This is an old revision of the document!
Example: The Moment of Inertia of a Diatomic Molecule
What is the moment of inertia of a diatomic nitrogen molecule $N_{2}$ around its center of mass. The mass of a nitrogen atom is $2.3$ x $10^{-26}$ kg and the average distance between nuclei is $1.5$ x $10^{-10}$ m. Use the definition of moment of inertia carefully.
Facts
Assumptions and Approximations
Lacking
Representations
Solution
For two masses, $I = m_{1}r^{2}_{\perp1}$