Introducing Time and Space Scales in Unity through Central Force Problems

Using different tools to analyze a physics problem from different perspectives deepens the understanding of the problem and increases the chance for the problem to be solved. One such tool is the Unity Physics Engine, which is designed to manage game physics with great precision while having an easy-to-use interface. These features make Unity an excellent complementary tool in physics courses, especially for computer science students, because simulations in Unity also require programming skills. In this work, we present how Unity can be used to analyze two central force problems that differ hugely in time and space scales: orbiting of the Earth around the Sun and scattering of alpha particles on the nucleus of a gold atom. We show how to handle different time and space scales and how to work with forces, and finally, we compare the results of the simulations with the theory.