Find the magnitude of electric field at point p in figure due to the charges
q1 = 3.3 μc, q2 = 11.1 μc and q3 = -9.2 μc
To find the magnitude of the electric field at point P, we need to calculate the electric field contributions from each of the charges (q1, q2, and q3) and then add them vectorially.
1. Let's label the distances from each charge to point P as r1, r2, and r3. Measure these distances in meters.
2. Recall that the equation for the electric field due to a point charge is given by the formula: E = k * (q / r^2), where E is the electric field, k is the electrostatic constant (k = 8.99 x 10^9 N * m^2 / C^2), q is the charge, and r is the distance from the charge to the point where we want to calculate the electric field.
3. To find the electric field at point P due to each charge, calculate the following:
- Electric field due to q1: E1 = k * (q1 / r1^2)
- Electric field due to q2: E2 = k * (q2 / r2^2)
- Electric field due to q3: E3 = k * (q3 / r3^2)
4. Calculate the vector sum of the electric field contributions from each charge, taking into account the directions. Since the charges are positive or negative, their electric fields will have opposite directions.
- Electric field at point P = E1 + E2 + E3
Note: If the charges are positioned differently, you may need to use vector notation to correctly combine their electric field contributions.
5. Finally, calculate the magnitude of the electric field at point P by taking the absolute value of the vector sum obtained in step 4.
- Magnitude of electric field at point P = |E at point P|
By following these steps and performing the necessary calculations, you can find the magnitude of the electric field at point P due to the given charges.