Two identical spheres, each with a charge of +5μC, are placed 0.1m apart. What is the electric field at the midpoint between the two spheres?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
Two identical spheres, each with a charge of +5μC, are placed 0.1m apart. What is the electric field at the midpoint between the two spheres?
0 N/C
1.8 × 10^5 N/C
3.6 × 10^5 N/C
9 × 10^5 N/C
The electric fields due to both charges at the midpoint are equal and opposite, thus they cancel each other out, resulting in 0 N/C.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
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Q
Q: Two identical spheres, each with a charge of +5μC, are placed 0.1m apart. What is the electric field at the midpoint between the two spheres?
Solution: The electric fields due to both charges at the midpoint are equal and opposite, thus they cancel each other out, resulting in 0 N/C.
Steps: 8
Step 1: Identify the charges of the spheres. Each sphere has a charge of +5μC.
Step 2: Determine the distance between the two spheres, which is 0.1m.
Step 3: Find the midpoint between the two spheres. This is located 0.05m from each sphere.
Step 4: Calculate the electric field created by the first sphere at the midpoint. The electric field (E) due to a point charge is given by the formula E = k * |Q| / r^2, where k is the electrostatic constant, Q is the charge, and r is the distance from the charge.
Step 5: Calculate the electric field created by the second sphere at the midpoint using the same formula.
Step 6: Note that both electric fields are directed away from their respective positive charges since they are both positive charges.
Step 7: Since the two electric fields are equal in magnitude but opposite in direction at the midpoint, they will cancel each other out.
Step 8: Conclude that the total electric field at the midpoint is 0 N/C.
