THE INDIAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

GRADE 11- Physics

Units and Measurements- NOTES

FUNDAMENTAL UNITS OR BASE UNITS

PHYSICAL QUANTITIES

Quantities in terms of which laws of physics can be expressed, and which can be measured directly or indirectly, are
called physical quantities

physical quantities

fundamental quantities derived quantities

Fundamental (Base) Physical Quantity/Units

o The quantities that cannot be expressed in terms of other quantities are called fundamental quantities

o There are 7 fundamental/base quantities.

Supplementary units

The two supplementary units are:

1. Plane angle (radian - rad)

2. Solid angle (steradian – sr)

Plane Angle (2D angle) is the angle formed between two lines in a flat, two-dimensional plane.

SI Unit: Radian (rad)

Formula:

θ=s/r where: s = arc length, r = radius of the circle

Example: The angle between the hands of a clock at 3:00 is a plane angle

Solid Angle (3D angle is the angle that an object subtends at a point in space, enclosing a surface area on a sphere.

SI Unit: Steradian (sr)

Formula:

Ω=A/r2 where: A = surface area subtended on a sphere, r = radius of the sphere

E.g., Flashlight Beam or Projector

Derived quantities

All the other quantities that can be expressed in terms of the fundamental quantities are called derived quantities.

Steps to derive the Units

1) Write down the formula

2) Breakdown in terms of fundamental quantities
3) Write the units of fundamental quantities, and you get the derived unit

System of Units

System Length Mass Time

F.P.S Foot Pound Second

C.G.S Centimetre gram second

M.K.S Metre kilogram Second

Significant figures:

The reliable digits plus the first uncertain digit are known as significant digits or significant figures.

Rules for identifying significant figures

1. All the non-zero digits are significant.

2. All the zeros between two non-zero digits are significant, no matter where the decimal point is, if at all.

3. If the number is less than 1, the zero(s) on the right of the decimal point but to the left of the first non-zero
digit are not significant.

4. For a number greater than 1, without any decimal, the trailing zero(s) are not significant. E.g.: 30000

5. 5. The trailing zero(s) in a number with a decimal point are significant.

The power of 10 is irrelevant to the determination of significant figures

Scientific notation

a × 10b; where a is a number between 1 and 10, and b is any positive or negative exponent (or power) of
10

Multiplication and division of significant figures

The result should retain as many significant figures as are there in the original number with the least
significant figures.

Eg: 3.02 x 0.020= 0.06

Addition and subtraction of significant figures

 The rule is in terms of decimal places

 The final result should retain as many decimal places as are there in the number with the fewest decimal
places.

Rounding off

• The rule by convention is that the preceding digit is raised by 1 if the insignificant digit to be dropped
(underlined one in the example) is more than 5 and is left unchanged if the latter is less than 5. 2.567
2.57 and 2.564  2.56
• If the number is equal to 5 and the preceding is even, the insignificant digit is dropped
E.g. 3.45-even=3.4 and if it is odd, the preceding digit is raised by 1
3.35(Odd, then add 1) =3.4

Dimensions of physical quantities

 The dimensions of a physical quantity are the powers (or exponents) to which the base quantities are raised
to represent that quantity.
 The square bracket is used for dimensions
Dimensional formulae in Mechanics

 All the physical quantities are written in terms of the dimensions [L], [M], and [T].
 The expression that shows how and which of the base quantities (units) represent the dimensions of a
physical quantity is called the dimensional formula of the given physical quantity.

Quantit Symb Formula SI unit Dimensio

y ol nal
formula
Velocity v Displacement/ti m/s ［M 0L1 T-
me 1
］

Moment p Mass X Kg m/s ［M 1L1 T-

um velocity 1
］
Work W Force X J/Nm(deri ［M 1L2 T-
displacement ved unit-kg 2
］
m2 s-2
Density 𝝆 Mass/volume Kg m-3 ［M 1L-3
T0 ］

Power P Work/time Watt or J/s ［M 1L2 T-

3
］

Applications of Dimensional Analysis

1. To check the consistency of an equation

2. To derive the relation between different physical quantities

3. To convert a physical quantity from one system to another

Checking the consistency of an equation

Principle of homogeneity

• Dimensions of every term on both sides of an equation should be the same

• If x=ab2+c2 , then dimensions of x, ab2 and c2 should be same

Check whether the following equation is consistent. v=u + at

LHS: V = [M 0] [L 1] [T -1]

RHS

u= [M 0] [L 1] [T -1]

at = [M 0] [L 1] [T -2] [T -1] = [M 0] [L 1] [T -1]

LHS=RHS, hence the given equation is consistent

Limitations of dimensional analysis

• Dimensional analysis can find relationships between quantities, but it can't predict exact numerical values
(like π, 2, 1/2, etc)
• If the quantity depends on more than three factors having dimensions, then the formula cannot be derived.
• It does not give the information whether the physical quantity is scalar or vector.