REally confused Need Help on electric charges and Coulomb's Law

In summary, the conversation discusses various problems involving electric charges and Coulomb's law. It includes questions about finding the distance between two charges, calculating the force on each charge in a line of equally spaced charges, determining the charge on two repelling spheres, finding the force on a charge in a square of charges, and calculating the charge on two hanging balls based on their repulsion. Solutions for each problem are provided using equations and principles from Coulomb's law.
  • #1
nutzweb
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Electric Charges and Coulomb’s Law

Guys, help me solve these problems. I'm really in big trouble.. thanks guys!

a)Two charges of equal magnitude exert an attractive force of 4.0x10-4 N on each other. If the magnitude of each charge is 2.0μC, how far apart are the charge?

b)Three equal charges, each of +6.0μC, are spaced along a line. The end charges are each 0.23 m from the central charge. What are the magnitude and direction of the force on each charge?

c)Two small, positively charged spheres experience a mutual repulsive force of 1.52 N when their centers are 0.200 m apart. The sum of the charges on the two spheres is 6.00μC. What is the charge on each sphere?

d)Four equal point charges +q are placed at the corners of a square of edge length L. Find the force on anyone of the charges.

e)Two equally charged insulating balls each weigh 0.10g and hang from a common point by identical threads 30cm long. The balls repel each other so that the separation between their center is 6.4 cm. What is the magnitude of the charge on each ball?
 
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  • #2
a) Simply use Columb's law. :confused:

b) Same thing, just add forces as vectors.

c) There is an equation used to calculate this. It is surely in your textbook.

d) Same as b), only in 2D

e) Use equilibrium of forces.
 
  • #3


a) To solve this problem, we can use Coulomb's Law, which states that the force between two charges is directly proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. In this case, we are given the force (4.0x10^-4 N), the magnitude of each charge (2.0μC), and we need to find the distance between them. So, we can set up the equation as follows:

F = k * (q1 * q2)/d^2

Where F is the force, k is the Coulomb's constant (9x10^9 Nm^2/C^2), q1 and q2 are the two charges, and d is the distance between them.

Plugging in the given values, we get:

4.0x10^-4 N = (9x10^9 Nm^2/C^2) * (2.0μC)^2/d^2

Solving for d, we get:

d = 0.01 m or 1 cm

Therefore, the two charges are 1 cm apart.

b) To solve this problem, we can again use Coulomb's Law. Since the charges are all equal, we can use the same equation as in part a). However, we need to find the force on each charge, so we can divide the total force by 3. Also, since the charges are all positive, the force will be repulsive.

So, the force on each charge will be:

F = (4.0x10^-4 N)/3 = 1.33x10^-4 N

c) In this problem, we are given the force and the distance between the charges, and we need to find the charge on each sphere. Again, we can use Coulomb's Law, but this time we have two unknowns (the two charges). So, we need to set up two equations using the given information and then solve for the two charges.

From the given information, we know that:

F = k * (q1 * q2)/d^2

And the sum of the charges is 6.00μC, so we can write:

q1 + q2 = 6.00μC

Now, we can substitute the value of F from the first equation into the second equation and solve for one of the charges. Then, we can
 

FAQ: REally confused Need Help on electric charges and Coulomb's Law

1. What is an electric charge?

An electric charge is a fundamental property of matter that causes it to experience a force when placed in an electric field. It can be either positive or negative, and is measured in units of Coulombs (C).

2. What is Coulomb's Law?

Coulomb's Law is a fundamental law of physics that describes the force between two charged particles. It states that the force is directly proportional to the product of the two charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

3. How does distance affect the force between two charges?

According to Coulomb's Law, the force between two charges decreases as the distance between them increases. This is because the force is inversely proportional to the square of the distance, meaning that as the distance doubles, the force decreases by a factor of four.

4. What is the difference between electric force and gravitational force?

Electric force is the force between two charged particles, while gravitational force is the force between two objects with mass. The main difference is that electric force can be either attractive or repulsive, while gravitational force is always attractive.

5. How is Coulomb's Law used in real-life applications?

Coulomb's Law is used in many real-life applications, such as designing electrical circuits, calculating the force between charged particles in atoms, and understanding the behavior of charged particles in particle accelerators. It is also used in industries like telecommunications, where it helps determine the strength of electric fields in order to ensure reliable communication.

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