English

Physical quantities and dimensional analysis: from mechanics to quantum gravity

Physics Education 2016-04-12 v2 Popular Physics

Abstract

Physical quantities and physical dimensions are among the first concepts encountered by students in their undergraduate career. In this pedagogical review, I will start from these concepts and, using the powerful tool of dimensional analysis, I will embark in a journey through various branches of physics, from basic mechanics to quantum gravity. I will also discuss a little bit about the fundamental constants of Nature, the so-called "cube of Physics", and the natural system of units.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1511.02684,
  title  = {Physical quantities and dimensional analysis: from mechanics to quantum gravity},
  author = {Diego Trancanelli},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1511.02684},
  year   = {2016}
}

Comments

20 pages, 6 figures; v2: minor changes, reference added. Pedagogical article in Portuguese addressed to undergraduate students

R2 v1 2026-06-22T11:40:29.706Z