Shortest Distance + Skew Lines
3D Geometry
65
JEE Qs
25%
Hard
75
min
Master the vector derivation for shortest distance; it clarifies the underlying geometry and helps solve complex problems involving common perpendiculars and relative positions of lines.
š§® Key Formulas
ā Key Points for JEE
- 1Skew lines are lines that are neither parallel nor intersecting; they exist only in 3D space.
- 2The shortest distance between two skew lines is the length of the unique common perpendicular segment connecting them.
- 3The vector representing the shortest distance is perpendicular to the direction vectors of both lines (b1 and b2), hence it is parallel to b1 x b2.
- 4If the scalar triple product (a2 - a1) ā (b1 x b2) = 0, the lines are coplanar (either intersecting or parallel). If b1 x b2 is also 0, the lines are parallel. If b1 x b2 is not 0, the lines are intersecting, and the shortest distance is 0.
ā ļø Common Mistakes
- āMistaking parallel or intersecting lines for skew lines, or vice-versa, and applying the wrong formula.
- āErrors in calculating the cross product (b1 x b2) or the dot product, leading to incorrect numerator or denominator values.
- āSign errors or arithmetic mistakes when evaluating the determinant in the Cartesian formula, which is critical.
- āForgetting to take the absolute value of the scalar result, as distance must be non-negative.
š Practice Questions
See allQ4. Let P be the foot of the perpendicular from the point (1, 2, 2) on the line L : xā11 = y+1ā1 = zā22 . Let the line ār = (ā^i + ^j ā2^k) + Ī»(^i ā^j + ^k), Ī» āR, intersect the line L at Q . Then 2(PQ)2 is equal to : (1) 25 (2) 19 (3) 29 (4) 27
Q16.Let a straight line L pass through the point P(2, ā1, 3) and be perpendicular to the lines xā12 = y+11 = zā3ā2 and xā3 1 = yā23 = z+24 . If the line L intersects the yz -plane at the point Q , then the distance between the points P and Q is : (1) ā10 (2) 2ā3 (3) 2 (4) 3
Q8. Let L1 : xā12 = yā23 = zā34 and L2 : xā23 = yā44 = zā55 be two lines. Then which of the following points lies on the line of the shortest distance between L1 and L2 ? (1) ( 143 , ā3, 223 ) (2) (ā53 , ā7, 1) (3) (2, 3, 13 ) (4) ( 83 , ā1, 13 )
Q25.Let L1 : xā13 = yā1ā1 = z+10 and L2 : xā22 = 0y = z+4α , α āR, be two lines, which intersect at the point B. If P is the foot of perpendicular from the point A(1, 1, ā1) on L2 , then the value of 26α( PB)2 is _________
Q14.The perpendicular distance, of the line xā1 2 = ā1 = z+32 from the point P(2, ā10, 1), is : (1) 6 (2) 5ā2 (3) 4ā3 (4) 3ā5
Q3. Let the position vectors of the vertices A, B and C of a tetrahedron ABCD be ^i + 2^j + ^k,^i + 3^j ā2^k and 2^i + ^j ā^k respectively. The altitude from the vertex D to the opposite face ABC meets the median line segment through A of the triangle ABC at the point E . If the length of AD is ā110 and the volume of the 3 tetrahedron is ā805 , then the position vector of E is 6ā2 (1) 12 1 (7^i + 4^j + 3^k) (2) 12 (^i + 4^j + 7^k) (3) 1 6 (12^i + 12^j + ^k) (4) 16 (7^i + 12^j + ^k)
NCERT Chapters
- Class 12 Maths Ch 11: Three Dimensional Geometry