In
physicsPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and all
scienceScience is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
,
dimensional analysis is a tool to find or check relations among physical quantities by using their dimensions. The dimension of a physical quantity is the combination of the basic physical dimensions (usually
massMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
,
lengthIn geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
,
timeTime is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
,
electric chargeElectric charge is a physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when near other electrically charged matter. Electric charge comes in two types, called positive and negative. Two positively charged substances, or objects, experience a mutual repulsive force, as do two...
, and
temperatureTemperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
) which describe it; for example, speed has the dimension length per unit time, and may be measured in meters per second, miles per hour, or other units. Dimensional analysis is based on the fact that a physical law must be independent of the units used to measure the physical variables. A straightforward practical consequence is that any meaningful
equationAn equation is a mathematical statement that asserts the equality of two expressions. In modern notation, this is written by placing the expressions on either side of an equals sign , for examplex + 3 = 5\,asserts that x+3 is equal to 5...
(and any
inequalityIn mathematics, an inequality is a statement how the relative size or order of two objects, or about whether they are the same or not .*The notation a b means that a is greater than b....
and
inequationIn mathematics, an inequation is a statement that two objects or expressions are not the same, or do not represent the same value. This relation is written with a crossed-out equal sign as inx \neq y....
) must have the same dimensions in the left and right sides. Checking this is the basic way of performing dimensional analysis.
Dimensional analysis is routinely used to check the plausibility of
derivedDerivation may refer to:* Derivation , a function on an algebra which generalizes certain features of the derivative operator* Derivation * Derivation in differential algebra, a unary function satisfying the Leibniz product law...
equations and computations. It is also used to form reasonable hypotheses about complex physical situations that can be tested by experiment or by more developed theories of the phenomena, and to categorize types of physical quantities and units based on their relations to or dependence on other units, or their dimensions if any.
Great Principle of Similitude
The basic principle of dimensional analysis was known to
Isaac NewtonSir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
(1686) who referred to it as the "
Great Principle of Similitude".
James Clerk MaxwellJames Clerk Maxwell of Glenlair was a Scottish physicist and mathematician. His most prominent achievement was formulating classical electromagnetic theory. This united all previously unrelated observations, experiments and equations of electricity, magnetism and optics into a consistent theory...
played a major role in establishing modern use of dimensional analysis by distinguishing mass, length, and time as fundamental units, while referring to other units as derived. The 19th-century French mathematician
Joseph FourierJean Baptiste Joseph Fourier was a French mathematician and physicist best known for initiating the investigation of Fourier series and their applications to problems of heat transfer and vibrations. The Fourier transform and Fourier's Law are also named in his honour...
made important contributions based on the idea that physical laws like
In
physicsPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and all
scienceScience is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
,
dimensional analysis is a tool to find or check relations among physical quantities by using their dimensions. The dimension of a physical quantity is the combination of the basic physical dimensions (usually
massMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
,
lengthIn geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
,
timeTime is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
,
electric chargeElectric charge is a physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when near other electrically charged matter. Electric charge comes in two types, called positive and negative. Two positively charged substances, or objects, experience a mutual repulsive force, as do two...
, and
temperatureTemperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
) which describe it; for example, speed has the dimension length per unit time, and may be measured in meters per second, miles per hour, or other units. Dimensional analysis is based on the fact that a physical law must be independent of the units used to measure the physical variables. A straightforward practical consequence is that any meaningful
equationAn equation is a mathematical statement that asserts the equality of two expressions. In modern notation, this is written by placing the expressions on either side of an equals sign , for examplex + 3 = 5\,asserts that x+3 is equal to 5...
(and any
inequalityIn mathematics, an inequality is a statement how the relative size or order of two objects, or about whether they are the same or not .*The notation a b means that a is greater than b....
and
inequationIn mathematics, an inequation is a statement that two objects or expressions are not the same, or do not represent the same value. This relation is written with a crossed-out equal sign as inx \neq y....
) must have the same dimensions in the left and right sides. Checking this is the basic way of performing dimensional analysis.
Dimensional analysis is routinely used to check the plausibility of
derivedDerivation may refer to:* Derivation , a function on an algebra which generalizes certain features of the derivative operator* Derivation * Derivation in differential algebra, a unary function satisfying the Leibniz product law...
equations and computations. It is also used to form reasonable hypotheses about complex physical situations that can be tested by experiment or by more developed theories of the phenomena, and to categorize types of physical quantities and units based on their relations to or dependence on other units, or their dimensions if any.
Great Principle of Similitude
The basic principle of dimensional analysis was known to
Isaac NewtonSir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
(1686) who referred to it as the "
Great Principle of Similitude".
James Clerk MaxwellJames Clerk Maxwell of Glenlair was a Scottish physicist and mathematician. His most prominent achievement was formulating classical electromagnetic theory. This united all previously unrelated observations, experiments and equations of electricity, magnetism and optics into a consistent theory...
played a major role in establishing modern use of dimensional analysis by distinguishing mass, length, and time as fundamental units, while referring to other units as derived. The 19th-century French mathematician
Joseph FourierJean Baptiste Joseph Fourier was a French mathematician and physicist best known for initiating the investigation of Fourier series and their applications to problems of heat transfer and vibrations. The Fourier transform and Fourier's Law are also named in his honour...
made important contributions based on the idea that physical laws like
In
physicsPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and all
scienceScience is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
,
dimensional analysis is a tool to find or check relations among physical quantities by using their dimensions. The dimension of a physical quantity is the combination of the basic physical dimensions (usually
massMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
,
lengthIn geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
,
timeTime is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
,
electric chargeElectric charge is a physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when near other electrically charged matter. Electric charge comes in two types, called positive and negative. Two positively charged substances, or objects, experience a mutual repulsive force, as do two...
, and
temperatureTemperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
) which describe it; for example, speed has the dimension length per unit time, and may be measured in meters per second, miles per hour, or other units. Dimensional analysis is based on the fact that a physical law must be independent of the units used to measure the physical variables. A straightforward practical consequence is that any meaningful
equationAn equation is a mathematical statement that asserts the equality of two expressions. In modern notation, this is written by placing the expressions on either side of an equals sign , for examplex + 3 = 5\,asserts that x+3 is equal to 5...
(and any
inequalityIn mathematics, an inequality is a statement how the relative size or order of two objects, or about whether they are the same or not .*The notation a b means that a is greater than b....
and
inequationIn mathematics, an inequation is a statement that two objects or expressions are not the same, or do not represent the same value. This relation is written with a crossed-out equal sign as inx \neq y....
) must have the same dimensions in the left and right sides. Checking this is the basic way of performing dimensional analysis.
Dimensional analysis is routinely used to check the plausibility of
derivedDerivation may refer to:* Derivation , a function on an algebra which generalizes certain features of the derivative operator* Derivation * Derivation in differential algebra, a unary function satisfying the Leibniz product law...
equations and computations. It is also used to form reasonable hypotheses about complex physical situations that can be tested by experiment or by more developed theories of the phenomena, and to categorize types of physical quantities and units based on their relations to or dependence on other units, or their dimensions if any.
Great Principle of Similitude
The basic principle of dimensional analysis was known to
Isaac NewtonSir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
(1686) who referred to it as the "
Great Principle of Similitude".
James Clerk MaxwellJames Clerk Maxwell of Glenlair was a Scottish physicist and mathematician. His most prominent achievement was formulating classical electromagnetic theory. This united all previously unrelated observations, experiments and equations of electricity, magnetism and optics into a consistent theory...
played a major role in establishing modern use of dimensional analysis by distinguishing mass, length, and time as fundamental units, while referring to other units as derived. The 19th-century French mathematician
Joseph FourierJean Baptiste Joseph Fourier was a French mathematician and physicist best known for initiating the investigation of Fourier series and their applications to problems of heat transfer and vibrations. The Fourier transform and Fourier's Law are also named in his honour...
made important contributions based on the idea that physical laws like {{nowrap should be independent of the units employed to measure the physical variables. This led to the conclusion that meaningful laws must be homogeneous equations in their various units of measurement, a result which was eventually formalized in the Buckingham π theorem. This theorem describes how every physically meaningful equation involving
n variables can be equivalently rewritten as an equation of {{nowrap|
n −
m}} dimensionless parameters, where
m is the number of fundamental dimensions used. Furthermore, and most importantly, it provides a method for computing these dimensionless parameters from the given variables.
A dimensional equation can have the dimensions reduced or eliminated through
nondimensionalizationNondimensionalization is the partial or full removal of units from an equation involving physical quantities by a suitable substitution of variables. This technique can simplify and parameterize problems where measured units are involved. It is closely related to dimensional analysis...
, which begins with dimensional analysis, and involves scaling quantities by characteristic units of a system or
natural unitsIn physics, natural units are physical units of measurement based only on universal physical constants. For example the elementary charge e is a natural unit of electric charge, or the speed of light c is a natural unit of speed...
of nature. This gives insight into the fundamental properties of the system, as illustrated in the examples below.
Definition
The dimensions of a
physical quantityA physical quantity is a physical property of a phenomenon, body, or substance, that can be quantified by measurement.-Definition of a physical quantity:Formally, the International Vocabulary of Metrology, 3rd edition defines quantity as:...
are associated with combinations of
massMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
,
lengthIn geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
,
timeTime is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
,
electric chargeElectric charge is a physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when near other electrically charged matter. Electric charge comes in two types, called positive and negative. Two positively charged substances, or objects, experience a mutual repulsive force, as do two...
, and
temperatureTemperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
, represented by sans-serif symbols
M,
L,
T,
Q, and
Θ, respectively, each raised to rational powers.
The term
dimension is more abstract than
scale unitA unit of measurement is a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention and/or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical quantity. Any other value of the physical quantity can be expressed as a simple multiple of the unit of...
:
mass is a dimension, while kilograms are a scale unit (choice of standard) in the mass dimension.
As examples, the dimension of the physical quantity
speedIn kinematics, the speed of an object is the magnitude of its velocity ; it is thus a scalar quantity. The average speed of an object in an interval of time is the distance traveled by the object divided by the duration of the interval; the instantaneous speed is the limit of the average speed as...
is
distance/time (
L/
T or
LT−1), and the dimension of the physical quantity force is "mass ×
accelerationIn physics, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time. In one dimension, acceleration is the rate at which something speeds up or slows down. However, since velocity is a vector, acceleration describes the rate of change of both the magnitude and the direction of velocity. ...
" or "mass×(distance/time)/time" (
ML/
T2 or
MLT−2). In principle, other dimensions of physical quantity could be defined as "fundamental" (such as
momentumIn classical mechanics, linear momentum or translational momentum is the product of the mass and velocity of an object...
or
energyIn physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
or
electric currentElectric current is a flow of electric charge through a medium.This charge is typically carried by moving electrons in a conductor such as wire...
) in lieu of some of those shown above. Most{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} physicists do not recognize temperature,
Θ, as a fundamental dimension of physical quantity since it essentially expresses the energy per particle per degree of freedom, which can be expressed in terms of energy (or mass, length, and time). Still others do not recognize electric charge,
Q, as a separate fundamental dimension of physical quantity, since it has been expressed in terms of mass, length, and time in unit systems such as the cgs system. There are also physicists that have cast doubt on the very existence of incompatible fundamental dimensions of physical quantity.
The
unitA unit of measurement is a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention and/or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical quantity. Any other value of the physical quantity can be expressed as a simple multiple of the unit of...
of a physical quantity and its dimension are related, but not identical concepts. The units of a physical quantity are defined by convention and related to some standard; e.g., length may have units of meters, feet, inches, miles or micrometres; but any length always has a dimension of
L, independent of what units are arbitrarily chosen to measure it. Two different units of the same physical quantity have
conversion factorsConversion of units is the conversion between different units of measurement for the same quantity, typically through multiplicative conversion factors.- Process :...
that relate them. For example: 1
inAn inch is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including Imperial units, and United States customary units. There are 36 inches in a yard and 12 inches in a foot...
= 2.54
cmA centimetre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one hundredth of a metre, which is the SI base unit of length. Centi is the SI prefix for a factor of . Hence a centimetre can be written as or — meaning or respectively...
; then (2.54 cm/in) is the conversion factor, and is itself dimensionless and equal to one. Therefore multiplying by that conversion factor does not change a quantity. Dimensional symbols do not have conversion factors.
Mathematical properties
{{Main|Buckingham π theorem}}
Dimensional symbols, such as
L, form a
groupIn mathematics, a group is an algebraic structure consisting of a set together with an operation that combines any two of its elements to form a third element. To qualify as a group, the set and the operation must satisfy a few conditions called group axioms, namely closure, associativity, identity...
: The identity is defined as
L0 = 1, and the inverse to
L is 1/
L or
L−1.
L raised to any rational power
p is a member of the group, having an inverse of
L−p or 1/
Lp. The operation of the group is multiplication, having the usual rules for handling exponents (
Ln ×
Lm =
Ln+m).
Dimensional symbols form a
vector spaceA vector space is a mathematical structure formed by a collection of vectors: objects that may be added together and multiplied by numbers, called scalars in this context. Scalars are often taken to be real numbers, but one may also consider vector spaces with scalar multiplication by complex...
over the rational numbers, with for example dimensional symbol
MiLjTk corresponding to the vector (
i,j,k). When physical measured quantities (be they like-dimensioned or unlike-dimensioned) are multiplied or divided by one other, their dimensional units are likewise multiplied or divided; this corresponds to addition or subtraction in the vector space. When measurable quantities are raised to a rational power, the same is done to the dimensional symbols attached to those quantities; this corresponds to
scalar multiplicationIn mathematics, scalar multiplication is one of the basic operations defining a vector space in linear algebra . In an intuitive geometrical context, scalar multiplication of a real Euclidean vector by a positive real number multiplies the magnitude of the vector without changing its direction...
in the vector space.
A basis for a given vector space of dimensional symbols is called a set of fundamental units or fundamental dimensions, and all other vectors are called derived units. As in any vector space, one may choose different
basesIn linear algebra, a basis is a set of linearly independent vectors that, in a linear combination, can represent every vector in a given vector space or free module, or, more simply put, which define a "coordinate system"...
, which yields different systems of units (e.g., choosing whether the unit for charge is derived from the unit for current, or vice versa).
Dimensionless quantities correspond to the origin in this vector space.
The set of units of the physical quantities involved in a problem correspond to a set of vectors (or a matrix). The kernel describes some number (e.g., m) of ways in which these vectors can be combined to produce a zero vector. These correspond to producing (from the measurements) a number of dimensionless quantities, {π
1,...,π
m}. (In fact these ways completely span the null subspace of another different space, of powers of the measurements.) Every possible way of multiplying (and exponating) together the measured quantities to produce something with the same units as some derived quantity X can be expressed in the general form
Consequently, every possible commensurate equation for the physics of the system can be rewritten in the form
. Knowing this restriction can be a powerful tool for obtaining new insight into the system.
Mechanics
In
mechanicsMechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
, the dimension of any physical quantity can be expressed in terms of the fundamental dimensions (or
base dimensions)
M,
L, and
T – these form a 3-dimensional vector space. This is not the only possible choice, but it is the one most commonly used. For example, one might choose force, length and mass as the base dimensions (as some have done), with associated dimensions
F,
L,
M; this corresponds to a different basis, and one may convert between these representations by a
change of basisIn linear algebra, change of basis refers to the conversion of vectors and linear transformations between matrix representations which have different bases.-Expression of a basis:...
. The choice of the base set of dimensions is, thus, partly a convention, resulting in increased utility and familiarity. It is, however, important to note that the choice of the set of dimensions cannot be chosen arbitrarily – it is not
just a convention – because the dimensions must form a basis: they must
spanIn the mathematical subfield of linear algebra, the linear span of a set of vectors in a vector space is the intersection of all subspaces containing that set...
the space, and be linearly independent.
For example,
F,
L,
M form a set of fundamental dimensions because they form an equivalent basis to
M, L, T: the former can be expressed as [
F=
ML/
T2],
L,
M while the latter can be expressed as
M,
L,[
T=(
ML/
F)
1/2].
On the other hand, using length, velocity and time (
L, V, T) as base dimensions will not work well (they do not form a set of fundamental dimensions), for two reasons:
- There is no way to obtain mass — or anything derived from it, such as force — without introducing another base dimension (thus these do not span the space).
- Velocity, being derived from length and time (V=L/T), is redundant (the set is not linearly independent).
Other fields of physics and chemistry
Depending on the field of physics, it may be advantageous to choose one or another extended set of dimensional symbols. In electromagnetism, for example, it may be useful to use dimensions of
M,
L,
T, and
Q, where
Q represents quantity of
electric chargeElectric charge is a physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when near other electrically charged matter. Electric charge comes in two types, called positive and negative. Two positively charged substances, or objects, experience a mutual repulsive force, as do two...
. In
thermodynamicsThermodynamics is a physical science that studies the effects on material bodies, and on radiation in regions of space, of transfer of heat and of work done on or by the bodies or radiation...
, the base set of dimensions is often extended to include a dimension for temperature,
Θ. In chemistry the number of
moleThe mole is a unit of measurement used in chemistry to express amounts of a chemical substance, defined as an amount of a substance that contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in 12 grams of pure carbon-12 , the isotope of carbon with atomic weight 12. This corresponds to a value...
s of substance (loosely, but not precisely, related to the number of molecules or atoms) is often involved and a dimension for this is used as well.
In the interaction of
relativistic plasmaRelativistic plasmas in physics are plasmas for which relativistic corrections to a particle's mass and velocity are important. Such corrections typically become important when a significant number of electrons reach speeds greater than 0.86c .Such plasmas may be created either by heating a gas to...
with strong laser pulses a dimensionless
relativistic similarity parameter connected with the symmetry properties of the collisionless
Vlasov equationThe Vlasov equation is a differential equation describing time evolution of the distribution function of plasma consisting of charged particles with long-range interaction...
is constructed from the plasma electron and critical densities in addition to the electromagnetic vector potential. The choice of the dimensions or even the number of dimensions to be used in different fields of physics is to some extent arbitrary, but consistency in use and ease of communications are very important.
Commensurability
The most basic consequence of dimensional analysis is:
- Only commensurable quantities (quantities with the same dimensions) may be compared, equated, added, or subtracted.
However,
- One may take ratios of incommensurable quantities (quantities with different dimensions), and multiply or divide them.
For example, it makes no sense to ask if 1 hour is more or less than 1 kilometer, as these have different dimensions, nor to add 1 hour to 1 kilometer. On the other hand, if an object travels 100 km in 2 hours, one may divide these and conclude that the object's average speed was 50 km/h.
As a corollary of this requirement, it follows that in a physically meaningful
expression only quantities of the same dimension can be added, subtracted, or compared. For example, if
mman,
mrat and
Lman denote, respectively, the mass of some man, the mass of a rat and the length of that man, the expression {{nowrap|
mman +
mrat}} is meaningful, but {{nowrap|
mman +
Lman}} is meaningless. However,
mman/
L2man is fine. Thus, dimensional analysis may be used as a sanity check of physical equations: the two sides of any equation must be commensurable or have the same dimensions, i.e., the equation must be
dimensionally homogeneous.
Even when two physical quantities have identical dimensions, it may be meaningless to compare or add them. For example, although
torqueTorque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
and
energyIn physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
share the dimension ML
2/T
2, they are fundamentally different physical quantities.
To compare, add, or subtract quantities with the same dimensions but expressed in different units, the standard procedure is to first convert them all to the same units. For example, to compare 32
metreThe metre , symbol m, is the base unit of length in the International System of Units . Originally intended to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the Earth's equator to the North Pole , its definition has been periodically refined to reflect growing knowledge of metrology...
s with 35
yardA yard is a unit of length in several different systems including English units, Imperial units and United States customary units. It is equal to 3 feet or 36 inches...
s, use 1 yard = 0.9144 m to convert 35 yards to 32.004 m.
Polynomials and transcendental functions
ScalarIn physics, a scalar is a simple physical quantity that is not changed by coordinate system rotations or translations , or by Lorentz transformations or space-time translations . This is in contrast to a vector...
arguments to
transcendental functionA transcendental function is a function that does not satisfy a polynomial equation whose coefficients are themselves polynomials, in contrast to an algebraic function, which does satisfy such an equation...
s such as
exponentialIn mathematics, the exponential function is the function ex, where e is the number such that the function ex is its own derivative. The exponential function is used to model a relationship in which a constant change in the independent variable gives the same proportional change In mathematics,...
,
trigonometricIn mathematics, the trigonometric functions are functions of an angle. They are used to relate the angles of a triangle to the lengths of the sides of a triangle...
and
logarithmThe logarithm of a number is the exponent by which another fixed value, the base, has to be raised to produce that number. For example, the logarithm of 1000 to base 10 is 3, because 1000 is 10 to the power 3: More generally, if x = by, then y is the logarithm of x to base b, and is written...
ic functions, or to inhomogeneous polynomials, must be dimensionless quantities. (Note: this requirement is somewhat relaxed in Siano's orientational analysis described below, in which the square of certain dimensioned quantities are dimensionless)
This requirement is clear when one observes the Taylor expansions for these functions (a sum of various powers of the function argument). For example, the logarithm of 3 kg is undefined even though the logarithm of 3 is nearly 0.477. An attempt to compute ln 3 kg would produce, if one naively took ln 3 kg to mean the dimensionally meaningless "ln (1 + 2 kg)",
-
which is dimensionally incompatible – the sum has no meaningful dimension – requiring the argument of transcendental functions to be dimensionless.
Another way to understand this problem is that the different coefficients
scale differently under change of units – were one to reconsider this in grams as "ln 3000 g" instead of "ln 3 kg", one could compute ln 3000, but in terms of the Taylor series, the degree 1 term would scale by 1000, the degree-2 term would scale by 1000
2, and so forth – the overall output would not scale as a particular dimension.
While most mathematical identities about dimensionless numbers translate in a straightforward manner to dimensional quantities, care must be taken with logarithms of ratios: the identity log(a/b) = log a - log b, where the logarithm is taken in any base, holds for dimensionless numbers a and b, but it does
not hold if a and b are dimensional, because in this case the left-hand side is well-defined but the right-hand side is not.
Similarly, while one can evaluate monomials (
xn) of dimensional quantities, one cannot evaluate polynomials of mixed degree with dimensionless coefficients on dimensional quantities: for
x2, the expression (3 m)
2 = 9 m
2 makes sense (as an area), while for
x2 +
x, the expression (3 m)
2 + 3 m = 9 m
2 + 3 m does not make sense.
However, polynomials of mixed degree can make sense if the coefficients are suitably chosen physical quantities that are not dimensionless. For example,
-
This is the height to which an object rises in time
t if the acceleration of gravity is 32 feet per second per second and the initial upward speed is 500 feet per second. It is not even necessary for
t to be in
seconds. For example, suppose
t = 0.01 minutes. Then the first term would be
-
Incorporating units
The value of a dimensional physical quantity Z is written as the product of a unitA unit of measurement is a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention and/or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same physical quantity. Any other value of the physical quantity can be expressed as a simple multiple of the unit of...
[Z] within the dimension and a dimensionless numerical factor, n.
In a strict sense, when like-dimensioned quantities are added or subtracted or compared, these dimensioned quantities must be expressed in consistent units so that the numerical values of these quantities may be directly added or subtracted. But, in concept, there is no problem adding quantities of the same dimension expressed in different units. For example, 1 meter added to 1 foot is a length, but it would not be correct to add 1 to 1 to get the result. A conversion factorConversion of units is the conversion between different units of measurement for the same quantity, typically through multiplicative conversion factors.- Process :...
, which is a ratio of like-dimensioned quantities and is equal to the dimensionless unity, is needed:
is identical to 
The factor 
is identical to the dimensionless 1, so multiplying by this conversion factor changes nothing. Then when adding two quantities of like dimension, but expressed in different units, the appropriate conversion factor, which is essentially the dimensionless 1, is used to convert the quantities to identical units so that their numerical values can be added or subtracted.
- Only in this manner is it meaningful to speak of adding like-dimensioned quantities of differing units.
Position vs displacement
{{Main|Affine space}}
Some discussions of dimensional analysis implicitly describe all quantities as mathematical vectors. (In mathematics scalars are considered a special case of vectors; the emphasis here is that vectors are closed under addition, subtraction, and scalar multiplication, and permit scalar division.). This assumes an implicit point of reference—an originOrigin, origins, or original may refer to:- Beginning of the universe and life :* Abiogenesis, the study of how life on Earth arose from inanimate matter* Cosmogony, any theory concerning the origin of the universe...
. While this is useful and often perfectly adequate, allowing many important errors to be caught, it can fail to model certain aspects of physics. A more rigorous approach requires distinguishing between position and displacement (or moment in time versus duration, or absolute temperature versus temperature change).
Consider points on a line, each with a position with respect to a given origin, and distances among them. Positions and displacements all have units of length, but their meaning is not interchangeable:
- adding two displacements should yield a new displacement (walking ten paces then twenty paces gets you thirty paces forward),
- adding a displacement to a position should yield a new position (walking one block down the street from an intersection gets you to the next intersection),
- subtracting two positions should yield a displacement,
- but one may not add two positions.
This illustrates the subtle distinction between affine quantities (ones modeled by an affine spaceIn mathematics, an affine space is a geometric structure that generalizes the affine properties of Euclidean space. In an affine space, one can subtract points to get vectors, or add a vector to a point to get another point, but one cannot add points. In particular, there is no distinguished point...
, such as position) and vector quantities (ones modeled by a vector spaceA vector space is a mathematical structure formed by a collection of vectors: objects that may be added together and multiplied by numbers, called scalars in this context. Scalars are often taken to be real numbers, but one may also consider vector spaces with scalar multiplication by complex...
, such as displacement).
- Vector quantities may be added to each other, yielding a new vector quantity, and a vector quantity may be added to a suitable affine quantity (a vector space acts on
In algebra and geometry, a group action is a way of describing symmetries of objects using groups. The essential elements of the object are described by a set, and the symmetries of the object are described by the symmetry group of this set, which consists of bijective transformations of the set...
an affine space), yielding a new affine quantity.
- Affine quantities cannot be added, but may be subtracted, yielding relative quantities which are vectors, and these relative differences may then be added to each other or to an affine quantity.
Properly then, positions have dimension of affine length, while displacements have dimension of vector length. To assign a number to an affine unit, one must not only choose a unit of measurement, but also a point of reference, while to assign a number to a vector unit only requires a unit of measurement.
Thus some physical quantities are better modeled by vectorial quantities while others tend to require affine representation, and the distinction is reflected in their dimensional analysis.
This distinction is particularly important in the case of temperature for which there is an absolute zeroAbsolute zero is the theoretical temperature at which entropy reaches its minimum value. The laws of thermodynamics state that absolute zero cannot be reached using only thermodynamic means....
that is different in different measuring systems. That is, for absolute temperatures
- 0 K = −273.15 °C = −459.67 °F = 0 °R,
but for relative temperatures,
- 1 K = 1 °C ≠ 1 °F = 1 °R
Unit conversion for relative temperatures, where no temperature difference is zero in all units, is simply a matter of multiplying by, e.g., 1 °F / 1 K. But because these systems for absolute temperatures have different origins, conversion from one absolute temperature requires accounting for that. As a result, simple dimensional analysis can still lead to errors if it becomes ambiguous if 1 K equals −272.15 °C or 1 °C.
Orientation and frame of reference
Similar to the issue of a point of reference is the issue of orientation: a displacement in 2 or 3 dimensions is not just a length, but is a length together with a direction. (This issue does not arise in 1 dimension, or rather is equivalent to the distinction between positive and negative.) Thus, to compare or combine two dimensional quantities in a multi-dimensional space, one also needs an orientation: they need to be compared to a frame of referenceA frame of reference in physics, may refer to a coordinate system or set of axes within which to measure the position, orientation, and other properties of objects in it, or it may refer to an observational reference frame tied to the state of motion of an observer.It may also refer to both an...
.
This leads to the extensions discussed below, namely Huntley's directed dimensions and Siano's orientational analysis.
Other uses
Dimensional analysis is also used to derive relationships between the physical quantities that are involved in a particular phenomenon that one wishes to understand and characterize. It was used for the first time (Pesic, 2005) in this way in 1872 by Lord Rayleigh, who was trying to understand why the sky is blue.
A simple example: period of a harmonic oscillator
What is the period of oscillationIn classical mechanics, a harmonic oscillator is a system that, when displaced from its equilibrium position, experiences a restoring force, F, proportional to the displacement, x: \vec F = -k \vec x \, where k is a positive constant....
of a mass 
attached to an ideal linear spring with spring constant 
suspended in gravity of strength 
?
The four quantities have the following dimensions: 
[T]; 
[M]; 
; and 
. From these we can form only one dimensionless product of powers of our chosen variables, 
= 
. The dimensionless product of powers of variables is sometimes referred to as a dimensionless group of variables, but the group, 
, referred to means "collection" rather than mathematical groupIn mathematics, a group is an algebraic structure consisting of a set together with an operation that combines any two of its elements to form a third element. To qualify as a group, the set and the operation must satisfy a few conditions called group axioms, namely closure, associativity, identity...
. They are often called dimensionless numbers as well.
Note that no other dimensionless product of powers involving 
with k, m, T, and g alone can be formed, because only g involves L . Dimensional analysis can sometimes yield strong statements about the irrelevance of some quantities in a problem, or the need for additional parameters. If we have chosen enough variables to properly describe the problem, then from this argument we can conclude that the period of the mass on the spring is independent of g: it is the same on the earth or the moon. The equation demonstrating the existence of a product of powers for our problem can be written in an entirely equivalent way: 
, for some dimensionless constant κ.
When faced with a case where our analysis rejects a variable (g, here) that we feel sure really belongs in a physical description of the situation, we might also consider the possibility that the rejected variable is in fact relevant, and that some other relevant variable has been omitted, which might combine with the rejected variable to form a dimensionless quantity. That is, however, not the case here.
When dimensional analysis yields a solution of problems where only one dimensionless product of powers is involved, as here, there are no unknown functions, and the solution is said to be "complete."
A more complex example: energy of a vibrating wire
Consider the case of a vibrating wire of lengthIn geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...
ℓ (L) vibrating with an amplitudeAmplitude is the magnitude of change in the oscillating variable with each oscillation within an oscillating system. For example, sound waves in air are oscillations in atmospheric pressure and their amplitudes are proportional to the change in pressure during one oscillation...
A (L). The wire has a linear densityLinear density, linear mass density or linear mass is a measure of mass per unit of length, and it is a characteristic of strings or other one-dimensional objects. The SI unit of linear density is the kilogram per metre...
ρ (M/L) and is under tension s (ML/T2), and we want to know the energyIn physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
E (ML2/T2) in the wire. Let π1 and π2 be two dimensionless products of powers of the variables chosen, given by
The linear density of the wire is not involved. The two groups found can be combined into an equivalent form as an equation
where F is some unknown function, or, equivalently as
where f is some other unknown function. Here the unknown function implies that our solution is now incomplete, but dimensional analysis has given us something that may not have been obvious: the energy is proportional to the first power of the tension. Barring further analytical analysis, we might proceed to experiments to discover the form for the unknown function f. But our experiments are simpler than in the absence of dimensional analysis. We'd perform none to verify that the energy is proportional to the tension. Or perhaps we might guess that the energy is proportional to ℓ, and so infer that {{nowrap|E {{=}} ℓs}}. The power of dimensional analysis as an aid to experiment and forming hypotheses becomes evident.
The power of dimensional analysis really becomes apparent when it is applied to situations, unlike those given above, that are more complicated, the set of variables involved are not apparent, and the underlying equations hopelessly complex. Consider, for example, a small pebble sitting on the bed of a river. If the river flows fast enough, it will actually raise the pebble and cause it to flow along with the water. At what critical velocity will this occur? Sorting out the guessed variables is not so easy as before. But dimensional analysis can be a powerful aid in understanding problems like this, and is usually the very first tool to be applied to complex problems where the underlying equations and constraints are poorly understood. In such cases, the answer may depend on a dimensionless number such as the Reynolds number, which may be interpreted by dimensional analysis.
Huntley's extension: directed dimensions
Huntley (Huntley, 1967) has pointed out that it is sometimes productive to refine our concept of dimension. Two possible refinements are:
- The magnitude of the components of a vector are to be considered dimensionally distinct. For example, rather than an undifferentiated length unit L, we may have
represent length in the x direction, and so forth. This requirement stems ultimately from the requirement that each component of a physically meaningful equation (scalar, vector, or tensor) must be dimensionally consistent.
- Mass as a measure of quantity is to be considered dimensionally distinct from mass as a measure of inertia.
As an example of the usefulness of the first refinement, suppose we wish to calculate the distance a cannon ball travels when fired with a vertical velocity component 
and a horizontal velocity component 
, assuming it is fired on a flat surface. Assuming no use of directed lengths, the quantities of interest are then 
, 
, both dimensioned as 
, R, the distance travelled, having dimension L, and g the downward acceleration of gravity, with dimension 
With these four quantities, we may conclude that the equation for the range R may be written:
Or dimensionally
from which we may deduce that 
and 
, which leaves one exponent undetermined. This is to be expected since we have two fundamental quantities L and T and four parameters, with one equation.
If, however, we use directed length dimensions, then 
will be dimensioned as 
, 
as 
, R as 
and g as 
. The dimensional equation becomes:
and we may solve completely as 
, 
and 
. The increase in deductive power gained by the use of directed length dimensions is apparent.
In a similar manner, it is sometimes found useful (e.g., in fluid mechanics and thermodynamics) to distinguish between mass as a measure of inertia (inertial mass), and mass as a measure of quantity (substantial mass). For example, consider the derivation of Poiseuille's Law. We wish to find the rate of mass flow of a viscous fluid through a circular pipe. Without drawing distinctions between inertial and substantial mass we may choose as the relevant variables
-
the mass flow rate with dimensions 
-
the pressure gradient along the pipe with dimensions 
-
the density with dimensions 
-
the dynamic fluid viscosity with dimensions 
-
the radius of the pipe with dimensions 
There are three fundamental variables so the above five equations will yield two dimensionless variables which we may take to be 
and 
and we may express the dimensional equation as
where C and a are undetermined constants. If we draw a distinction between inertial mass with dimensions 
and substantial mass with dimensions 
, then mass flow rate and density will use substantial mass as the mass parameter, while the pressure gradient and coefficient of viscosity will use inertial mass. We now have four fundamental parameters, and one dimensionless constant, so that the dimensional equation may be written:
where now only C is an undetermined constant (found to be equal to 
by methods outside of dimensional analysis). This equation may be solved for the mass flow rate to yield Poiseuille's law.
Siano's extension: orientational analysis
Huntley's extension has some serious drawbacks:
- It does not deal well with vector equations involving the cross product
In mathematics, the cross product, vector product, or Gibbs vector product is a binary operation on two vectors in three-dimensional space. It results in a vector which is perpendicular to both of the vectors being multiplied and normal to the plane containing them...
,
- nor does it handle well the use of angles as physical variables.
It also is often quite difficult to assign the L, Lx, Ly, Lz, symbols to the physical variables involved in the problem of interest. He invokes a procedure that involves the "symmetry" of the physical problem. This is often very difficult to apply reliably: It is unclear as to what parts of the problem that the notion of "symmetry" is being invoked. Is it the symmetry of the physical body that forces are acting upon, or to the points, lines or areas at which forces are being applied? What if more than one body is involved with different symmetries? Consider the spherical bubble attached to a cylindrical tube, where one wants the flow rate of air as a function of the pressure difference in the two parts. What are the Huntley extended dimensions of the viscosity of the air contained in the connected parts? What are the extended dimensions of the pressure of the two parts? Are they the same or different? These difficulties are responsible for the limited application of Huntley's addition to real problems.
Angles are, by convention, considered to be dimensionless variables, and so the use of angles as physical variables in dimensional analysis can give less meaningful results. As an example, consider the projectile problem mentioned above. Suppose that, instead of the x- and y-components of the initial velocity, we had chosen the magnitude of the velocity v and the angle θ at which the projectile was fired. The angle is, by convention, considered to be dimensionless, and the magnitude of a vector has no directional quality, so that no dimensionless variable can be composed of the four variables g, v, R, and θ. Conventional analysis will correctly give the powers of g and v, but will give no information concerning the dimensionless angle θ.
Siano (Siano, 1985-I, 1985-II) has suggested that the directed dimensions of Huntley be replaced by using orientational symbols 1x 1y 1z to denote vector directions, and an orientationless symbol 10. Thus, Huntley's 1x becomes L 1x with L specifying the dimension of length, and 1x specifying the orientation. Siano further shows that the orientational symbols have an algebra of their own. Along with the requirement that 1i−1 = 1i, the following multiplication table for the orientation symbols results:
Note that the orientational symbols form a group (the Klein four-groupIn mathematics, the Klein four-group is the group Z2 × Z2, the direct product of two copies of the cyclic group of order 2...
or "Viergruppe"). In this system, scalars always have the same orientation as the identity element, independent of the "symmetry of the problem." Physical quantities that are vectors have the orientation expected: a force or a velocity in the z-direction has the orientation of 1z. For angles, consider an angle θ that lies in the z-plane. Form a right triangle in the z plane with θ being one of the acute angles. The side of the right triangle adjacent to the angle then has an orientation 1x and the side opposite has an orientation 1y. Then, since tan(θ) = 1y/1x = θ + ... we conclude that an angle in the xy plane must have an orientation 1y/1x = 1z, which is not unreasonable. Analogous reasoning forces the conclusion that sin(θ) has orientation 1z while cos(θ) has orientation 10. These are different, so one concludes (correctly), for example, that there are no solutions of physical equations that are of the form a cos(θ)+b sin(θ) , where a and b are real scalars. Note that an expression such as 
is not dimensionally inconsistent since it is a special case of the sum of angles formula and should properly be written:
which for 
and 
yields 
. Physical quantities may be expressed as complex numbers (e.g. 
) which imply that the complex quantity i has an orientation equal to that of the angle it is associated with (1z in the above example).
The assignment of orientational symbols to physical quantities and the requirement that physical equations be orientationally homogeneous can actually be used in a way that is similar to dimensional analysis to derive a little more information about acceptable solutions of physical problems. In this approach one sets up the dimensional equation and solves it as far as one can. If the lowest power of a physical variable is fractional, both sides of the solution is raised to a power such that all powers are integral. This puts it into "normal form". The orientational equation is then solved to give a more restrictive condition on the unknown powers of the orientational symbols, arriving at a solution that is more complete than the one that dimensional analysis alone gives. Often the added information is that one of the powers of a certain variable is even or odd.
As an example, for the projectile problem, using orientational symbols, θ, being in the xy-plane will thus have dimension 1z and the range of the projectile R will be of the form:
Dimensional homogeneity will now correctly yield a = −1 and b = 2, and orientational homogeneity requires that c be an odd integer. In fact the required function of theta will be sin(θ)cos(θ) which is a series of odd powers of θ.
It is seen that the Taylor series of sin(θ) and cos(θ) are orientationally homogeneous using the above multiplication table, while expressions like cos(θ) + sin(θ) and exp(θ) are not, and are (correctly) deemed unphysical.
It should be clear that the multiplication rule used for the orientational symbols is not the same as that for the cross product of two vectors. The cross product of two identical vectors is zero, while the product of two identical orientational symbols is the identity element.
Percentages and derivatives
Percentages are dimensionless quantities, since they are ratios of two quantities with the same dimensions.
Derivatives with respect to a quantity add the dimensions of the variable one is differentiating with respect to on the denominator. Thus:
- position (x) has units of L (Length);
- derivative of position with respect to time (dx/dt, velocity
In physics, velocity is speed in a given direction. Speed describes only how fast an object is moving, whereas velocity gives both the speed and direction of the object's motion. To have a constant velocity, an object must have a constant speed and motion in a constant direction. Constant ...
) has units of L/T – Length from position, Time from the derivative;
- the second derivative (d2x/dt2, acceleration
In physics, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time. In one dimension, acceleration is the rate at which something speeds up or slows down. However, since velocity is a vector, acceleration describes the rate of change of both the magnitude and the direction of velocity. ...
) has units of L/T2.
In economics, one distinguishes between stocks and flows: a stock has units of "units" (say, widgets or dollars), while a flow is a derivative of a stock, and has units of "units/time" (say, dollars/year).
Beware that in some contexts, dimensional quantities are expressed as dimensionless quantities or percentages by omitting some dimensions. This may or may not be misleading. For example, Debt to GDP ratioIn economics, the debt-to-GDP ratio is one of the indicators of the health of an economy.It is the amount of national debt of a country as a percentage of its Gross Domestic Product ....
s are generally expressed as percentages: total debt outstanding (dimension of Currency) divided by annual GDP (dimension of Currency) – but one may argue that in comparing a stock to a flow, annual GDP should have dimensions of Currency/Time (Dollars/Year, for instance), and thus Debt to GDP should have units of years.
Constants
{{Main|Dimensionless number}}
The dimensionless constants that arise in the results obtained, such as the C in the Poiseuille's Law problem and the 
in the spring problems discussed above come from a more detailed analysis of the underlying physics, and often arises from integrating some differential equation. Dimensional analysis itself has little to say about these constants, but it is useful to know that they very often have a magnitude of order unity. This observation can allow one to sometimes make "back of the envelope" calculations about the phenomenon of interest, and therefore be able to more efficiently design experiments to measure it, or to judge whether it is important, etc.
Formalisms
Paradoxically, dimensional analysis can be a useful tool even if all the parameters in the underlying theory are dimensionless, e.g., lattice models such as the Ising modelThe Ising model is a mathematical model of ferromagnetism in statistical mechanics. The model consists of discrete variables called spins that can be in one of two states . The spins are arranged in a graph , and each spin interacts with its nearest neighbors...
can be used to study phase transitions and critical phenomena. Such models can be formulated in a purely dimensionless way. As we approach the critical point closer and closer, the distance over which the variables in the lattice model are correlated (the so-called correlation length, 
) becomes larger and larger. Now, the correlation length is the relevant length scale related to critical phenomena, so one can, e.g., surmize on "dimensional grounds" that the non-analytical part of the free energy per lattice site should be 
where 
is the dimension of the lattice.
It has been argued by some physicists, e.g., Michael Duff, that the laws of physics are inherently dimensionless. The fact that we have assigned incompatible dimensions to Length, Time and Mass is, according to this point of view, just a matter of convention, borne out of the fact that before the advent of modern physics, there was no way to relate mass, length, and time to each other. The three independent dimensionful constants: cThe speed of light in vacuum, usually denoted by c, is a physical constant important in many areas of physics. Its value is 299,792,458 metres per second, a figure that is exact since the length of the metre is defined from this constant and the international standard for time...
, ħThe Planck constant , also called Planck's constant, is a physical constant reflecting the sizes of energy quanta in quantum mechanics. It is named after Max Planck, one of the founders of quantum theory, who discovered it in 1899...
, and GThe gravitational constant, denoted G, is an empirical physical constant involved in the calculation of the gravitational attraction between objects with mass. It appears in Newton's law of universal gravitation and in Einstein's theory of general relativity. It is also known as the universal...
, in the fundamental equations of physics must then be seen as mere conversion factors to convert Mass, Time and Length into each other.
Just as in the case of critical properties of lattice models, one can recover the results of dimensional analysis in the appropriate scaling limit; e.g., dimensional analysis in mechanics can be derived by reinserting the constants ħ, c, and G (but we can now consider them to be dimensionless) and demanding that a nonsingular relation between quantities exists in the limit 
, 
and 
. In problems involving a gravitational field the latter limit should be taken such that the field stays finite.
Applications
Dimensional analysis is most often used in physics and chemistry- and in the mathematics thereof- but finds some applications outside of those fields as well.
Mathematics
A simple application of dimensional analysis to mathematics is in computing the form of the volume of an n-ball (the solid ball in n-dimensions), or the area of its surface, the n-sphere: being an n-dimensional figure, the volume scales as 
while the surface area, being 
-dimensional, scales as 
Thus the volume of the n-ball in terms of the radius is 
for some constant 
Determining the constant takes more involved mathematics, but the form can be deduced and checked by dimensional analysis alone.
Finance, economics, and accounting
In finance, economics, and accounting, dimensional analysis is most commonly used in interpreting various financial ratios, economics ratios, and accounting ratios.
- For example, the P/E ratio
The P/E ratio of a stock is a measure of the price paid for a share relative to the annual net income or profit earned by the firm per share...
has dimensions of time (units of years), and can be interpreted as "years of earnings to earn the price paid."
- In economics, debt-to-GDP ratio also has units of years (debt has units of currency, GDP has units of currency/year).
- More surprisingly, bond duration
In finance, the duration of a financial asset that consists of fixed cash flows, for example a bond, is the weighted average of the times until those fixed cash flows are received....
also has units of years, which can be shown by dimensional analysis, but takes some financial intuition to understand.
- Velocity of money
300px|thumb|Similar chart showing the velocity of a broader measure of money that covers M2 plus large institutional deposits, M3. The US no longer publishes official M3 measures, so the chart only runs through 2005....
has units of 1/Years (GDP/Money supply has units of Currency/Year over Currency): how often a unit of currency circulates per year.
- Interest rates are often expressed as a percentage, but more properly percent per annum, which has dimensions of 1/Years.
Dimensional analysis is rarely used in (mainstreamMainstream economics is a loose term used to refer to widely-accepted economics as taught in prominent universities and in contrast to heterodox economics...
/neoclassicalNeoclassical economics is a term variously used for approaches to economics focusing on the determination of prices, outputs, and income distributions in markets through supply and demand, often mediated through a hypothesized maximization of utility by income-constrained individuals and of profits...
) economic modeling, and economic models are often dimensionally inconsistent. The equation of exchangeIn economics, the equation of exchange is the relation:M\cdot V = P\cdot Qwhere, for a given period,M\, is the total nominal amount of money in circulation on average in an economy.V\, is the velocity of money, that is the average frequency with which a unit of money is spent.P\, is the price...
is the most notable example of a dimensional equation in economic modeling, while the widely-used Cobb–Douglas model does not use dimensions in a meaningful way. This lack of dimensional consistency is criticized by heterodox economics"Heterodox economics" refers to approaches or to schools of economic thought that are considered outside of "mainstream economics". Mainstream economists sometimes assert that it has little or no influence on the vast majority of academic economists in the English speaking world. "Mainstream...
, notably Austrian economics, while dimensional consistency is not considered necessary or desirable by mainstream economists.
See also
{{colbegin|3}}
- Quantity calculus
Quantity calculus is the formal method for describing the mathematical relations between abstract physical quantities. Despite the name, it is more analogous to a system of algebra than calculus in the mathematical sense of the term. Measurements are expressed as products of a numeric value with a...
- Debt to GDP ratio
In economics, the debt-to-GDP ratio is one of the indicators of the health of an economy.It is the amount of national debt of a country as a percentage of its Gross Domestic Product ....
- Concrete number
- Dirac large numbers hypothesis
The Dirac large numbers hypothesis is an observation made by Paul Dirac in 1937 relating ratios of size scales in the Universe to that of force scales. The ratios constitute very large, dimensionless numbers: some 40 orders of magnitude in the present cosmological epoch...
- Fermi problem
In science, particularly in physics or engineering education, a Fermi problem, Fermi question, or Fermi estimate is an estimation problem designed to teach dimensional analysis, approximation, and the importance of clearly identifying one's assumptions...
- Fundamental unit
A set of fundamental units is a set of units for physical quantities from which every other unit can be generated.In the language of measurement, quantities are quantifiable aspects of the world, such as time, distance, velocity, mass, momentum, energy, and weight, and units are used to describe...
- Nondimensionalization
Nondimensionalization is the partial or full removal of units from an equation involving physical quantities by a suitable substitution of variables. This technique can simplify and parameterize problems where measured units are involved. It is closely related to dimensional analysis...
- Equivalization
Equivalization refers to any mathematical method of comparing two or more generally unlike quantity/value scales.A common example of the utility for an equivalization standard comes in currency markets, where without established exchange rates there is great difficulty making comparisons...
- Physical quantity
A physical quantity is a physical property of a phenomenon, body, or substance, that can be quantified by measurement.-Definition of a physical quantity:Formally, the International Vocabulary of Metrology, 3rd edition defines quantity as:...
- Natural units
In physics, natural units are physical units of measurement based only on universal physical constants. For example the elementary charge e is a natural unit of electric charge, or the speed of light c is a natural unit of speed...
- Similitude (model)
Similitude is a concept applicable to the testing of engineering models. A model is said to have similitude with the real application if the two share geometric similarity, kinematic similarity and dynamic similarity...
- Buckingham π theorem
- Units conversion by factor-label
Many, if not most, parameters and measurements in the physical sciences and engineering are expressed as a numerical quantity and a corresponding dimensional unit; for example: 1000 kg/m³, 100 kPa/bar, 50 miles per hour, 1000 Btu/lb. Converting from one dimensional unit to another is often...
- Affine space
In mathematics, an affine space is a geometric structure that generalizes the affine properties of Euclidean space. In an affine space, one can subtract points to get vectors, or add a vector to a point to get another point, but one cannot add points. In particular, there is no distinguished point...
- Vector space
A vector space is a mathematical structure formed by a collection of vectors: objects that may be added together and multiplied by numbers, called scalars in this context. Scalars are often taken to be real numbers, but one may also consider vector spaces with scalar multiplication by complex...
- Frame of reference
A frame of reference in physics, may refer to a coordinate system or set of axes within which to measure the position, orientation, and other properties of objects in it, or it may refer to an observational reference frame tied to the state of motion of an observer.It may also refer to both an...
- Point of reference
- Rayleigh's method of dimensional analysis
Rayleigh's method of dimensional analysis is a conceptual tool used in physics, chemistry, and engineering. This form of dimensional analysis expresses a functional relationship of some variables in the form of an exponential equation...
- Covariance and contravariance of vectors
- Wedge product
- History of the metric system
The origins of the metric system date back to the sixteenth century when Simon Stevin published details of his decimal notation and the seventeenth century when John Wilkins published a proposal for a decimal system of measurement based on natural units...
- Geometric algebra
Geometric algebra , together with the associated Geometric calculus, provides a comprehensive alternative approach to the algebraic representation of classical, computational and relativistic geometry. GA now finds application in all of physics, in graphics and in robotics...
{{colend|3}}
External links
{{wikibooks|Fluid Mechanics|Ch4|Dimensional analysis}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dimensional Analysis}}