Deriving a forumla for the gradient in cylindrical coordinates

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around deriving the formula for the gradient of a scalar function in cylindrical coordinates, starting from its expression in Cartesian coordinates. The original poster is exploring the transformation of the gradient using the chain rule and the relationships between the coordinate systems.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Mathematical reasoning, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to apply the chain rule to express the gradient in cylindrical coordinates, questioning the complexity of certain partial derivatives. Some participants provide feedback on the differentiation results and encourage continued exploration.

Discussion Status

Participants are actively engaging with the problem, with some providing affirmations and others seeking confirmation on the correctness of their approaches. There is a sense of progression as the original poster shares their findings and receives encouragement.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes concerns about the complexity of deriving certain partial derivatives and the implications of using inversion formulas for the coordinate transformation.

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Problem:

Starting from the gradient of a scalar function T(x,y,z) in cartesian coordinates find the formula for the gradient of T(s,ϕ,z) in cylindrical coordinates.

Solution (so far):

I know that the gradient is given by [itex]\nabla T = \frac{\partial T}{\partial x}\hat{x}+\frac{\partial T}{\partial y}\hat{y}+\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}\hat{z}[/itex]. We must use the chain rule, so we have [itex]\frac{\partial T}{\partial x}(\frac{\partial z}{\partial x})=\frac{\partial T}{\partial s}(\frac{\partial s}{\partial x})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial ϕ}(\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial x})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}(\frac{\partial z}{\partial x})[/itex], [itex]\frac{\partial T}{\partial y}=\frac{\partial T}{\partial s}(\frac{\partial s}{\partial y})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial ϕ}(\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial y})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}(\frac{\partial z}{\partial y})[/itex], and [itex]\frac{\partial T}{\partial x}=\frac{\partial T}{\partial s}(\frac{\partial s}{\partial z})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial ϕ}(\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial z})+\frac{\partial T}{\partial z}(\frac{\partial z}{\partial z})[/itex].

So then I went and calculated ##\hat{x}## and ##\hat{y}## in terms of ##\hat{s}## and ##\hat{ϕ}##. I got ##\hat{x}=cosϕ\hat{s}-sinϕ\hat{ϕ}## and ##\hat{y}=sinϕ\hat{s}+cosϕ\hat{ϕ}##. Note that ##\hat{x} \cdot \hat{x} =1##, ##\hat{y} \cdot \hat{y}=1##, and ##\hat{x} \cdot \hat{y} =0## - as they should.

Since I need partials of s and ϕ with respect to x and y, I found the inversion formulas ##s=\sqrt{x^2+y^2}## and ##ϕ=sin^{1}(\frac{y}{\sqrt{x^2+y^2}})##. (I used x=s cosϕ and y=s sinϕ)

Obviously ##\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial z}=0## and ##\frac{\partial s}{\partial z} =0##, but
I'm concerned with how complicated ##\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial x}## and ##\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial y}## are going to turn out.

Am I on the right track? Thanks in advance.
 
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Actually, after differentiating and putting it in terms of ϕ, I got ## \frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial x}=-\frac{1}{s}sinϕ## and ##\frac{\partial ϕ}{\partial y}=\frac{1}{s}cosϕ## - That's not too bad. I'd still like to know if this is the correct approach, though.
 
Any input is appreciated!
 
Yup, keep going.
 
It worked! Praise the Lord!
 

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