Two body problem - effective particle

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the two-body problem in physics, specifically addressing the effective particle's radius vector using reduced mass. The center of mass position vector is defined as Rcm = (m1r1 + m2r2) / (m1 + m2), with its velocity Vcm being the time derivative of Rcm. A clarification was made regarding the effective particle's radius vector, which is determined by the difference between the two position vectors, expressed as r1 - r2.

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maria clara
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as for the center of mass, the position vector is Rcm=[tex]\frac{m1r1+m2r2}{m1+m2}[/tex]
and Vcm is determined in a similar way (it is simply the time derivative of Rcm).

But what is the radius vector of the effective particle (with the reduced mass)?
is it simply the vectoric sum of the two radius vectors?


thanks
 
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sorry, I didn't mean the sum, but the difference, r1-r2.
 

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