Lecture 22: Conservative Fields. A vector eld is called gradient if it is a gradient F = grad of a scalar potential.

. It is called path independent if the line integral depends only on the endpoints, i.e. if c1 and c2 are any two paths from P to Q then
c1

F ds =
c2

F ds.

This is equivalent to that the line integral along any closed path or loop vanishes. Th A vector eld F in a domain D is gradient if and only if it is path independent. In that case we say that it is conservative and the integral is the dierence in potential of the endpoint minus initial point:
c

F ds = (Q) (P ).

Ex. Evaluate
c

Fds, where F = yi + xj and c = cos ti + sin tj, 0 t /4.

Sol. We want to nd so that /x = y, /y = x and /z = 0. Integration of /x = y gives = xy + g(y, z), where g is any function of y and z. With this it follows that /y = x and /z = 0 if g(y, z) = C is a constant. Hence = xy + C, for any constant C, satises grad = F. Hence 1 F ds = (1/ 2, 1/ 2, 0) (1, 0, 0) = 2 c Note that F = grad is perpendicular to the level surfaces of and hence the level surfaces of the potential function are perpendicular to the ow lines of F. Proof of Th: If F = grad then for any curve c from P to Q:
b

Fds =
c a

dx dy dz + + dt = x dt y dt z dt

b a

d (x(t), y(t), z(t)) dt = (Q)(P ), dt

If the integral is independent of the way then we dene

(x,y,z)

(x, y, z) =
(x0 ,y0 ,z0 )

F ds,

where the integral is along any curve from a xed point (x0 , y0 , z0 ) to (x, y, z). This is well-dened since it does not depend on which path we integrate along. In particular we can pick a curve going from (x0 , y0 , z0 ) to (a, y, z) and then along a straight line segment (t, y, z), a t x, to (x, y, z):
(a,y,z) (x,y,z) (a,y,z) x

(x, y, z) =
(x0 ,y0 ,z0 )

F ds +
(a,y,z)

F ds =
(x0 ,y0 ,z0 )

F ds +
a

F1 (t, y, z)dt.

The rst integral is independent of x and by the fundamental theorem of calculus (x, y, z) = x x
x

F1 (t, y, z)dt = F1 (x, y, z).

a

The proof of that /y = F2 and /z = F3 is similar. Ex. Show that F = xy 2 i + x3 yj is not conservative. Sol. If /x = xy 2 then 2 /yx = 2xy but if /y = x3 y then 2 /xy = 3x2 y which is a contradiction. 1

Conservative elds-Irrotational elds. We have just seen an example of a vector eld F = F1 i + F2 j + F3 k that could not be conservative because if there was a potential F = grad then 2 /xy = 2 /yx etc. so we must have F1 /y = F2 /x etc. Hence for a vector eld to be conservative we must have F2 F3 F3 F1 F1 F2 curl F = i+ j+ k=0 z y x z y x A vector eld satisfying this is called irrotational. We have Theorem. A vector eld F dened and continuously dierentiable throughout a simply connected domain D is conservative if and only if it is irrotational in D. The physical interpretation of this is that the ow lines for a gradient vector eld can not curl around in a closed orbit since increases in the direction of the gradient. Ex. Show that F = xi + yj is conservative in all space. Sol. By the previous theorem it suces to show that it is irrotational: curl F = 0. Ex. Is F = (yi + xj)/(x2 + y 2 ) conservative in D = {(x, y, z); (x, y) = (0, 0)}. Sol. F = ... = 0 but D is not simply connected so it does not follow that it is conservative. In fact, it is not since the line line integral along a circle around the z-axis is nonvanishing as we shall see. If x = cos t, y = sin t and z = 0, 0 t 2 2 2 then C F ds = 0 (F1 dx/dt + F2 dy/dt + F3 dz/dt)dt = 0 sin2 t + cos2 t dt = 2. Ex. Show that the vector eld above in the domain D of space where x > 0 is conservative and nd a potential there. Sol. That it is conservative follows from that F = 0 and that the domain D is simply connected. = tan1 (y/x) is a potential in D, since x = 0 in D. Proof of the theorem. That conservative implies irrotational is just the calculation above that = 0. We shall prove that irrotational implies conservative if the domain is all of space or a rectangular box containing the origin. We dene
x y z

(x, y, z) =
0

F1 (t, 0, 0) dt +
0

F2 (x, t, 0) dt +
0

F3 (x, y, t) dt

and we will show that = F if F = 0. By the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus z d d (x, y, z) = F3 (x, y, t) dt = F3 (x, y, z) (x, y, z) = z dz (x,y)f ixed dz 0 Similarly, also using that we can dierentiate below an integral sign: z F3 (x, y, z) = F2 (x, y, 0) + (x, y, t) dt y y 0 If we now also use the fact that F3 /y = F2 /z we obtain (x, y, z) = F2 (x, y, 0) + y d F2 (x, y, t) dt 0 dt (x,y)f ixed = F2 (x, y, 0) + F2 (x, y, z) F2 (x, y, 0) = F2 (x, y, z)
z

by the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus. Finally by the same argument y z F2 F3 (x, y, z) = F1 (x, 0, 0) + (x, t, 0) dt + (x, y, t) dt x x x 0 0 z y d d F1 (x, t, 0) dt + F1 (x, y, t) dt = F1 (x, 0, 0) + 0 dt 0 dt = F1 (x, 0, 0) + F1 (x, y, 0) F1 (x, 0, 0) + F1 (x, y, z) F1 (x, y, 0) = F1 (x, y, z)