Basic Maths · Made by Ayush Chaurasia

PHYSICS · CHAPTER 1

Basic Maths
Formulae, shortcuts & worked examples — Binomial theorem to Integration

Made by Ayush Chaurasia

1 Binomial Theorem

(1 + x)2 = 1 + 2×1x + x2

If x <<< 1, then it simplifies to:

(1 + x)2 ≈ 1 + 2x

Approximation tip: when one term dominates, e.g. (a + b)² ≈ a² + 2ab if a >>> b — the smaller squared term can be neglected.
[x + Δx]ⁿ = xⁿ[1 + Δx/x]ⁿ ≈ xⁿ[1 + n·Δx/x] (valid when Δx << x)
• (1 − x)ⁿ ≈ 1 − nx
• (1 − x)⁻ⁿ ≈ 1 + nx
• (1 + x)⁻ⁿ ≈ 1 − nx

2 Important Formulae
• (a + b)² = a² + b² + 2ab
• (a − b)² = a² + b² − 2ab
• a² − b² = (a + b)(a − b)
• (a + b)³ = a³ + b³ + 3ab(a + b)
• (a − b)³ = a³ − b³ − 3ab(a − b)
• a³ + b³ = (a + b)(a² + b² − ab)
• a³ − b³ = (a − b)(a² + b² + ab)

3 AP & GP Series

Arithmetic Progression (AP)

Next term = Previous term + Common difference | Sequence: a, a+d, a+2d, a+3d, ... | Example: 2, 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, ...
d = Common difference = nth term − (n−1)th term

Tₙ = a + (n − 1)d
Sₙ = (n/2)[2a + (n − 1)d]

Note: n = number of terms, NOT the last term.

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Geometric Progression (GP)

Next term = Previous term × Common ratio | Sequence: a, ar, ar², ar³, ... | Example: 16, 8, 4, 2, 1, 1/2, 1/4, ...
r = nth term / (n−1)th term

Sum = a / (1 − r) — valid only when r < 1

Example: 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, ... → r = 1/2 → Sum = 1/(1 − 1/2) = 2

Example: 1, −1/2, 1/4, −1/8, ... → r = −1/2 → Sum = 1/(1 + 1/2) = 2/3

4 Quadratic Equation
ax² + bx + c = 0, where a, b, c are constants and a ≠ 0

x = [−b ± √(b² − 4ac)] / 2a

Sum of roots = −b/a, Product of roots = c/a

Worked examples
• x² − 5x + 6 = 0 → a=1, b=−5, c=6 → x = (5 ± 1)/2 → x = 3 or x = 2
• x² − 4x = 0 → x(x − 4) = 0 → x = 0 or x = 4 (factor — don't cancel the x, or you lose the x = 0 root)
• x² − 4x + 3 = 0 → x(x−3) − 1(x−3) = 0 → (x−3)(x−1) = 0 → x = 3 or x = 1

5 Logarithms
logy x means log x to the base y. loge x = 2.303 log10 x
• loga(xy) = loga x + loga y
• log(x/y) = log x − log y
• logy x = 1 / logx y
• loge(ⁿ√x) = (1/n) loge x
• loge(xⁿ) = n loge x
• logb a × loga b = 1
• loga a = 1, loge 1 = 0
Useful values: log10 2 ≈ 0.30, log10 1 = 0, log10 3 ≈ 0.48 (≈0.5), log10 5 + log10 20 = 2
Anti-log: if loge x = y, then x = eʸ (converts a log expression back into a power).

6 Role of Power (Exponents)

• Any non-zero number to power 0 = 1. Example: 8⁰ = 1
• Negative exponent: 1/xⁿ = x⁻ⁿ. Example: 1/10³ = 10⁻³
• Product rule: xⁿ·xᵐ = xⁿ⁺ᵐ. Example: 10³ × 10⁴ = 10⁷
• Division rule: xⁿ/xᵐ = xⁿ⁻ᵐ. Example: 10³/10² = 10¹
• Power of a power: (xⁿ)ᵐ = xⁿᵐ. Example: (10²)³ = 10⁶
• 10² + 10³ = 100 + 1000 = 1100 (addition doesn't combine exponents)
• Fractional exponent: x^(3/2) = (x³)^(1/2)
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Handy fraction ↔ decimal conversions

0.5 = 1/2, 0.6 = 3/5, 0.4 = 2/5, 0.66 = 2/3, 0.75 = 3/4, 1.33 = 4/3, 0.33 = 1/3
e.g. 1.33 × 12 = (4/3)×12 = 16; 16 × 0.25 = (1/4)×16 = 4; 0.75 × 16 = 12; 0.33 × 15 = 5

Limiting properties
2^∞ = ∞, e^∞ = ∞, 1^∞ = 1, e^(−∞) = 0, 4^(−∞) = 0, e⁰ = 1

7 Trigonometry — Basics
Arc = R·θ; sin θ, cos θ, tan θ are the trig functions. Angle has unit radian but is dimensionless.
Use radians for algebraic formulas; degrees are fine for pure trig functions.

180° = π rad 1° = π/180 rad 1 rad = 180°/π

Anticlockwise rotation = positive; clockwise rotation = negative.

Example: total angle moved in π rotations → θ = π × 2π = 2π² rad.

Standard triangles
• 6–8–10 triangle (scaled 3-4-5), base angle 53°
• 5–12–13 triangle, angle θ
• 7–24–25 triangle, angle θ

Trigonometric ratio table

0° 30° 45° 60° 90° 120° 135° 150° 180°

Sin θ 0 1/2 1/√2 √3/2 1 √3/2 1/√2 1/2 0
Cos θ 1 √3/2 1/√2 1/2 0 -1/2 -1/√2 -√3/2 -1
Tan θ 0 1/√3 1 √3 Not -√3 -1 -1/√3 0
defined

Sin θ = 1/Cosec θ, Cos θ = 1/Sec θ, Tan θ = 1/Cot θ

Identities & angle reductions

• sin(90°+θ)=cos θ sin(180°−θ)=sin θ
• sin(90°−θ)=cos θ cos(180°−θ)=−cos θ
• cos(90°−θ)=sin θ cos(90°+θ)=−sin θ
• sin(−θ)=−sin θ cos(−θ)=cos θ tan(−θ)=−tan θ
• sin θ = P/H, cos θ = B/H, tan θ = P/B
• sin 37°=3/5, cos 37°=4/5, sin 53°=4/5, cos 53°=3/5 (3-4-5 triangle)
• cos(−60°)=1/2, sin(−30°)=−1/2, tan(−135°)=−1

Pythagorean identities

sin²θ + cos²θ = 1
1 + cot²θ = cosec²θ

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tan²θ + 1 = sec²θ

8 Phasor Diagrams
A phasor diagram is a vector representation of trig functions — useful for reading off phase differences between two
oscillating signals.
• sin(θ+60°) = cos(θ−30°)
• I=I₀sin(θ+π/3) & I=I₀sin(θ−π/6) → Φ = 90°
• I=I₀sin(θ+π/3) & I=I₀cos(θ−π/6) → Φ = 0°
• I₁=I₀sin θ & I=I₀cos(θ+π/3) → Φ = 2π/3
• I₁=sin(θ−π/3) & I=I₀cos(θ+π/3) → Φ = 7π/6 (210°)
• I₁=sin(θ−60°) & I=I₀cos(θ−30°) → Φ = 2π/3 (120°)

9 Sum & Difference Formulae

• sin(A+B) = sinA cosB + cosA sinB
• sin(A−B) = sinA cosB − cosA sinB
• cos(A+B) = cosA cosB − sinA sinB
• cos(A−B) = cosA cosB + sinA sinB
• tan(A+B) = (tanA+tanB)/(1−tanA·tanB)
• tan(A−B) = (tanA−tanB)/(1+tanA·tanB)

When A = B = θ
• sin 2θ = 2 sinθ cosθ
• cos 2θ = cos²θ − sin²θ
• 2cos²θ = 1 + cos2θ
• 2sin²θ = 1 − cos2θ

Small-angle approximation (θ in radians)

sin θ ≈ θ, tan θ ≈ θ, cos θ ≈ 1

Caution: sin(2°) ≠ 2 — convert first: sin(2°) = 2×(π/180°) = π/90 rad. Similarly cos(4°) ≈ 1, tan(3°) = π/60 rad.

10 Maxima/Minima of Trig Expressions

Trigonometric function Maximum / Minimum Value
Y = 3 sin θ Ymax = 3, Ymin = −3
Y = 4 sin(5θ) Ymax = 4, Ymin = −4
Y = 3 sin θ + 4 cos θ Ymax = 5, Ymin = −5
Y = 3 sin θ + 4 sin θ Ymax = 7, Ymin = −7
Y = 5 − 2 sin θ Ymax = 7, Ymin = 3

Rule: for Y = A sinθ + B cosθ, Ymax = √(A²+B²), Ymin = −√(A²+B²)

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Example: F = 4/(3 sinθ + cosθ). (3 sinθ+cosθ)max = √(9+1) = √10 → Fmin = 4/√10

11 Sums of Natural Numbers

• Sum of first n numbers = n(n+1)/2
• Sum of squares = n(n+1)(2n+1)/6
• Sum of cubes = [n(n+1)/2]²

12 Differentiation
dy/dx = rate of change of y w.r.t. x = slope of the y–x graph
d²y/dx² = rate of change of slope = slope of the slope

Standard derivatives
• d(sinx)/dx = cos x d(cosx)/dx = −sin x
• d(tanx)/dx = sec²x d(cotx)/dx = −cosec²x
• d(secx)/dx = secx·tanx d(cosecx)/dx = −cosecx·cotx
• d(logex)/dx = 1/x d(xⁿ)/dx = n·xⁿ⁻¹

Rules
• Addition: y=A+B → dy/dx = dA/dx + dB/dx
• Subtraction: y=A−B → dy/dx = dA/dx − dB/dx
• Product: y=AB → dy/dx = A·dB/dx + B·dA/dx
• Quotient: y=A/B → dy/dx = [B·dA/dx − A·dB/dx]/B²
Note: derivative of any constant = 0 (e.g. d(sin90°)/dx = 0, d(e²)/dx = 0); d(eˣ)/dx = eˣ

Chain rule (outside–inside rule)

For y = f(z(x)): dy/dx = (derivative of outer function, inside unchanged) × (derivative of inner function w.r.t. x)
• y = sin(3x) → dy/dx = 3cos(3x)
• y = e^(5x) → dy/dx = 5e^(5x)
• y = (x²+4)³ → dy/dx = 6x(x²+4)²
• y = sin(4x²) → dy/dx = 8x·cos(4x²)
• y = A sin(ωt−kx) → dy/dx = −Ak·cos(ωt−kx)
Example: sphere radius grows at 1/π m/s; find dV/dt at r=3m. V=(4/3)πR³ → dV/dt = 4πR²(dR/dt) = 4π(9)(1/π) = 36

13 Maxima & Minima

• Set dy/dx = 0 and solve for x to locate the turning point.
• Substitute x back into y — larger y is the maximum, smaller y is the minimum (no need to check the 2nd derivative for
the value).
• Formal test: max → dy/dx=0 & d²y/dx² < 0; min → dy/dx=0 & d²y/dx² > 0

14 Integration

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Integration is the inverse of differentiation — the area under a curve.

∫xⁿ dx = xⁿ⁺¹/(n+1) + C (not valid for n = −1)

Standard integrals
• ∫sinx dx = −cosx + C ∫cosx dx = sinx + C
• ∫eˣ dx = eˣ + C ∫(1/x) dx = lnx + C
• ∫sec²x dx = tanx + C ∫e^(3x) dx = e^(3x)/3 + C

Chain rule for integration (power of x = 1 only)

∫y dx = (integral of outer function, inside unchanged) / (coefficient of x)
• ∫(2x+3)⁴ dx = (2x+3)⁵ / 10 + C
• ∫sin(3x−4) dx = −cos(3x−4)/3 + C

15 Coordinate Geometry & Graphs

For P(x₁,y₁) and Q(x₂,y₂):

Distance = √[(x₂−x₁)² + (y₂−y₁)²]

Slope = tanθ = (y₂−y₁)/(x₂−x₁)

• Slope is the same at every point on a straight line.

• 0° ≤ θ < 90° → positive slope; 90° < θ ≤ 180° → negative slope
• θ = 90° → infinite slope; θ = 0° → zero slope (parallel to x-axis)
• Perpendicular lines: product of slopes = −1
• y = mx + c: m = slope, c = y-intercept

16 Common Graph Shapes

• y = K/x is a rectangular hyperbola; larger K pushes the curve further out.
• y = 1/xⁿ: higher n → curve falls more steeply toward the axes.
• y = x² is an upward parabola; y = −x² is downward; adding/subtracting a constant shifts it vertically.
• PV = nRT: at constant T, P vs V is a hyperbola; higher T₂ > T₁ sits further from the origin.
• Tip: to spot a physical law from a graph, check the power of each plotted quantity (e.g. T² vs R³ straight line ⇒ T² = K·R³).
• K.E. = P²/2m: at constant momentum, K.E. vs 1/m is a straight line through the origin.

17 Equation of a Circle

(x−x₀)² + (y−y₀)² = R²

• x²+y² = 5² → centre (0,0), R=5

• (x+4)²+(y−3)² = 49 → centre (−4,3), R=7

18 Ellipse
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x²/a² + y²/b² = 1

Semi-major axis a along x, semi-minor axis b along y.

19 Reading Slope Behaviour from a Curve

• Concave-up (U-shaped) curve → slope always increasing.
• Concave-down (∩-shaped) curve → slope always decreasing.
• For magnitude of slope: if it starts at zero then rises, magnitude is increasing; if it ends at zero after falling, magnitude is
decreasing.

— Made by Ayush Chaurasia —

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