4

JACOB LEWIS BOURJAILY

Notice that in the above we have made explicit use of the fact that the integral over d cos 0 vanishes
for all but odd values of `with the exception of ` = 0. We have also used several results from Homework
4 involving similar expressions. Hence, we have shown that
(r, ) = V /2

(2` + 1)P` (cos ) ()

`(2Z+1),0

`1
2

(` 2)!!
2((` + 1)/2)!

!
a`+1 b`+1 a` + b` r2`+1 a`+1 + b`+1
.
r`+1 (b2`+1 a2`+1 )
o 

It should be noted that this expression agrees with that derived for Homework 4. This was checked
explicitly using a computer algebra package.
Problem 3.14
Let us consider a line charge of length 2d with total charge Q and a linear charge density proportional
to (d2 z 2 ), where z is the distance from the midpoint of the line. A grounded, conducting spherical
shell of inner radius b > d is centered on the midpoint of the line charge.
a) We are to find the potential within the spherical shell for d r b as an expansion in Legendre
polynomials.
We will begin with the advice of distributed assignment sheet and first derive the charge
density inside of the sphere. We will consider a spherical coordinate system in which
the line charge is distributed along = = 0, coincident with the z-axis. This will
allow us to make wonderful use of the azimuthal symmetry.
First, we notice that because there is only charge at = 0, ,
(x) ((cos 1) + (cos + 1)) .
Similarly, because the charge is distributed along a finite length from z = d, we
have
(x) (d r).
Furthermore, we are given the fact that (x) (d2 z 2 ) and that the total charge
is Q. Therefore, we immediately see that
Z
Z 2 Z 1 Z d 2
d r2
Q=
(x)d3 x =
(d r) ((cos 1) + (cos 1)) r2 d cos d,
r2

0
0
0
Z d
8d3
= 2
(d2 r2 )dr =
.
3
0
Hence, =

3Q
8d3

and

(r, , ) =

3Q d2 r2
(d r) ((cos 1) + (cos + 1)) .
8d3 r2

Let us now begin to find the potential inside the sphere. From work in Jacksons section
3.10, we know that the general Dirichlet Greens function for the interior of the sphere
is

!
X
`
`
` `
0
0

X
r
r
r
(
,

)Y
(,
)
Y
`m

+
`m
2`+1 ,
G(x, x0 ) = 4
`+1
2` + 1
b
r+
`=0 m=`
and from the azimuthal symmetry in our case, we have

`
` `
X
r
r
r+
0
G(x, x ) =
2`+1 P` (cos )P` (cos 0 ).
`+1
b
r
+
`=0
In general the potential inside the sphere can be computed using G(x, x0 ) by the relation
Z
Z
1
1
G(x, x0 ) 0
0
0 3 0
(x) =
(x )G(x, x )d x
(x0 )
da .
40
4
n0

PHYSICS 505: CLASSICAL ELECTRODYNAMICS HOMEWORK 5

1
40

Because the potential vanishes on the spherebeing groundedwe need only worry
about the first contribution. Therefore, we may compute,

(x0 )G(x, x0 )d3 x0 ,

!
)
Z ( 2

`
` `
X
r
r
r+
d r02
1 3Q
0
0
0
0
(d r ) ((cos 1) + (cos + 1))
2`+1 P` (cos )P` (cos ) d3 x0 ,
=
`+1
40 8d3
r02
b
r
+
`=0
(

! )
Z

h
i d
`
` `
X
r
r
r+
3Q
=
P` (cos ) P` (1) + P` (1)
(d2 r02 )
2
2`+1
dr0 ,
`+1
2
3
32 0 d
b
r
0
+
`=0
! )
(

d
`
`
`
X
r r+
r
3Q
=
dr0 .
P` (cos )
(d2 r02 )
2`+1
`+1
3
80 d
b
r+
0

(x) =

`(2Z)

Notice that in the last line, we have implicitly made the summation only over even values
of `, which accounts for an extra factor of two in front. Now, if r d then r0 = r
and r = r+ . This makes life enormously easier: if we were to consider the case where
r < d, then we could not assign either r or r0 to r globally. Rather, this would need
to be implemented somehow through tricky integration bounds: a big mess!
Returning to our evaluation, if r d,
(
0`
)
Z d

X
3Q
r
r0` r`
2
02
(r, , ) =
P` (cos )
(d r )
2`+1 dr0 ,
8 2 0 d3
r`+1
b
0
`(2Z)
)
(

Z d

X
3Q
1
r`
2
02 0`
0
=
P` (cos )
2`+1
(d r )r dr ,
80 d3
r`+1
b
0
`(2Z)
(

2 0`+1
d )

X
1
3Q
r`
d r
r0`+3
P` (cos )
,
=
2`+1

80 d3
r`+1
b
`+1
`+3 0
`(2Z)

X
3Q
1
r`
d`+3
=
P
(cos
)

,
`
40 d3
r`+1
b2`+1 (` + 1)(` + 3)
`(2Z)

(r, , ) =

3Q X
1
r2`
P2` (cos )d2`

.
4 2 0
(2` + 1) (2` + 3) r2`+1
b4`+1
`=0

o 
b) We are to calculate the charge density induced on the shell.
We compute this directly. We have,

(r, )
2` + 1
2`
3Q X
P2` (cos )d2`
() = 0
2`+2
,
=
(r) r=b
4
(2` + 1) (2` + 3) b2`+2
b
`=0

( =

3Q X
4
`=0

d2`
4` + 1
P
(cos
)
.
2`
(2` + 1) (2` + 3) b2`+2
o 

c) We are to briefly comment on our results above in the limit where d 0.

It is abundantly obvious exactly what these limits will give us so let us quickly check.
For the potential , as d 0, all the terms in the sum will vanish except ` = 0,
giving,

3Q P0 (cos ) 1 1
Q
1 1
lim (r, ) =

.
d0
4 2 0
3
r
b
40 r
b

JACOB LEWIS BOURJAILY

That was more than expected. The charge distribution acts similarly when d 0;
namely, only the ` = 0 term in the sum survives so that
3Q 1 1
Q
lim () =
P0 (cos ) =
.
d0
4 3 b2
4b2
This was also expected, as it is just a uniform charge distribution on the sphere.
Problem 3.17
Let us consider the Dirichlet Greens function for the unbounded space between two grounded planes
at z = 0, L.
a) We are to show that a form of the Greens function in cylindrical coordinates is

n
n
nz
4 X X im(0 )
nz 0

+
G(x, x0 ) =
sin
Im
Km
.
e
sin
L n=1 m=
L
L
L
L
Our work will largely follow that of Jacksons section 3.11. We start by simply restating
the requirement that G(x, x0 ) be a Greens function; namely, that it satisfy,
4
2 G(x, x0 ) = ( 0 )( 0 )(z z 0 ).

Recall that we have many rather convenient ways of expressing a -function. In

particular, recall that

1 X im(0 )
0
( ) =
e
,
2 m=

nz
nz 0
2 X
0
sin
sin
.
(z z ) =
L n=1
L
L
Inserting these into the definition of 2 G(x, x0 ) in cylindrical coordinates above, we
see that

nz
4 X X im(0 )
nz 0 ( 0 )
2 G(x, x0 ) =
sin
.
e
sin
L n=1 m=
L
L

Now, recall that G(x, x0 ), like any suitable function (in the l2 topology), can be expanded
in terms of orthogonal functions. In particular, we can in complete generality write

nz
X
X
0
.
G(x, x ) =
Anm eim sin
L
n=1 m=
Now, in general, the coefficients Anm will be functions of the coordinates x0 and .
If we act on this expansion for G(x, x0 ) with the Laplacian in cylindrical coordinates, we
see that

nz
X
X
2 G(x, x0 ) = 2
Anm eim sin
,
L
n=1 m=

2
nz
1
1 2
2 X X

im
+
+
+
A
e
sin
,
=
nm
2
2 2
z 2 n=1 m=
L
2

nz
X
X

1
m2
n2 2
im
=
+

A
e
sin
.
nm
2

2
L2
L
n=1 m=
But recall that

nz
4 X X
nz 0 ( 0 )
im0
G(x, x ) =
e
sin
eim sin
.
L n=1 m=
L

L
2

Now, orthogonal function expansions are unique in a suitable sense (that is, they
can disagree on at most a set of measure zero if the domain of definition is a nice).
Therefore, we see that

2
1
m2
n2 2
4 im0
nz 0 ( 0 )

+
2
Anm = e
sin
.
2

L2
L
L