Electric Charges and Fields

1. An electron has a negative charge of 1.6 x 10-19 C and a mass of 9.1 X 10 –31
kg. A proton has a positive charge of 1.6 X 10-19 C and a mass of 1.7 X 10-27 kg.
Together they make up the hydrogen atom. Compare the electric force and the
gravitational force between them. Given e0 = 8.85 X 10-12 C2N-1 m-2and G = 6.67
X 10-11 Nm2kg-2.
• Solution:
The electric force of attraction between the electron and the proton is

Fe = 1
The gravitational force between them is

Fg=G

∴
Substituting the given values of various quantities we get

Thus the electric force is 39 orders of magnitude stronger than the gravitational
force. Hence, while considering electric force between bodies of ordinary masses,
the gravitational force can always be ignored.

2. A polythene piece rubbed with wool is found to have a negative charge of 8

X 10-7 C. (a) Does wool acquire any charge in this process? If so, how much?
(b) From which substance to which other are the electrons transferred?
Estimate the number of electrons transferred (c) Is there any transfer of mass
in this process?
• Solution:
(a) Since the total charge is conserved, the wool will acquire an equal and
opposite charge. Thus wool acquires a positive charge of 8 X 10-7 C.
(b) Since polythene acquires a negative charge due to rubbing with wool, it is
obvious that electrons are transferred from wool to polythene. Since the
magnitude of the charge on an electron is 1.6 X 10-19 C, the charge of 8 X 10-7 C
corresponds to

electrons
Hence 5 X 1012 electrons are transferred from wool to polythene.
(c) Since the mass of an electron is finite but very small (~ 10-30 kg), there is a
transfer of a finite (though negligibly small) mass from wool to polythene.
 3. (a) Two insulated charged metallic spheres A and B have their centres
separated by a distance of 50 cm in air. Calculate the force of electrostatic
repulsion between them if the charge on each is +5.0 X 10-8 C. The radii of A
and B are negligible compared to the distance of separation.
(b) What is the force of repulsion if
(i) the charge on each sphere is doubled and the distance between them is
halved; and
(ii) the two spheres are placed in water? Dielectric constant of water =81.
• Solution:
(a) q1 =q2= 5.0 X 10-8C, r=50 cm = 0.50m. The force of repulsion is given by

F
Where ε 0 = 8.85 X 1.0-12 C2N-1m-2. Substituting the values of the various
quantities we get
F = 9.0 X 10-5 N
(b) (i) It the charge on each sphere is doubled and the distance between them is
halved, then Coulomb's law tells us that the force F would become 16 times, i.e.

F ≈ 1.4 X 10-3 N
(ii) If the spheres are immersed in water, the force between them is

F=
Where ε is the permittivity of water. The dielectric constant 9or relative
permittivity) is

ε r= or

F=
It is given that ε r = 81. Hence if the two charged spheres are immersed in water
(whose ε r = 81), the force of repulsion would decrease by a factor of 81 . Hence.

F water = .

4. Suppose the charged metallic spheres A and B in the previous problem have
identical sizes. A third metallic sphere of the same size, but uncharged, is
brought in contact with sphere A and removed. It is then brought in contact
with sphere B and removed. What is the new force of repulsion between A and
B?
• Solution:
Let the charge of each sphere A and B be +q which is given to be +5.0- X 10-8 C.
We have seen that the force of repulsion between them is F = 9.0 X 10-5 N.
 When two identical metallic spheres are brought in contact, the charges on them
are equalized due to the flow of free electrons. Thus when an uncharged sphere C
is brought in contact with sphere. A having a charge =q, and then removed, the
total charge q is equally shared between the two so that the charge left on A is
+q/2 and that developed on C is +q/2.
The sphere C carrying a charge +q/2 is now brought in contact with sphere B
which is already carrying a charge +q. The total charge is q/2 +q= +3q/2 which
must distribute equally on B and C. Thus when C is removed, B will have a charge
of +3q/2 which must distribute equally on B and C. Thus when c is removed, B will
have a charge of +3q/4 and C also has as charge of +3q/4. Hence when C is
removed from both A and B.

New Charge on A = +

New Charge on B = +
Since force is proportional to the product of the charges, it follows that the new
force of repulsion between A and B is 3/8 of the earlier force (F). Hence the new
force of repulsion between A and B is.

3.4 X 10-5 N.

5. Two uncharged metal spheres A and B are supported on insulating stands

and placed in contact as shown in Fig. 1.7. A negatively charged ebonite rod is
placed near A but not in contact with it. Describe what happens when (a) the
sphere B is momentarily touched with the finger (or earthed) and then the
ebonite rod is removed, and (b) the ebonite rod is made to touch the sphere A.

Fig 1.7
• Solution:
(a) when a negatively charged ebonite rod is brought near A, it induces a positive
charge on the side of A near the rod and a negative charge on the side of B
remote from the rod. When the sphere B is earthed or touched with the finger, the
negative charge on B flows to the earth due to the repulsion of the negative
charge on B flows to the earth due to the repulsion of the negative charge of the
rod. If now the earth connection is broken and the inducing rod removed, the
positive charge on A will spread to B so that both A and B have a positive charge.
 (b) The charge on A and B remain unchanged if the ebonite rod is made to touch A
since ebonite is an insulator and hence no charge can flow from it to the sphere A.

6. Three point charges +5.0 X 10-6 C, -4.0 X 10-6 C and +4.0 X 10-6 C are Placed
at the vertices P, Q and R of an equilateral triangle of side 10 cm. Find the
magnitude and the direction of the total (resultant) force on
(a) the charge at P due to charges at Q and R,
(b) the charge at Q due to charges at P and R, and
(C) the charge at R due to charges at P and Q.
• Solution:
(a) Force on charge at P due to charges at Q and R. Referring to Fig. 1.12 (a) the
magnitude of the attractive force at P due to the charge at Q is (ignoring the signs
of charges, since we are determining the magnitude of the force)

Fig 1.12

FPQ=
= 18 N directed P to Q
Similarly, the repulsive force on P due the charge at R is
FPR = 18 N directed from R to P
The x and y components of the resultant force F on the charge at P are give by
[refer to Fig 1.12 (a)]
Fx = FPQ cosα 1 +FPR cosα 2 (i)
Fy = FPQ sin α 1 +FPR sin α 2 (ii)
Where α 1 = 180o +60o = 240° and α 2 =90o +30o =120o . Notice that the angle for
each force is measured in the counter-clockwise sense with respect to the positive
x-axis. Substituting the values of the forces and the angles in (i) and (ii) we get
Fx = 18 × cos 240o +18 X cos 1200 = -18N
(the negative sign shows that Fx is along the negative x-axis).
Fy = 18 × sin 240o +18 X sin 1200 = 0
Therefore, the magnitude of the resultant force on P is

and its direction is along the negative x-axis.

 (b) Force on charge at Q due to charges at P and R. Referring to Fig. 1.12(b), we
have
FQR = 18 N directed from Q to P
FQR = 14.4 N directed from Q to R
The x and y components of the resultant force F on the charge at Q are
Fx =14.4 cos 0o +18 cos 60o = 23.4 N
Fy = 14.4 sin 0o +18 sin 60o +15.6N

∴
The angle ∝ subtended by the resultant with the +ve x-axis is given by

Giving ∝ =33.7o.
(c) Force on charge at R due to charges at P and Q. Referring to Fig. 1.12(c), we
have
FRP = 18 directed from P to R
FRQ = 14.4 directed from R to Q
Fx =18 cos 300o +14.4 cos 180o=-5.4 N
Fy =18 sin 300o +14.4 sin 180o = -15.6 N

And
giving ∝ = 70.9o ≈ 71°.

7. Two negative charges each magnitude 8 × 10-8 C and a positive charge q

and placed along a straight line. At what position and for what value of q will
the system be in equilibrium. Is the equilibrium stable or unstable?
• Solution:
Let the positive charge q be placed at R at distances r1 and r2 respectively from the
two negative charges (q0 =8 X 10-8 C) at P and Q as shown in Fig. 1.13.

Fig 1.13
Equilibrium of q. For chare q to be in equilibrium, it must lie between P and Q and
the forces on it exerted by the charge qo at P and Q must be co-linear, equal and
opposite, i.e.
|FRP| = |FRQ|
 or
giving r1=r2 =r (say). Hence charge q should be equidistant from P and Q.
Equilibrium of q0 at p and Q. For the system to be in equilibrium, the charge q0 at
P and Q must also be in equilibrium, i.e.
|FPR| = |FPQ| and |FQR| = |FQP|
Both these conditions give q = q0/4. Thus for q0 at P and Q to be in equilibrium,
the value of charge.

8. Two small identical balls P and Q, each of mass 0.20 g, carry identical
charges and are suspended by two threads of equal lengths. At equilibrium,
they position themselves as shown in Fig. 1.14. Find the charge on each ball.
Given g=9.8 ms-2.

Fig. 1.14
• Solution:
Let us consider the ball, say Q. There are three forces acting on its
(i) tension T in the thread,
(ii) the force mg due to gravity acting vertically downwards and
(iii) the force F due to Coulomb’s repulsion in the +× direction.
For equilibrium, the sum of the x and y components of these forces must be zero,
i.e.
T cos 60o –F =0 (i)
and T sin 60o - mg =0 (ii)
From (ii) we have

Substituting this value of T in (i) we get

F = T cos 60o = (2.26 X 10-3 ) × 0.5 = 1.13 X 10-3 N
Let the charge of each ball be q. The Coulomb’s force of repulsion between them is
F =1.13 X 10-3 N. Hence
 Now r= 50 cm = 0.50 m and 1/4π ε 0 = 9 x 109 Nm 2 C-2 . Substituting these
values, we get
q = 1.77 X 10-7 ≈ 1.8 X 10-7 C.

9. Consider a point charge q1= +1.0 X 10-8 C at a distance l =10 cm from

another point charge q2 = +2.0 x 10-8C. At what point on the line joining the
two charges is the electric field zero?
• Solution:
The electric field will be zero at a point where the forces exerted by q1 and q2 on a
test charge q0 are equal and opposite. This point P must, therefore lie between the
charges. If F1 is the force due to q1and F2 that due to q2 we must have F1 = F2

Where x is the distance of P from q1 and l = 10 cm = 0.1 m. Thus we have

putting the values of q1,q2 and l we get

x 2 + 0.2x -0.01 = 0
The two roots of this quadratic equation are × = 0.041 m and –0.241 m. The
negative root is inadmissible because it corresponds to a point to the left of q2 at a
distance 0.241 m from it where the electric field cannot be zero. Hence the electric
field is zero at a point P between the two charges at a distance of 0.041 n = 4.1
cm from charge q1.

10. Two point charges q1 (=+2.0µ C) and q2 (=+1.0µ C) are placed at distance
b = 1.0 m and a = 2.0 m from the origin on the y and x axes. Find the electric
field E at point (a, b).
• Solution:
The electric field E1 at (a, b) due to q1 has a magnitude

and is directed along the +× axis.

The electric field E2 at (a, b) due to q2 has magnitude

and is directed along the +y axis.

Since the two vectors E1 and E2 are at right to each other, the magnitude of the
resultant electric field E is given by
 Substituting the values of q1, q2, a , b and ε 0 we get
E =7.8 x 103 Nc-1
The angle θ subtended by the resultant field E with the x-axis given by

giving θ = 63.4°.

11. (a) An electron is placed in a uniform electric field near by surface of the
earth. What must be the magnitude and the direction of the electric field so
that the electron experiences an electrical force to its weight?
(b) What will happen to a proton placed in this field? Given, mass of an
electron me = 9.1 X 10-31 kg, mass of a proton mp = 1.67 × 10-27 kg, charge on
an electron = -1.6 X 10-19 C, charge on a proton= +1.6 × 10—19 C.
• Solution:
(a) The charge on an electron is negative and has a magnitude e =1.6 X 10-19 C. In
an electric field of magnitude E, it will experience an electric force F given by F =
eE. But F= meg, where g is the acceleration due to gravity (= 9.8 ms-2). Hence E is
given by

Since the charge on an electron is negative and the electric force must be
vertically upwards (so that it can balance its weight acting vertically downwards),
the direction of electric field must be vertically downwards. By definition, the
direction of E is the direction in which a positive charge would move when placed
in that field.
(b) When a proton which has positive charge is placed in this electric field, it will
experience a downward electrical force given by
Felec = eE = 1.6 × 10-19 × 5.6 × 10-11 = 8.96 × 10-30 N
In addition, it will experience another downward force due to the gravity of the
earth.
Fgrav = mp × g =1.67 × 10-27 × 9.8 =1.64 X 10-26 N
Thus the electrical force on the proton is negligible compared to the gravitational
force. Hence the proton will fall almost freely at an acceleration of 9.8 ms-2. The
downward acceleration due to the electric force is

Notice that the acceleration of a charged body in an electric field depends upon it
mass, but its acceleration due to gravity does not.

12. An oil drop having 12 excess electrons is held stationary under a uniform
electric field of 2.55 X 104 Vm-1 in Millikan’s oil drop experiment. The density of
the oil is 1.26 gcm-3. Estimate the radius of the drop. Given g= 9.81 ms-2, e
=1.60 X 10-19 C.
• Solution:
Charge on the oil drop
qo =12e =12 × 1.60 × 10-19 =1.92 X 10-18 c
Density of oil
ρ =1.26gcm-3 =1.26 X 103 kgm-3
Mass of the oil drop

m = volume × density =
Where r is the radius of the drop in metres. The electric field is
E=2.55 x 104 Vm-1 = 2.55 x 104 NC-1

The field is directed vertically downwards so that the negatively charged drop
experiences an upward force due to the electric field. This force is Fe =q0E. The
downward gravitational fore on the drop is Fg = mg. The drop will be stationary if
Fe = Fg, or q0E=mg.

Or
Substituting the values of q0, E and ρ we get
r= 9.81 X 10-7 m = 9.81 X 10-4 mm
Note: we have ignored the buoyant force on the drop compared to Fe or Fg. Since
the volume of the drop is very small and the density of air (=1.29 kgm-3) is
negligible compared to that of oil, the buoyant force will be to small to influence
the drop.

13. In a cathode ray oscilloscope, an electron accelerated through 25 kV enters

a deflecting plate system as shown in Fig 1.19. The magnitude of deflecting
field (E) is 20 k Vm-1. The length of the plate (ι ) is 5.0 cm and the screen is 18
cm (D) away from the nearer end of the plate.
(a) What is the nature of electron’s trajectory in the region between the
plates?
(b) At what point does the electron hit the fluorescent screen?
 Fig 1.19 An electron projected in a uniform electric field
• Solution:
(a) Let an electron of mass m and charge e be projected with a velocity υ x along
the x-axis between two plates where a uniform electric field exits pointing
downward as shown in Fig 1.19. The motion of the electron is similar to that of a
projectile fired horizontally in the earth's gravitational field, except that it moves
upwards against the electric field. The horizontal (x) and vertical (y) motions are
given by

where t is the time taken by the electron to reach a point A and a is its
acceleration (directed upwards) at this point. Eliminating t yields.

(i)
This is the equation of a parabola. Hence trajectory of the electron (OAB) within
the plates is a parabola.
(b) Potential difference between plates
V0 = 25kv = 25 x103 V
Kinetic energy of the electron at entry

(ii)
When the electron emerges from the end B of the plates, it has suffered a
deflection y1 given by [see (i)]

Using Eq. (ii) we have

(iii)
When the electron emerges from the plates (point B), it travel essentially in a
straight line tangent to the parabola at the exit point B. The effect is gravity is
negligible since the mass of an electron is very small. Let it strike the screen at
point P2 . P2B produced will meet the x=axis at point C almost mid-way between
the ends of the plates, i.e. CD = l/2.The total deflection y of the electron consists
of two parts (see Fig. 1.19): (i) deflection y1 within plates, and (ii) deflection y2
outside the plates.
Y = y1 +y2
Now the triangles P2BP1 and BCD are similar. Hence
 or (iv)
Using (iii) in (iv) we get

Now E=20 kVm-1 =20 x 103 Vm-1,Vo=25 x103 V,

l =5.0 cm =5.0× 10-2m and D =18 cm =18 ×10-2 m
Substituting these values in Eq. (v) yields y = 4.1 mm.

14. A conducting rod of negligible thickness of length L carries a total charge q

which is uniformly distributed on it. Find the electric field at a point located on
the axis of the rod at a distance a from the nearer end.
• Solution:
Let us consider a small element d× on the rod located at a distance × from point P
where the electric field is to be determined. Since the charge q is distributed
uniformly on the rod of length L, the charge of the element of length dx is.

Fig. 1.20
Hence the force on a test charge q0 at P due to dq is

The magnitude of the total force on q0 due to the entire rod is given by

Hence the magnitude of the electric field at P is

If the charge q is positive, the direction of the field will be from left to right. If L<<
a, the expression for E reduces to

which varies inversely as the square of the distance a. This is expected since when
L<<a, the rod can be regarded at a point charge.
 15. A loop of wire of negligible thickness has a radius r. It carries a charge q
distributed uniformly over the loop. Find the electric field at a point P located at
a distance x from the centre along the line perpendicular to the plane
containing the loop and passing through its centre.

Fig. 1.21
• Solution:
Let us suppose that the loop of the wire is placed such that the plane of the loop is
perpendicular to the x-axis as shown in Fig. 1.21. Consider a small element (of
length dl) of the loop. Since the total charge q is distributed uniformly, the charge
dq on the element dl is

(i)
The magnitude dE of the electric field dE at point P due to charge dq is (see Fig
1.21)

(ii)
Where a=(x +r2)1/2 . Using Eq. (i) (ii) we have
2

(iii)
The total electric field E and P is found by adding, vectorially, the dE vectors for all
the elements that make up the loop. At first sight, it is difficult task because the
vectors do not lie in the same plane. However, the symmetry about the axis of the
loop makes our job very easy indeed. Only the components of dE that lie along the
axis contribute. The components that are perpendicular to this axis add up to zero.
The axial components are all collinear, so the vector addition becomes a scalar
addition of parallel axial components.
The axial, i.e. the x-component of dE from Fig 1.21, has a magnitude dEx = dE cos
θ ,
where cos θ is given by

Thus from Eq. (iii) we have

 (iv)
To add the various contributions, we need to add only dl’s. Thus the addition yields

Now ∑ dl=2 π r. Hence

(v)
Notice that at the center of the loop (x=0), there is no electric field, as expected.
Also for x>>r, we have

which implies that for points on the axis located at distances much larger than the
dimensions of the loop, it can be regarded as a point charge.