Physics F104X - Spring, 2011

Homework Set #2 - Due Feb. 11th, 2011

Show all work for all problems for full credit.

One last Static Charge and Coulomb’s Law

1. Suppose a charge +Q is placed on the surface of the Earth, and another charge +Q is placed on the
Moon. (a) Find the value of Q needed to “balance” the gravitational attraction between the Moon
and the Earth. (b) How would your answer to part (a) change if the distance between the Earth
and the Moon were doubled?

Electric fields and field lines

2. A beam of electrons (each with charge –e) enters one side of a charged parallel plate capacitor at a
speed of 4.22x105 m/s. For an experiment you want this electron beam to be deflected by 14.0°
from its initial direction. (a) Show on which plate the positive and negative charges will reside,
given the direction of the deflection shown in the figure. (b) Show the direction of the electric
field between the two plates of the capacitor. (c) What is the magnitude of the electric field
needed to create this deflected beam if the dimension of the capacitor is 1.5 cm in the direction
the beam traverses? (d) If the dimension of the capacitor is doubled to 3.0 cm, how much would
the electric field have to change to create the same deflection in the electron beam at the end of
the?

Electric potential energy and electric potential

3. Giancoli Ch 17 #3
4. In a typical living cell, the electric potential inside the cell is 0.070 V lower than the electric
potential inside the cell. The thickness of the cell membrane is 0.10 µm. What are the (a)
magnitude and (b) direction of the electric field within the cell membrane?
5. A tiny sphere carrying a charge of -25.0 nC is moved 100 cm in a uniform electric field with no
acceleration. It goes from a location at a potential of zero to a potential of + 100 V. (a) How much
work is done by the applied force? (b) What is the significance of the sign of ΔW?
6. The hydrogen atom consists of on electron and one proton. In the Bohr model of the hydrogen
atom, the electron orbits the proton in a circular orbit of radius 0.529 x 10-10 m. What is the
electric potential due to the proton at the electron’s orbit
7. Giancoli Ch 17 #20
Capacitance and electrical energy storage
8. Giancoli Ch 17, #34
9. A parallel-plate capacitor has plates with an area of 0.012 m2 and a separation of 0.88 mm. The
space between the plates is filled with a dielectric with dielectric constant of 2.0. (a) What is the
potential difference between the plates when the charge on the capacitor is 4.7 µC? (b) Will your
answer to part (a) increase, decrease or stay the same if the dielectric constant is increased?
Explain. (c) Calculate the potential difference for the case where the dielectric constant is 4.0.
10. Calculate the work done by a 3.0-V battery as it charges a 7.8-µF capacitor in the flash unit of a
camera.
11. A 20-pF capacitor with a mica insulating sheet ½ -mm thick is put across a 12-V battery. How
much energy will it store?

Extra Credit ( 5 Points )

The electrical potential a distance r from a point charge q is 155 V, and the magnitude of the electric field
is 2240 N/C. Find the values of q and r.