Index Notation Proof: Proving $\nabla\cdot\left(\phi\textbf{u}\right)$

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around proving the vector calculus identity $\nabla\cdot\left(\phi\textbf{u}\right)=\phi\nabla\cdot\textbf{u} + \textbf{u}\cdot\nabla\phi$ using index notation, where $\textbf{u}$ is a vector and $\phi$ is a scalar field. Participants are exploring the representation of these terms in index notation and applying differentiation rules, as well as tackling related vector calculus identities.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Mathematical reasoning
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • One participant seeks guidance on representing $\phi$ in index notation, questioning if it should be written as ${\partial}_{i}\phi{u}_{i}$.
  • Another participant confirms that $\phi$ should be represented without an index and suggests using $\partial_{i}(\phi{u}_{i})$ and applying the product rule for differentiation.
  • A participant presents their derived expression for the divergence, confirming the identity holds in index notation.
  • Further, a participant introduces two additional vector calculus identities, expressing uncertainty about the first identity and providing a partial derivation for the second identity involving the cross product.
  • The same participant expresses uncertainty about their derivation, indicating they are close but not confident in the result.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

There is no consensus on the additional identities presented, as one participant is uncertain about the first identity and is seeking clarification, while the second identity has been partially derived but remains unresolved.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes assumptions about the application of the product rule and the properties of the Levi-Civita symbol, which may not be fully detailed or agreed upon by all participants.

SamJohannes
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Hi Everyone!

I'm looking to prove $\nabla\cdot\left(\phi\textbf{u}\right)=\phi\nabla\cdot\textbf{u} + \textbf{u}\cdot\nabla\phi$ in index notation where u is a vector and phi is a scalar field.

I'm unsure how to represent phi in index notation. For instance, is the first line like
${\partial}_{i}\phi{u}_{i}$ with phi represented without an index?

I've sort of been put in the deep end within my course and any guidance would be greatly appreciated.
 
Last edited:
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SamJohannes said:
Hi Everyone!

I'm looking to prove $\nabla\cdot\left(\phi\textbf{u}\right)=\phi\nabla\cdot\textbf{u} + \textbf{u}\cdot\nabla\phi$ in index notation where u is a vector and phi is a scalar field.

I'm unsure how to represent phi in index notation. For instance, is the first line like
${\partial}_{i}\phi{u}_{i}$ with phi represented without an index?
Yes. More exactly, you should write it as $\partial_{i}(\phi{u}_{i})$, and then use the product rule for differentiation to say that this is equal to $\phi(\partial_{i}{u}_{i}) + (\partial_{i}\phi){u}_{i}.$
 
Ah, I see.

So I got:

$\nabla\cdot\left(\phi\textbf{u}\right)=\partial_{i}\left(\phi{u}_{i}\right)=\phi\left(\partial_{i}{u}_{i}\right)+{u}_{i}\left(\partial_{i}\phi\right)=\phi\left(\nabla\cdot\textbf{u}\right)+\textbf{u}\cdot\left(\nabla\phi\right)$
 
So I've done a heap more. But now I've come up against some more tricky ones. They are
i)$\nabla(u\cdot v)=(u\cdot\nabla)v+(v\cdot\nabla)u+u\times(\nabla\times v)+v\times (\nabla \times u)$
and
ii)$u\times (\nabla\times u) = \frac{1}{2}\nabla (u\cdot u) - (u\cdot\nabla )u$

For number one I really have no idea.

For number two I have
$u\times (\nabla\times u) =\varepsilon_{ijk}\varepsilon_{kmn}{u}_{j}\partial_{m}{u}_{n}=\varepsilon_{kij}\varepsilon_{kmn}{u}_{j}\partial_{m}{u}_{n}=(\delta_{im}\delta_{jn}-\delta_{in}\delta_{jm}){u}_{j}\partial_{m}{u}_{n}$
$=\delta_{im}\delta_{jn}{u}_{j}\partial_{m}{u}_{n}-\delta_{in}\delta_{jm}{u}_{j}\partial_{m}{u}_{n}={u}_{n}\partial_{i}{u}_{n}-{u}_{m}\partial_{m}{u}_{i}$
which seems close but I'm not certain...
 

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