What do you know about the planar product of two vectors?

It might be useful for certain applications or just a different way of thinking about complex numbers.
  • #1
LCSphysicist
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To summarize, i want to say i never saw something like this before, i am reading a book that defines a product of vectors with the properties: The A*B (A,B are vectors) product form a vector which lies in the plane of the vectors.
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When i read this in the book "A VECTOR APPROACH TO OSCILLATIONS" i was a little shocked, because first it make quotients of vectors, and after this he defines this planar product, i searched this in google: i found nothing.

Anyway, this operations make sense if we imagine the vectors representing complex numbers, but yet, i don't think this is a general properties of vectors.

Do you know some reference about this?
 
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  • #2
You can define any operation you want as long as it's well-defined. This looks like a needlessly convoluted way to work with complex numbers without actually using complex numbers.
 
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  • #3
I read some of it and to me it looked like [itex]A\angle{\alpha} \sim \|A\|\exp{(i \angle\alpha)}[/itex]. All the properties they discuss are that of the complex numbers.

This is known to the author as well, they point out the following.
x.png


Why they choose to go about it like this, I'm not sure.
 

1. What is the definition of the planar product of two vectors?

The planar product of two vectors is a mathematical operation that combines two vectors to produce a third vector that is perpendicular to both of the original vectors. It is also known as the cross product or vector product.

2. How is the planar product calculated?

The planar product is calculated by taking the determinant of a 3x3 matrix formed by the components of the two vectors. The resulting vector is the third row of the matrix, with the x, y, and z components corresponding to the coefficients of the i, j, and k unit vectors, respectively.

3. What is the significance of the planar product in vector algebra?

The planar product is important in vector algebra because it allows us to find a vector that is perpendicular to two given vectors. This is useful in many applications, such as calculating torque or finding the normal vector to a surface.

4. Are there any special properties of the planar product?

Yes, there are several special properties of the planar product. It is anti-commutative, meaning that the order of the vectors in the product affects the sign of the resulting vector. It is also distributive over addition and follows the right-hand rule, among other properties.

5. Can the planar product be used in higher dimensions?

Yes, the planar product can be extended to higher dimensions. In 4-dimensional space, for example, the planar product results in a vector that is perpendicular to the three original vectors. However, the concept of perpendicularity becomes more complex in higher dimensions, so the planar product may not always have the same intuitive interpretation.

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