The cross-terms of the generalized inertia tensor $\mathbf{M}$ are zero, $M_{r\varphi} = M_{\varphi r} = 0$, precisely because the total kinetic energy ($T$) contains no mixed product terms of the generalized velocities, i.e., no $\dot{r}\dot{\varphi}$ term.

Here is the explanation for why this is the case, based on the definition of the components:

The components of the generalized inertia tensor are defined by the second partial derivatives of the kinetic energy ($T$) with respect to the generalized velocities:

$$ M_{ij} = \frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial \dot{q}_i \partial \dot{q}_j} $$

For the specific cross-term $M_{r\varphi}$ (where $\dot{q}_i = \dot{r}$ and $\dot{q}_j = \dot{\varphi}$), the calculation is:

$$ M_{r\varphi} = \frac{\partial^2 T}{\partial \dot{r} \partial \dot{\varphi}} $$

The kinetic energy ($T$) for the system described on the web page is:

$$ T = \frac{1}{2} (m_1 + m_2) \dot{r}^2 + \frac{1}{2} (m_1 r^2) \dot{\varphi}^2 $$

  1. First Partial Derivative ($\frac{\partial T}{\partial \dot{\varphi}}$):

    We take the derivative of $T$ with respect to the angular velocity $\dot{\varphi}$:

    $$ \frac{\partial T}{\partial \dot{\varphi}} = \frac{\partial}{\partial \dot{\varphi}} \left[ \frac{1}{2} (m_1 + m_2) \dot{r}^2 + \frac{1}{2} (m_1 r^2) \dot{\varphi}^2 \right] $$

  2. Second Partial Derivative ($M_{r\varphi}$):

    Now, we take the derivative of the result from step 1 with respect to the radial velocity $\dot{r}$:

    $$ M_{r\varphi} = \frac{\partial}{\partial \dot{r}} \left[ m_1 r^2 \dot{\varphi} \right] $$

  3. Symmetry ($M_{\varphi r}$):

    Since the order of differentiation does not matter for well-behaved functions (which $T$ is), the matrix $\mathbf{M}$ is symmetric, meaning $M_{\varphi r} = M_{r\varphi} = 0$.

Physical Interpretation (Decoupling)

Brief audio

Why are the cross-terms zero-L.mp4