POTENTIAL , POTENTIAL ENERGY AND GAUSS LAW (PKGS)

1. One end of an insulating rigid rod of negligible mass and length / is pivoted to a fixed point O. A small ball
of mass m and having a negative charge of modulus q is attached to the lower end of the rod. At height a
above the point O is fixed another small ball carrying positive charge Q as shown in the figure. What should
be the range of values of mass m of the lower ball so that system remains in the state of stable equilibrium?
Acceleration due to gravity is g.

Q
a
O

-q

2. Two particles of charges and masses (+q 1, m1) and (-q2, m2 ) are released at two different points in a
uniform electric field E established in free space. If their separation remains unchanged, find the
separation I between them.
3. A small positively charged ball of mass in is suspended by an insulating thread of negligible mass. Another
positively charged small ball is moved very slowly from a large distance until it is in the original position of
the first ball. As a result, the first ball rises by h. How much work has been done?

4. On two long parallel insulating frictionless rigid wires can slide two identical beads each of mass m and charge
q. The distance between the wires is d. Initially the beads are so far from each other that no electrostatic
interaction exists between them. With what speed u must one of the beads be projected to pass over the other
bead? Assume radii of the beads negligibly small as compared to distance between the wires.

5. Two small non-conducting balls A and B are rigidly attached at the ends of a light frictionless non-conducting
rod. A third non-conducting ball C can slide on the rod like a bead between the balls A and B. all the three balls
are of equal mass m and have equal charges q each. Initially the balls are held at rest in free space with center-
to-center spacing as shown in the figure. All the balls are simultaneously released. Find maximum speed of the
ball C in subsequent motion. Neglect radius of the balls as compared to the distance d.

A C B

3d d

6. In free space two particles of equal unknown masses and known charges +q and -q are
simultaneously projected with equal speeds u in the opposite directions perpendicular to the line
joining them. Their initial separation is r0. During the subsequent motion, their minimum speed is
observed to be vmin. Find the masses of the particles.

u
r0
7. On a fixed frictionless non-conducting rod, bent at right angle, can slide two beads of equal mass m , carrying
charges q1 and q2 of opposite signs. Initially, the beads are held at rest at distances d and 2d from the corner
as shown. Now they are simultaneously released. When one of the beads reaches the corner, where would the
other bead be located? Treat the beads as particles.
 q2
d
q1

2d
8. Three particles A, B and C of charges q, q and 2q; and masses m, 2m and 5m respectively are held in free spaces
in a straight line at separation r between two neighbors as shown in the figure. All the three particles are
released simultaneously. Find velocities of all the three particles when they reach so far from each other
that electrostatic interactions between them can be neglected

A r B r C

9. Small identical balls with equal charges are fixed at the vertices of a right 1977-gon with side a. At a certain
instant, one of the balls is released, and a sufficiently long time interval later, the ball adjacent to the first
released ball is freed. The kinetic energies of the released balls are found to differ by K at a sufficiently long
distance from the polygon. Determine the charge q of each ball.
10. Why do electrons and not ions cause collision ionization of atoms although both charges acquire the same
kinetic energy mv2/2 = e  (e is the charge of the particles, and  is the potential difference) in an
acceleration field? Assume that an atom to be ionized and a particle impinging on it have approximately the
same velocity after the collision.

11. A right pyramid of square base and height H has uniform charge distributed everywhere within its volume.
Modulus of electric field and potential at the apex P of the pyramid are F, and Y.. A symmetrical portion of
height /l from the top has been removed. Find modulus of electric field and potential at the apex P of the
original pyramid due the remaining frustum of the pyramid.

12. If a charge q is uniformly spread on a thin dielectric square plate, the electric potential at its center is found
to be V1. If six such charged plates are joined to make a hollow cube, the potential at the center of the cube is
found to be V2. Find potential at one of the vertex of this cube. In all the cases, potential at infinitely distant
points has been assumed zero.
13. A small size block carrying positive charge q1 is held at rest on a rough inclined plane. A negative point
charge q2 is fixed somewhere at point O in the same vertical plane containing the block. Coefficient of friction
between the block and the plane is μ = 0.375. When released, the block acquires speed v0 = 3.0 m/s after sliding
down a height h = 1.26m. If the block were having negative Charge of the same magnitude (i.e. -q1), what speed
would it acquire after sliding down from rest between the same initial and final points. Acceleration due to
gravity is g = 10 m/s2.
O

θ=370

14. Four identical particles A, B, C and D each of mass m and charge q are connected by insulating light
inextensible threads of equal length / to make a tetrahedron as shown in the figure. The thread connecting
particles A and B is cut. Find maximum speed acquired by every particle in subsequent motion.
 A B

D C
15. Three identical particles each of mass m and having charge q connected by light inextensible non-
conducting threads are held in free space with threads connecting the central particle to the other two
making an angle slightly less than 180° as shown in the figure. Both the threads are of length /. All the
particles are simultaneously released. Find period of oscillations in the system.

ANSWERS AND SOLUTIONS

1. qQa 1 q1q2  m1  m2 
m 2.
4 0  a  1
2
2  o E  q1m2  q2 m1 

3. 3mgh

q
4. u
 o md
q
5. Hint: The electrostatic potential energy is the least when the ball C is in the middle.
2  o md
q2
6. m
4 o u  u  vmin 
7. Both reach the corner at the same time. Hint: Acceleration magnitudes of the particles are proportional
to their distances from the corner.
3 q2 1 q2 1 q2
8. vA   vB   vA  
2 2 o rm 2 2 o rm 2 2 o rm

9. q  4 0 ka
mv 2 m
10.  Wion (1  )
2 M
 h   h 2 
11. E  Eo 1   V  Vo  1     12. 3V1/2 +V2/4
 H  H 
 
13. v  4 gh 1   cot    vo 2 = 4.0 mls 14.

q2  1 
vA  vB  vC  vD   1 
8 o ml  3
8  o ml 3
15. T
q 3
Hint During the oscillatory motion, mass center remains stationary. In the figure, the angle between the
threads is shown much exaggerated only for the sake of readability. The mass center is assumed as the origin
of the coordinate system on y-axis of which the middle particle oscillates. The end particles however follow
 a curved path of so small curvature that their path can assumed almost straight perpendicular to the z-
axis.

19. 3mgh