A bead with charge \(q_{1}=1.27 \mu \mathrm{C}\) is fixed in place at the end of a wire that makes an angle of \(\theta=51.3^{\circ}\) with the horizontal. A second bead with mass \(m_{2}=3.77 \mathrm{~g}\) and a charge of \(6.79 \mu \mathrm{C}\) slides without friction on the wire. What is the distance \(d\) at which the force of the Earth's gravity on \(m_{2}\) is balanced by the electrostatic force between the two beads? Neglect the gravitational interaction between the two beads.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: The distance between the two charged beads when the gravitational force is balanced by the electrostatic force is 0.0206 m or 2.06 cm.

Step by step solution

01

Calculate the electrostatic force using Coulomb's law

Coulomb's law gives the force exerted between two charges as \( F_{e} = k \frac{q_1 q_2}{r^2} \), where: - \(F_{e}\) is the electrostatic force, - \(k = 8.9875 \times 10^9 Nm^2C^{-2}\) (Coulomb's constant), - \(q_1 = 1.27 \times 10^{-6} C\) (charge of the fixed bead), - \(q_2 = 6.79 \times 10^{-6} C\) (charge of the sliding bead), and - \(r\) is the distance between the charges.
02

Calculate the gravitational force on the second bead

The gravitational force on the second bead can be calculated using the equation: \( F_{g} = m_2 g \), where \(g=9.81 m/s^2\) is the gravitational acceleration and \(m_2=3.77\times10^{-3}kg\) is the mass of the second bead.
03

Set up an equilibrium equation

Since the electrostatic force between the beads should balance the gravitational force on the second bead when it slides on the wire, we can write the equilibrium equation as: \(\sin(\theta) F_{e} = F_{g}\). Plugging in Coulomb's law and the gravitational force equation, we get: \(\sin(\theta) \left( k \frac{q_1 q_2}{r^2} \right) = m_2 g \)
04

Solve for distance 'd'

Now we can solve for 'r' (since 'r' = 'd' in this case): \(\sin(\theta) \left( k \frac{q_1 q_2}{r^2} \right) = m_2 g \) Solving for 'r', we get: \( r = \sqrt{ k \frac{q_1 q_2}{m_2 g \sin(\theta)} } \) Plugging in the given values: \( r = \sqrt{ 8.9875 \times 10^9 \frac{1.27 \times 10^{-6} (6.79 \times 10^{-6})}{(3.77\times10^{-3})(9.81)\sin(51.3)} }\) Which after solving evaluates to: \(r = 0.0206 m\) Thus, the distance 'd' at which the electrostatic force balances the gravitational force is \(d=0.0206 m\) or \(2.06 cm\).

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

How many electrons does \(1.00 \mathrm{~kg}\) of water contain?

Two equal magnitude negative charges \((-q\) and \(-q)\) are fixed at coordinates \((-d, 0)\) and \((d, 0) .\) A positive charge of the same magnitude, \(q\), and with mass \(m\) is placed at coordinate \((0,0),\) midway between the two negative charges. If the positive charge is moved a distance \(\delta \ll d\) in the positive \(y\) -direction and then released, the resulting motion will be that of a harmonic oscillator-the positive charge will oscillate between coordinates \((0, \delta)\) and \((0,-\delta)\). Find the net force acting on the positive charge when it moves to \((0, \delta)\) and use the binomial expansion \((1+x)^{n} \approx 1+n x,\) for \(x \ll 1,\) to find an expression for the frequency of the resulting oscillation.

How many electrons are required to yield a total charge of 1.00 C?

If two charged particles (the charge on each is \(Q\) ) are separated by a distance \(d\), there is a force \(F\) between them. What is the force if the magnitude of each charge is doubled and the distance between them changes to \(2 d ?\)

The Earth is constantly being bombarded by cosmic rays, which consist mostly of protons. These protons are incident on the Earth's atmosphere from all directions at a rate of 1245.0 protons per square meter per second. Assuming that the depth of Earth's atmosphere is \(120 \mathrm{~km},\) what is the total charge incident on the atmosphere in \(5.00 \mathrm{~min}\) ? Assume that the radius of the surface of the Earth is \(6378 \mathrm{~km}\).

See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free