The vector connecting the positions of a particle in the undeformed and deformed configuration is called the ________.

The vector connecting the positions of a particle in the undeformed and deformed configuration is called the ________.

• A. Displacement Vector
• B. Position Field
• C. Displacement Field
• D. Position Vector

Answer: (A)

The moving of a particle is captured by how far and in what direction its position has changed. If the original (undeformed) position is represented by a vector r and the new (deformed) position by r', the vector that points from the original to the new position is u = r' − r. This is the displacement vector for that particle. It directly measures the change in position due to deformation, including both magnitude (how far) and direction (which way). This differs from the position vector, which just locates the particle in space relative to a fixed origin and says nothing about any movement. A displacement field extends this idea to every point in the body, assigning a displacement vector to each point, but for a single particle the relevant quantity is its displacement vector. Therefore, the vector connecting the undeformed and deformed positions is the displacement vector.

The moving of a particle is captured by how far and in what direction its position has changed. If the original (undeformed) position is represented by a vector r and the new (deformed) position by r', the vector that points from the original to the new position is u = r' − r. This is the displacement vector for that particle. It directly measures the change in position due to deformation, including both magnitude (how far) and direction (which way).

This differs from the position vector, which just locates the particle in space relative to a fixed origin and says nothing about any movement. A displacement field extends this idea to every point in the body, assigning a displacement vector to each point, but for a single particle the relevant quantity is its displacement vector. Therefore, the vector connecting the undeformed and deformed positions is the displacement vector.