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Mobile App Chapter 3: Q40P (page 126)
At a particular instant a proton exerts an electric force of 
on an electron. How far apart are the proton and the electron?
Short Answer
The proton and the electron are
apart.
Step by step solution
Identification of the given data
The given data can be listed below as,
The proton exerts an electric force of
Significance of the Coulomb’s law for the distance
The coulomb’s law states that the force exerted by an object is inversely proportional to their distance’s square and directly proportional to the product of their charges.
The equation of the force gives the distance amongst the proton and the electron.
Determination of the distance between proton and electron
From Coulomb’s law, the electric force on the electron by the proton is expressed as:
Here, F is the magnitude of the electric force that is 
; k is the coulomb’s constant that is about 
are the charges of the proton and the electron that are 
and r is the distance amongst them.
Substituting the values in the above equation, we get-
Thus, the proton and the electron are
apart.
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apart (about one atomic radius). Which interactions between two electrons is stronger, the gravitational attraction or the electric repulsion? If the two electrons are at rest, will they begin to move toward each other or away from each other? Note that since both the gravitational and the electric forces depend on the inverse square distance, this comparison holds true at all distances, not just at a distance of 
.
, and an alpha particle (consisting of two protons and two neutrons)is located at 
. a) Calculate the force the proton exerts on the alpha particle. b) Calculate the force the alpha particle exerts on the proton?