Lecture 1:

Vector Analysis
and
Coordinate Systems

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Are they vectors?
20 degree temperature in the room

50 N force

60 km/h speed of an automobile

$100 in $1 bills

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Graphic representation of vectors

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Coordinate systems is the way
to measure vectors!
z

y
Equal? Identical?

x ECE3613 Engineering Electromagnetics I 4

Coordinate systems are made by ‘unit vectors’
With ‘RIGHT HAND’ or ‘LEFT HAND’ rules

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Vector Operations

We can do in ‘graphic way’

and ‘analytic way’

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C=A+B
C
A

Parallelogram
B

A
Head-to-tail rule
B
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C=A-B
First way: C = A + (-B)

Second way: Using ‘shorter diagonal’ rule

A
C

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EXAMPLE

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C = A • B Scalar/dot product

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C=A×B Vector or cross product

Area of parallelogram

Perpendicular to both
A and B!

Directed area spanned by A and B – right hand rule

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Triple Products

A ? B ? C
Not all triple products are meaningful
Except

Scalar triple product (STP):

Vector triple product (VTP):
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Important relationships:

A ⋅ ( B × C ) = B ⋅ ( C× A ) = C ⋅ ( A × B )

A × ( B × C) = B ( A ⋅ C) - C ( A ⋅ B )

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 Example:

The volume of the parallelepiped

can be calculated by

V=

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Coordinate Systems

LINK to document: coordinate systems review

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Differential length,
area and volume
A ‘tiny’ length with a vector pointing along that length

A ‘tiny’ length

A ‘tiny’ surface area with a vector pointing normal to the area

A ‘tiny’ surface area

REQUIRE: KNOW HOW TO
EXPRESS THEM IN DIFFERENT
A ‘tiny’ volume COORDINATE SYSTEMS

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Learn to use Table 2-1

Cartesian Cylindrical Spherical

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Learn to use Table 2-2

Also in

coordinate systems review

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 Example
Calculate the area of this surface
z

z=2

r =3
x

z = -2

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Field:
A region or space characterized by some physical
(scalar or vector) properties

Can you ‘sketch’ these fields?

( scalar field )

( vector field )

Want to see a ‘tornado vortex’ field?

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Field:
How to describe field if you can not ‘see’ it?

-Lecture 2: vector calculus

Basically, you ‘sense’ the field by measuring

its properties and characteristics

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