arthham

JEE Advanced 1983 · Motion in a Straight Line

A particle moves in a circle of radius R. In half the period of revolution its displacement is ____ and distance covered is ____.

Answer: 2R,πR2R,πR

Watch this solved on the board The full walkthrough, written out a line at a time with narration explaining each step as it appears. Pause anywhere and ask why a line is there. Free to watch

Or read the worked solution below. Jump to the steps ↓

Written solution

Step 1: Identify the given parameters and the time interval.

The particle moves in a circle of radius RR with a time period of revolution TT. The time interval of interest is half the period:

t=T2t = \frac{T}{2}

Step 2: Calculate the angular displacement.

The angular velocity ω\omega is related to the time period TT by:

ω=2πT\omega = \frac{2\pi}{T}

In half the period, the angular displacement θ\theta is:

θ=ω⋅t\theta = \omega \cdot t θ=2πT⋅T2=π\theta = \frac{2\pi}{T} \cdot \frac{T}{2} = \pi

An angular displacement of π\pi radians (180∘180^\circ) means the particle moves from its starting point AA to the diametrically opposite point BB.

Step 3: Calculate the distance covered.

The distance covered is the actual path length, which is the arc length of the semi-circle.

Distance=Rθ\text{Distance} = R\theta Distance=πR\text{Distance} = \pi R

Step 4: Calculate the displacement.

The displacement is the straight-line distance between the initial position AA and the final position BB, which corresponds to the diameter of the circle.

Displacement=2R\text{Displacement} = 2R

Answer: Displacement is 2R2R and distance covered is πR\pi R.

More from Motion in a Straight Line

All 14 Motion in a Straight Line questions →