Three point charges are on the x axis: −1 µC
at −3 m, 9 µC at the origin, and −5 µC at
3 m.
Find the force on the first charge.
The value of the Coulomb constant is
8.98755 × 109 N · m2
/C
2
.
Answer in units of N

0.0078 N

Explanation:

The electrostatic force between two charges is given by Coulomb's law:

where:

is the Coulomb's constant

are the two charges

r is the separation between the two charges

The force is attractive if the two  charges have opposite sign, and repulsive if the two charges have same sign.

In this problem, we have:

located at

located at

located at

The force between charge 1 and charge 2 is:

And since the two charges have opposite sign, the force is attractive, so the force on charge 1 is towards the right.

The force between charge 1 and charge 3 is:

And since the two charges have same sign, the force is repulsive, so the force on charge 1 is towards the left.

Therefore, the net  force on charge 1 is:

towards the right.

c

explanation:

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