PHY-AP -02 Coulomb’s Law

By
Squadron Leader Zahid Mir
CS&IT Department , Superior University
 Remember …
• Like charges repel one another
• Opposite charges attract one another
• The force of repulsion/attraction get weaker
as the charges are farther apart.
Charles-Augustin de Coulomb
(1736-1806)
French Engineer & Physicist
 Statement

The force between two point charges is

directly proportional to the product of their
magnitudes and inversely proportional to the
square of the distance between them.
 Coulomb’s Law : Mathematical Form

F α q1 q2
r2
F = k q1 q2
r2

The quantity ε0 , called the

permittivity constant.
 Main features
• Coulomb’s law holds for point charges only.
• It resembles Newton law of gravitation.
– Gravitational forces between masses are always
attractive.
– Electrostatic forces can be either positive or
repulsive depending upon the sign of charges in
consideration.
 Significance of the Law
• This law when incorporated with into the structure of
quantum physics, correctly describes:
– The electrical forces that bind the electrons of an atom to
its nucleus.
– The force that bind atoms together to form the molecule.
– The forces that bind atoms and molecules together to form
a solid or liquid.

Most of the forces of our daily experience that are not

gravitational in nature are electrical.
 Example 1

F = k q1q2
d2
F = (8.93 x 109) (3.0 x 10-6) (2.0 x 10-6)
(0.02)2
F= 133.95 N (repelling force)
 Coulomb’s Law – Vector Form
The force is the force on the charge q1
due to the charge q2
The force is the force on the charge q2
due to the charge q1
Coulomb’s Force due to charge
distribution
Coulomb’s Force due to charge
distribution
 Coulomb’s Force due to charge
distribution

Principle Of Superposition

If more than two charges are

present, the resultant force
acting on one of the charges is
the result of the vector addition
of the individual Coulomb forces
exerted on this charge by all the
other charges.
 Sample Problem # 1
1. Two point charges are located on the positive x-axis.
Charge q1 = 1.0 nC is 2.0 cm from the origin, and charge
q2 = -3.0 nC is 4.0 cm from the origin. What is the total
force exerted by these charges on a charge q3 = 5.0 nC
located at the origin?
 Sample Problem 2
2. Two equal positive point charges q1 = q2 = 2.0 C are
located at x=0, y=0.30m and x=0 , -0.30m respectively.
What are the magnitude and direction of the total
electric force that these charges exert on a third charge
Q = 4.0 C at x=0.40m , y=0 ?