Electric potential energy Definition and 182 Threads

Homework Statement One of the three types of radioactive decay is "β decay", during which protons decay into neutrons or viceversa, emitting either electrons (β) or positrons (β+) at high velocity as a result. In one experiment, a β source and β+ source are placed 10 cm apart from each other...

Homework Statement Two Charged Objects (Q1= -9.0nC & Q2= 15nC) are fixed in place on the +x-axis. The first charge is 12 cm to the left from the origin the other is 12 cm to the right from the origin. A proton is moved from the origin to a position on the +y-axis 9.0 cm from the origin. a)...

About the formula deltaPE=-qE(deltaX) .. Whats the negative sign means ?

Homework Statement A uniform electric field of 16.9 N/C is directed in the positive x direction. If a charge of -2 micro-coulombs moves 2.2 meters in the negative x direction, how much does the electric potential energy change in micro-joules? Homework Equations ΔEPE = qEd The Attempt at a...

I read somewhere online that according to Coulomb's law, in the context of an atom, the potential energy of an electron is proportional to the distance (squared) between the positive and negative charges, this however doesn't show up in the actual eq F = kq1q2/r^2 I thought about it in terms of...

Three charged objects, (+4 micro coulomb, -4 micro coulomb and +2 micro coulomb) are placed at the corners of an equilateral triangle with side length 2m. Calculate the total electric potential energy of the system... Guys Can you help me achieve a solution to this question? Thanks In Advance!

Homework Statement Let EPE be change in electric potential energy so if a positive charge is moving towards the negative terminal with the electric field it would mean that it is losing PE therefore work = - EPE, and if a negative charge is moving against the electric field towards the...

1. Homework Statement Two electrons start at rest with a separation of 5.0*10-12m. Once released, the electrons accelerate away from each other. Calculate the speed of each electron when they are a very large distance apart. Homework Equations ΔEK+ΔEE=0 The Attempt at a Solution Okay so I...

Homework Statement What does the following equation mean and how is it analogous to the relationship between the electric field and the the electrostatic force? V ( ~r ) = U ( ~r ) / q In general, confused about concepts, meanings and vocabulary. The naming of different terms in this...

Hi guys I just want to make sure that my understanding of potential difference is right or wrong I just want someone to tell me whether my understanding is right or wrong. I know that when we move a charge if it's attracted to another charge it gain potential energy and when we leave it it lose...

Electric potential energy of a charge q at a point in an electric field due to any charge configuration as the work done by the external force in bringing the charge q from infinity to that point without any acceleration.. In this definition, why charge is moved without any acceleration?

If a positive charge A moves towards another stationary positive charge B then the A's electric potential energy increases. But shouldn't the electric potential energy of B also increase as it is also in a way moving towards the A inside the A's electric field? So shouldn't the total...

In a velocity selector apparatus, i had an electric potential set across two points, and a proton at rest at one end. The potential was 350 V. My instructor used : qV = 1/2 mv^2 to find the velocity at the end of the apparatus. Where did the left hand side of the eqn come from??

When a positive charge leaves the positive part if the battery it has maximum electric potential energy then as it moves through a wire with a zero resistance the charge is closer to the negative side of the battery. So, while traveling in a wire in a circuit does it lose electric potential...

1. Explain why the electron moves in the above way (from left to right between two parallel plates that is positively charged on the left, negatively charged on the right) in terms of electric potential energy Homework Equations 3. I know the electron moves from left to right when...

Homework Statement A charge moves towards a positively charged sphere, as it does, it's electric potential (V) increases. Give an instance on when the Electric Potential Energy (Ee) will decrease. Homework Equations V= Ee/q The Attempt at a Solution Alright, This is basically a theory...

What does it mean by 0 V or 0 potential between two charges? If there are two point charges A and B. And if there is a point between them that has 0 V then why is: Va + Vb = 0?

Greater electric potential but less electric potential energy?? The picture in my book looks like this: 1. The electric potential at pt. B in the parallel-plate capacitor shown here is less than the electric potential at pt. A by 4.50V. The separation between pts. A and B is .120cm, and the...

hi, please can anyone analyze the following sentence in terms of the formulas of electrostatic forces or Potential energy (assuming electrostatic force is directly proportional to potential energy) statement: "When the force between two objects is attractive and decreases with distance, the...

Please explain the relation between electric potential energy and electric field in detail.

Homework Statement A proton moves in a constant electric field E from point A to point B. the magnitude of the electric field is 6.4x10^4 N/C. The direction of electric field is opposite to the motion of the proton. If the distance from point A to point B is 0.50m, what is the change in the...

Homework Statement Suppose that a metal plate is held at an electric potential of 1.8 Volts. A proton is placed on the plate where it is repelled by the plate. What is the electric potential energy of the proton measured in Joules? __ x 10-19 Joules After the proton has moved away from the...

This is an extract from my book ... " We define the potential V at any point in an electric field as the potential energy per unit charge associate with a test charge q0 at that point: V=U/q0." I don't know why did the book bring the test charge q0 now in the frame. Shouldn't the potential be...

Homework Statement What is the electric potential energy of a proton located 20.0 A (one angstrom or 1A is equal to 10^-10m) from another proton? Homework Equations Ep= F x d F= kq1q2/r^2 The Attempt at a Solution Ep= Fxd F=kq1q2/r^2 therefore Ep = (Kq1q2)(d)/r^2 d=r so...

Homework Statement Two positive charges of q=3*10^-6 C are a distance 1 m apart. What will be the work done by the electrical force in bringing one of the charges to a distance of 0.5 m from the other charge (which is fixed at its position through the whole process)?Homework Equations The...

Homework Statement A proton is released from rest in a uniform electric field of magnitude 8x10^4 V/m. After the proton has moved 0.5 meters a) What is the change in electric potential? b) What is the change in potential energy? c) What is the speed of the proton? Homework Equations...

Hello. I need help clearing up who's gaining potential energy and who's losing potential energy from an particular object perspective. And, from that object perspective, whether the object doing positive work or negative work. W = \int \vec F \cdot d\vec x \Delta U = -W Question 1...

my professor has explained Electric potential energy Law U=∫D*E above all the space. he said you can not use for some kind of materials. l can 't remember if they are Ferroelectricity or piezoelectric materials. then can you say to me the reason too? thank you

Homework Statement In a certain region, a charge distribution exists that is spherically symmetric but non-uniform. When a positive point charge q is located at (r,θ,φ) near this charge distribution, there is a resulting electric potential energy for the system given by: U(r,θ,φ) =...

Homework Statement A small metal sphere, carrying a net charge of q1 = -2.90 μC , is held in a stationary position by insulating supports. A second small metal sphere, with a net charge of q2 = -7.20 μC and mass 1.70g , is projected toward q1. When the two spheres are 0.800 m apart, q2 is...

Homework Statement A point charge q1 is held stationary at the origin. A second charge q2 is placed at point a, and the electric potential energy of the pair of charges is + 5.4 x10^-8 J. When the second charge is moved to point b, the electric force on the charge does - 1.9x10^-8 J of work...

Homework Statement "Two parallel plates having charges of equal magnitude but opposite sign are separated by 12cm. Each plate has a charge superficial density of 36nC/m2. A proton is launched from the negative plate to the positive plate. What is the minimum speed the proton should be...

Homework Statement You have 3 charges, all +2.5 μC arranged on a field at positions (-3.0 cm, 0), (3.0 cm, 0), and (0, 3.0 cm). I have already calculated the stored electric potential energy to be 3.85 J. The question is: If the third charge (0, 3.0 cm) is released from rest, what is its change...

Hey all. I have a question regarding potential vs. potential energy. Basically, from what I can tell, the potential energy is a property of the system as a whole (it has a single value in any given situation) while the potential is a property of each specific point in space. Would this...

I've Had this doubt from a long time back : Being in high school my physics teach simply stated that No explanations given. To quench my thirst I went through books and things . I found one difinitive result : a: In this Video http://bit.ly/wl8-0204 Prof.Walter Lewin Says...

Homework Statement The nucleus of a helium atom contains two protons. In a simple model of this nucleus, the protons are viewed as point particles separated by a distance of 1.0 fm (1.0 x 10^-15 m). What is the electric potential energy of the two protons? please do step by step.

Homework Statement A uranium nucleus in a reactor captures a slow neutron and divides, or fissions, into two smaller daughter nuclei. Assuming the nucleus divides into two equal daughters with charge Q=46e and diameter d=2x10-14m, calculate their electric potential energy. Homework...

Two metal balls of mass m1=3.41g (diameter=3.41mm) and m2=7.88g (diameter=7.88mm) have positive charges of q1=1.41nC and q2=9.19nC. A force holds them in place so that their centers are separated by 8.79mm. What will their velocities be after the force is removed and they are separated by a...

Homework Statement Three charges are distributed as follows: http://tinypic.com/r/1fviq0/5 How much work must an external force do to move them infinitely far from each other? Homework Equations W = -\DeltaU = (kq_{1}q_{2})/r The Attempt at a Solution So what I did was find...

A charge of -2.580 mu C is located at (2.575 m, 4.742 m), and a charge of 1.440 mu C is located at (-2.730 m, 0). Find the electric potential at the origin. q_1= -2.580*10^-6 C q_2= 1.440*10^-6 C k = 8.99*10^9 N*m/C^2 r_2= -2.730 m V= (k*q_1)/r_1 + (k*q_2)/r_2 So first i...

Homework Statement Examine the diagram provided, Sphere 1: q=3.0x10-4C Sphere 2: q=-3.0x10-4C Sphere 3: q= 3x10-4C a) Find the total electric potential energy of the charge distribution b) Find the total electric potential at point Z Homework Equations EE=kq1q2/r...

Homework Statement What's the difference between electric potential energy and electric potential? Can someone explain these concepts, simply? I don't understand any definitions I've found on the internet. Any help would be appreciated. Homework Equations N/A The Attempt at a Solution N/A

Homework Statement Two frictionless pucks are placed on a level surface as shown, at an initial distance of 20m. Puck 1 has a mass of 0.8 kg and a charge of + 3x10^-4 while puck 2 has a mass of 0.4 kg and a charge of +3 x10^-4. The initial velocity of puck 1 is 12 m/s [E] and the...

What will be the total electric potential energy of two concentric spheres. Will it be = [P.E. of Inner sphere] + [ P.E. of Outer sphere] + [ Energy required to bring outer sphere from infinity to the present position(i.e. position concentric to inner sphere) ] OR it Will...

yes, energy = work, but how does electric potential energy (U) = Vq (electric potential and charge) relate to work (W=Fd), specifically. An example would be most helpful!

Homework Statement I have an expression for electric potential. Can I multiply this by mass to turn it into potential energy? Homework Equations W=Fs ? The Attempt at a Solution

Homework Statement Suppose we there is a cube (a x a x a) made up of 8 protons. 1 at each point What is the Electric Potential Energy Homework Equations U=q1*q1/4*pi*epsilon_0*r The Attempt at a Solution *U12 = Potential Energy to bring 2 to 1* I'm aware of how to do the...

Homework Statement I understand the concept of negative potential energy value because it's chosen to be 0 at infinity. So considering two positive charges, as separation r increases, the potential energy V decreases. When there's one positive and negative charge, as r increases, V...

basically i don't understand the basic main idea of electric potential energy. since by definition, energy is ability to do work( to move an object across a distance). Negative source charge creates a uniform field around itself, and we place a positive test charge very near the source...

Homework Statement As a +6.2-µC charge moves along the x-axis from x = 0 to x = 1.4 m, the electric potential it experiences is shown in the figure, below. (The horizontal axis is marked in increments of 0.1 m and the vertical axis is marked in increments of 5 V.) Find the approximate...