Impulse - Definition and Overview

This article is about the physical quantity impulse. The term impulse can also refer to any short-duration signal such as a nerve impulse, the comic book character (and comic book) Impulse, or a notional signal used to calculate impulse response, in the continuous case the Dirac delta function. In classical mechanics, an impulse changes the momentum of an object, and has the same units and dimensions as momentum. The SI unit of impulse is the same as for Momentum, and is kilogram metres per second (kg m /s ). An impulse is calculated as the integral of force with respect to duration.

<math>\mathbf{I} = \int \mathbf{F} dt <math>

where

I is the impulse, measured in kilogram metres per second

F is the force, measured in newtons

t is the time duration, measured in seconds

Using the definition of force yields:

<math>\mathbf{I} = \int \frac{d\mathbf{p}}{dt} dt <math>

<math>\mathbf{I} = \int d\mathbf{p} <math>

<math>\mathbf{I} = \Delta \mathbf{p} <math>

See also

• specific impulse.