Lecture "Notes on classical mechanics for physics" has contents: Elementary mechanics, lagrangian and hamiltonian dynamics, oscillations, central force motion and scattering, rotating systems, special relativity, mathematical appendix, summary of physical results. | Lecture Notes on Classical Mechanics for Physics 106ab Sunil Golwala Revision Date: January 15, 2007 Introduction These notes were written during the Fall, 2004, and Winter, 2005, terms. They are indeed lecture notes – I literally lecture from these notes. They combine material from Hand and Finch (mostly), Thornton, and Goldstein, but cover the material in a different order than any one of these texts and deviate from them widely in some places and less so in others. The reader will no doubt ask the question I asked myself many times while writing these notes: why bother? There are a large number of mechanics textbooks available all covering this very standard material, complete with worked examples and end-of-chapter problems. I can only defend myself by saying that all teachers understand their material in a slightly different way and it is very difficult to teach from someone else’s point of view – it’s like walking in shoes that are two sizes wrong. It is inevitable that every teacher will want to present some of the material in a way that differs from the available texts. These notes simply put my particular presentation down on the page for your reference. These notes are not a substitute for a proper textbook; I have not provided nearly as many examples or illustrations, and have provided no exercises. They are a supplement. I suggest you skim them in parallel while reading one of the recommended texts for the course, focusing your attention on places where these notes deviate from the texts. ii Contents 1 Elementary Mechanics Newtonian Mechanics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The equation of motion for a single particle . . Angular Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Energy and Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gravitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gravitational Force . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gravitational Potential . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dynamics of Systems of .
