b ) ( U * ) U( >n putting these values in %i&, we get F ) km(v*rU( #hich is the re!uired relation for centripetal force. http6@@cbse-notes.blogspot.in@*/(*@/8@cbse-class-"i-physics-ch*-dimension.html

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