Can anybody please help me with this question?
Two friends are playing a version of proton golf where the hole is marked by a single proton. The first friend reads his meter, and declares he has a field strength of 27.5 N/C. The second friend looks at her meter and realizes she is three times as far away. What field strength does the second friend's meter read?
ANSWER ___________ N/C
Thank you
dies off as k/r^2
three times as far is 9 times as weak
27.5/9
divide by nine
To solve this problem, we need to understand the relationship between electric field strength and distance from the proton.
The electric field strength (E) is inversely proportional to the square of the distance (r) from the source of the field (proton, in this case). Mathematically, it can be represented as:
E ∝ 1/r^2
Now, let's break down the information given in the question:
1. The first friend's meter reads a field strength of 27.5 N/C.
2. The second friend is three times as far away from the proton compared to the first friend.
To find the field strength read by the second friend's meter, we need to determine the new distance:
Let's assume:
Distance of the first friend from the proton = R
Distance of the second friend from the proton = 3R (as mentioned in the question)
Now, we can set up a ratio using the relationship between field strength and distance:
E1/E2 = (r2/r1)^2
Substituting the given values:
27.5/E2 = (3R/R)^2
Simplifying the equation:
27.5/E2 = 9
Now, we need to solve for E2, which is the field strength read by the second friend's meter.
To find E2, we can rearrange the equation as follows:
E2 = 27.5/9
Therefore, the field strength read by the second friend's meter is:
E2 = 3.06 N/C (rounded to two decimal places)
I hope this explanation helps you understand how to solve the problem.