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Q.What do you understand by centripetal force? Obtain expression for it.

Bihar BsebBihar Board Intermediate 1st Year 2025Subjective· 5mImportance★★★★★
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Centripetal force is the net inward force required to keep a body moving in a circular path; its magnitude is F=mv2/rF=mv^2/r.

Definition: Centripetal force is the resultant force, directed always toward the centre of the circular path, that is necessary to keep a body moving along that circular path (rather than moving off in a straight line, as it would by Newton's first law if no net force acted). It is not a new, separate kind of force — it is simply the name given to whatever net force (tension, gravity, friction, normal reaction, etc.) happens to be providing this centre-directed effect in a given situation.

Derivation of expression:

Consider a particle of mass mm moving with constant speed vv in a circle of radius rr. Although its speed is constant, its velocity direction is continuously changing, so it has an acceleration.

Let the particle's position vector make angle θ\theta with a reference axis at time tt, so θ=ωt\theta = \omega t, and its velocity is always tangential, with magnitude v=ωrv = \omega r.

Over a small time interval Δt\Delta t, the velocity vector changes direction by a small angle Δθ\Delta\theta but stays constant in magnitude. The change in velocity Δv\Delta v, for small Δθ\Delta\theta, has magnitude:

∣Δv⃗∣≈v Δθ|\Delta \vec v| \approx v\,\Delta\theta

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