Impulse-Momentum Equation -
An Alternate Method
BHS -> Mr. Stanbrough -> -> Physics -> Mechanics -> Momentum -> Impulse & Momentum -> this page
Suppose you apply a constant net force, Fnet, to an object of mass m. Newton's Second Law tells you that the object will accelerate, so if it starts with velocity vo, after some time t its velocity will be v. This situation is diagrammed below.
From kinematics we know that the acceleration of the object is the rate its velocity changes. In symbols:
We also know, from Newton's Second Law, that:
Setting the right sides of these equations equal to each other gives:
"Cross-multiplying:"
This is the Impulse-Momentum Equation.