Classical Dynamics
This is a second course in classical mechanics, given to final year undergraduates. Individual chapters and problem sheets are available below. The full set of lecture notes, weighing in at around 130 pages, can be downloaded here.
If you enjoy the notes, an expanded version is available as a textbook.
These lecture notes can also be viewed in HTML format which may be more accessible for screen readers.
“So few went to hear him, and fewer understood him, that oftimes he did, for want of hearers, read to the walls. He usually stayed about half an hour; when he had no auditors he commonly returned in a quarter of that time.”
Student evaluation of a well known Cambridge lecturer in classical mechanics, circa 1690
Newtonian Mechanics
Table of Contents; Introduction; Newtonian mechanics for a single particle and many particles
The Lagrangian Formulation
The principle of least action; Changing coordinate systems; Constraints and generalised coordinates; Noether's theorem and symmetries; Applications; Small oscillations and stability
The Motion of Rigid Bodies
Kinematics; The inertia tensor; Euler's equation; Free tops; Euler's angles; The heavy symmetric top; The motion of deformable bodies
The Hamiltonian Formulation
Hamilton's equations; Liouville's theorem; Poincare recurrence theorem; Poisson brackets; Canonical transformations; Action-angle variables; Adiabatic invariants; Hamilton-Jacobi theory; Relationship to quantum mechanics