B

60°
A

VECT RS
 Introduction

Physical quantities

How to differentiate between scalar and vector ?

Representation of vectors
 Physical Quantities

Quantities which are used to define laws of physics.

e.g. Force, speed, velocity, temperature etc.

On the basis of direction, there are two types of

physical quantities.
1. Scalar

2. Vector
 Scalar

Physical quantities which can be completely described

by its magnitude only and do not require a direction.
e.g. Distance, Mass, Time, Speed, Density, Temperature,
Energy etc.

It obeys the ordinary rules of algebra.

Vectors

Physical quantities which can be described by its magnitude

and a particular direction.

It must follow the rules of vector algebra.

e.g. Displacement, Velocity, Force etc.

DELHI 800 km

MUMBAI 500 km

BANGALORE 400 km
 Vector Representation

Graphical Representation

Length ∝ magnitude
P Q
𝐀
Geometrically, the vector is represented by a line with an
arrow indicating the direction of vector

Tail Information of starting point

Head Direction

Length Magnitude or amount

Read as PQ Vector = PQ = A
Vector Representation

Magnitude of Vector

Representation : A or A (Read as Modulus of A)

Modulus:
• Mathematical operator which gives positive value only.
• The magnitude of a vector means the amount of quantity.
• The magnitude of a vector can never be negative.
Ex. F = 5N towards east
F =
Q. Which of the following cannot be the magnitude of the
force vector?
(A) 5N (B) 3N (C) –5N (D) 9N
Sol.
Key Takeaways
Scalars have only magnitude and no direction.

Vectors have both magnitude and direction, and they should

follow vector algebra.

Current is scalar despite having magnitude and direction as it

does not follow vector algebra.

The magnitude of A can be represented by A or A

The magnitude of a vector can never be negative.

VECT RS
 Introduction

Shifting of Vectors

Rotation of Vectors

Angle between Vectors

Shifting of a Vector

Parallel Shifting
If a vector is displaced parallel to itself, it does not change.

A=B

A
Rotation of a Vector

It changes if a vector is rotated through an angle other

than multiple of 2π or 360° .

A≠B A

NOTE
If a vector is rotated by an angle of 2nπ, the vector remains
unchanged.
Angle between Two Vectors

The angle between two vectors is the smaller of two

angles when placed tail-to-tail or head-to-head by
shifting one of the vectors parallel to itself.

Here, θ1 = angle between the vectors

Objective trick

CASE - 01

Tail-to-Tail Head-to-Head
Objective trick

CASE - 02

B
θ 180° − θ

Head to Tail A

NOTE
The angle between the vectors always lies between 0° and
180°.
Q. Check the angle between vectors.
1) 2)
120o
37o

Sol.
1) 2)

120° θ = 37°
𝟔𝟎𝒐 𝟑𝟕𝐨

60o −angle between vectors 37o −angle between vectors

Q. Check the angle between vectors.
(i) A and B A

(ii) B and C B
30o
(iii) C and A C

Sol.
Q. Given a cyclic triangle ABC, such that A = B = C, then find
(i) Angle between A and B

(ii) Angle between B and C 𝐂Ԧ 𝐁

(iii) Angle between A and C

𝐀
Sol.

𝑪 𝑩

𝐀
Key Takeaways

Rotating a vector Causes a change

Shifting vector parallel to itself No change

Joining of vectors Angle between them

Head-to-head or tail-to-tail Smaller angle
Head to tail 180° - Smaller angle
Types of
VECT RS
 Parallel Vectors

A
B

Vectors which have the same direction.

The angle between parallel vectors is always 𝟎°.
 Equal Vectors

A
B

Vectors which have equal magnitude and the same

direction.

𝐀 = 𝐁 ⟹ 𝐀=𝐁
 Antiparallel Vectors

B A

Vectors which have opposite directions.

The angle between them is always 𝟏𝟖𝟎°.
 Opposite Vectors

Vector which has equal magnitude and opposite direction.

𝐀 = –𝐁
Opposite vectors are also known as Negative vectors.
The negative sign is used to reverse the direction of the vector.
Q. In the given figure, state whether the following statement
are True or False :
(1) −BA and AB are opposite vectors
(2) −BA = +AB
(3) AB = −AB 𝐀𝐁
A B
(4) BA = AB 𝐁𝐀
A B
Sol.
 Null Vector

A vector having zero magnitude is called a Null vector.

𝐅Ԧ 𝟐 𝐅Ԧ 𝟏

If at rest
F1 = −F2

F1 + F2 = 0 (Null Vector)
 Coplanar and Non-Coplanar Vectors

D
E

B
C A

NOTE
Any two vectors in the universe are always coplanar.

Three or more than 3 vectors may or may not be coplanar.

 Key Points

Any two vectors in the universe are always coplanar.

 Collinear Vectors

The vectors lying in the same line are known as collinear

vectors.
(θ = 0°)

(θ = 0°)

(θ = 180°)

(θ = 180°)

Can be parallel (θ = 0°) or antiparallel (θ = 180°)

Co-initial Vectors

𝐀
𝐃
𝐁

𝐂Ԧ

Vectors which have the same initial point are known

as co-initial vectors.

A, B, C and D are co-initial vectors.

Concurrent Vectors

𝐂Ԧ
𝐃

Vectors which pass through a common point are known

as concurrent vectors.

A, B, C , D and E are concurrent vectors.

Q. Select correct alternative
(1) A and C are parallel
(2) A, B and B, C are antiparallel

(3) C and D are coinitial vectors

(4) A, B, C, D are coplanar vectors

Sol.
Q. State True or False
F1 = 10N
(A) F1 = F2

(B) |F1 | = |F2 |

(C) F1 ⊥ F2 F2 = 10N
(D) Both vectors are co-initial

Sol.
Key Takeaways

Same magnitude, same direction → Equal vectors

Same magnitude, opposite direction → Opposite vectors

A zero vector is a null vector

Any 2 vectors are always coplanar

Types of
VECT RS
 Introduction

Unit Vectors

Base Vectors

Axial Vectors
Unit Vector

Vector = Magnitude × Direction

෡
A= A × A

A Vector
෡=
A =
|A| Magnitude of vector

The magnitude of the unit vector is 1.

Unit vector is used to specify the direction of any vector.
෡ Read as: A cap.
Representation: A
Q. Given A = 10m East, what will be the unit vector?

Sol.

NOTE
Unit vector is Unitless.
Sense of Direction in terms of Base Unit Vectors.

𝒚
𝑨

𝒙
𝒛
Base Unit Vectors
𝒋Ƹ

−𝒊Ƹ 𝒊Ƹ

−𝒋 Ƹ
Base Unit Vectors

𝒋Ƹ

෡
−𝒌
−𝒊Ƹ

𝒊Ƹ
෡
𝒌

−𝒋Ƹ
Base Unit Vectors
෡
𝒌

−𝒊Ƹ 𝒊Ƹ

෡
−𝒌
Base Unit Vectors
෡
𝒌

𝒋Ƹ
−𝒊Ƹ

𝒊Ƹ
−𝒋Ƹ

෡
−𝒌
 Axial Vector

Vectors which are along the axis of rotation in accordance

with the Right-Hand Thumb Rule are known as Axial
Vectors.
E.g. Angular velocity, angular acceleration, torque, etc.

ω ⇒ Angular Velocity
Axis of α ⇒Angular Acceleration
Rotation L ⇒Angular Momentum
Key Takeaways

A Vector
෡=
A =
|A| Magnitude of vector

iƸ → Unit vector along x axis

jƸ → Unit vector along y axis

k෠ → Unit vector along z axis