Suppose there is a huge collection of particles whose masses and one-dimensional velocities are distributed uniformly as a function of area according to the density plot shown above. The plot is a quarter unit-disk.
What is the average particle momentum?
Note:
The diagram is a distribution function/graph, not an actual physical object.
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Take an area-weighted average of the momenta over the integration region:
ρ a v = A ∫ ∫ ρ d A
Parametrizations:
m = r c o s θ v = r s i n θ ρ = m v = r 2 s i n θ c o s θ d A = r d r d θ
Integral:
∫ ∫ ρ d A = ∫ 0 2 π ∫ 0 1 ( r 2 s i n θ c o s θ ) r d r d θ = ∫ 0 1 r 3 d r ∫ 0 2 π s i n θ c o s θ d θ = 4 1 2 1
Final result:
ρ a v = A ∫ ∫ ρ d A = 4 π 4 1 2 1 = 2 π 1 ≈ 0 . 1 5 9 1 5