Question Detail
Question
The magnitude of the angular momentum L of a particle of mass m moving with velocity v at a position r from a reference point is given by L = m v r sin θ. What does the angle θ represent in this expression?
Correct Answer
Option B is the correct answer.
Detailed Explanation
The magnitude of a cross product A × B is |A||B| sin θ, where θ is the smaller angle between the vectors A and B. In the definition L = r × p, θ is the angle between the position vector r and the linear momentum vector p (which is in the direction of velocity v).
Hint
Consider the geometric meaning of the magnitude of a cross product.