Why is Kinetic Energy mv^2/2?

Whilst this proof is beyond the scope of A level physics, it is well within the scope of A level Maths as it relies solely on the chain rule.First let us note that Fx = W where F is force, x is distance and W is work or energy.However if we have a varying force, we must sum the Force in dx sized chunks, ie. W = int ( F dx) and it is from there we get our proof.F = ma (from Newton II)a = dv/dtF = mdv/dtPutting this in our integral:int(Fdx) = int (m * dvdx/dt)We also know that v = dx/dt.Therefore int(mdvdx/dt) = int(mdvv) = int(mv dv).Taking the integral we can see that W = mv2/2 + C where C is dependant on the initial speed we take the work done from. If initial speed is 0 then C also becomes 0 and we get the well known formula.

Answered by Vandan P. Physics tutor

5225 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

Rutherford’s alpha particle scattering experiments gave what evidence about an atom?


Where does the simple harmonic motion equation come from and what does it mean?


If the highest frequency a song is 10 kHz and it is encoded at 16 bits per sample what is the minimum number of bytes needed to encode the 3 minute song?


The friction coefficient of Formula 1 car tyres are around 1.7 in dry weather. Assuming sufficient power from the engine, calculate the theoretical best 0-100 km/h acceleration time in seconds. (neglect downforce, g=9.81m/s^2)


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo
Cookie Preferences