Problem 3. Consider the four point charges arranged in a rhombus shown below. Ea

Question

Problem 3. Consider the four point charges arranged in a rhombus shown below. Each charge has the same magnitude, but the signs are different. The sides of the rhombus are a length a. (a) What is the electrostatic energy associated with this arrangement of charges? (b) What is the electric field at the midway point between the two -q charges (at point C)? You can answer this without doing any calculations. (c) What is the electric potential at the midway point between the two -q charges (at point C)?

Explanation / Answer

q1 = +q

q2 = -q

q3 = +q

q4 = -q

part(a)

electrostatic potential energy

PE = (k/a)*( q1*q2 + q1*q3 + q1*q4 + q2*q3 + q2*q4 + q3*q4    )

PE = (k/a) = (-q^2 + q^2 - q^2 - q^2 + q^2 - q^2 )

PE = -(2*k*q^2/a)

part(b)

E at the mid way = 0

part(c)

v = -2*k*q/(a/2)

v = -4*k*q/a

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse P
• Subjects

---

---

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.