The physics of badminton

Caroline Cohen (1) , Baptiste Darbois Texier (1) , David Quéré (2) , Christophe Clanet (1)

1 LadHyX - Laboratoire d'hydrodynamique
2 PMMH - Physique et mécanique des milieux hétérogenes (UMR 7636)

The conical shape of a shuttlecock allows it to flip on impact. As a light and extended particle, it flies with a pure drag trajectory. We first study the flip phenomenon and the dynamics of the flight and then discuss the implications on the game. Lastly, a possible classification of different shots is proposed.

Keywords: physics of badminton; shuttlecock flight; shuttlecock flip; badminton trajectory

Domains: Fluid mechanics [physics.class-ph]

Caroline Cohen, Baptiste Darbois Texier, David Quéré, Christophe Clanet. The physics of badminton. New Journal of Physics, 2015, 17, pp.063001. ⟨10.1088/1367-2630/17/6/063001⟩. ⟨hal-01214304⟩