Rotating vector x around vector z

  • Thread starter Thread starter ddr
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Rotating Vector
AI Thread Summary
The discussion focuses on the correct method for rotating vector x around vector z by an angle alpha. The initial approach involves calculating the projection of x onto z and determining the orthogonal component y. Corrections are suggested, leading to the final formula that combines the components of x, y, and z using trigonometric functions and vector products. Participants emphasize the need for a simpler representation of the rotation process. The conversation encourages further exploration of the rotation formula for optimization.
ddr
Is this how it should be done (rotating vector x around vector z for alpha degrees):
assumes |x|*|z|<>0
xonz=(scalar_product(z,x)/(|x|*|z|))*z;
y=x-xonz;
assumes |x|<>0
result=cos(alpha)*x+sin(aplha)*(|y|/|x|)*y;
 
Mathematics news on Phys.org
correction

actually y=croos_vector(z,(x-xonz))/|x-xonz|^2
 
Not quite. I should say:

answer = xonz + y cos [alpha] + z/|z| X y sin [alpha].

Where X means vector product. And y = x - xonz.

Note: There should be a simpler form to this. Try yourself, please!
 
Last edited:
Insights auto threads is broken atm, so I'm manually creating these for new Insight articles. In Dirac’s Principles of Quantum Mechanics published in 1930 he introduced a “convenient notation” he referred to as a “delta function” which he treated as a continuum analog to the discrete Kronecker delta. The Kronecker delta is simply the indexed components of the identity operator in matrix algebra Source: https://www.physicsforums.com/insights/what-exactly-is-diracs-delta-function/ by...
Suppose ,instead of the usual x,y coordinate system with an I basis vector along the x -axis and a corresponding j basis vector along the y-axis we instead have a different pair of basis vectors ,call them e and f along their respective axes. I have seen that this is an important subject in maths My question is what physical applications does such a model apply to? I am asking here because I have devoted quite a lot of time in the past to understanding convectors and the dual...
Thread 'Imaginary Pythagoras'
I posted this in the Lame Math thread, but it's got me thinking. Is there any validity to this? Or is it really just a mathematical trick? Naively, I see that i2 + plus 12 does equal zero2. But does this have a meaning? I know one can treat the imaginary number line as just another axis like the reals, but does that mean this does represent a triangle in the complex plane with a hypotenuse of length zero? Ibix offered a rendering of the diagram using what I assume is matrix* notation...

Similar threads

Replies
10
Views
2K
Replies
3
Views
2K
Replies
1
Views
1K
Replies
3
Views
3K
Back
Top