Tagged Questions

3
votes
1answer
63 views

What are the limits of applicability of Coulomb's Law?

Coulomb's law is formally parallel to Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, which is known to give way to General Relativity for very large masses. Does Coulomb's Law have any similar limits of ...
8
votes
1answer
155 views

How the inverse square law in electrodynamics is related to photon mass?

I have read somewhere that one of the tests of the inverse square law is to assume nonzero mass for photon and then, by finding a maximum limit for it , determine a maximum possible error in ...
0
votes
1answer
58 views

A ring placed along $y^2 + z^2 = 4$, $x = 0$ carries a uniform charge of $5 \mu\ C/m$. Find $D$ at $P(3,0,0)$ [closed]

A ring placed along $y^2 + z^2 = 4$, $x = 0$ carries a uniform charge of $5 \mu\ C/m$. Find $D$ at $P(3,0,0)$ How do I solve this using Coulomb's Law? I used $dE=\dfrac{dQ}{4\pi\epsilon_0 ...
1
vote
3answers
260 views

Similarity between the Coulomb force and Newton's gravitational force

Coulomb force and gravitational force has the same governing equation. So they should be same in nature. A moving electric charge creates magnetic field, so a moving mass should create some force ...
0
votes
3answers
155 views

What was wrong with action a distance?

It is usually said that the idea of fields was introduced (electric and magnetic fields) in electricity and magnetism after Coulomb's law to cure the conceptual problems of action at a distance. ...
1
vote
1answer
207 views

Gravity force strength in 1D, 2D, 3D and higher spatial dimensions

Let's say that we want to measure the gravity force in 1D, 2D, 3D and higher spatial dimensions. Will we get the same force strength in the first 3 dimensions and then it will go up? How about if ...
5
votes
1answer
296 views

Are the Maxwell's equations enough to derive the law of Coulomb?

Are the 8 Maxwell's equations enough to derive the formula for the electromagnetic field created by a stationary point charge, which is the same as the law of Coulomb? If I am not mistaken, due to ...
1
vote
2answers
99 views

A particle of charge $-e$ orbits a particle of charge $Ze$, what is its orbital frequency?

A point particle $P$ of charge $Ze$ is fixed at the origin in 3-dimensions, while a point particle $E$ of mass $m$ and charge $-e$ moves in the electric field of $P$. I have the Newtonian equation of ...
1
vote
1answer
555 views

How is Gauss' Law (integral form) arrived at from Coulomb's Law, and how is the differential form arrived at from that?

On a similar note: when using Gauss' Law, do you even begin with Coulomb's law, or does one take it as given that flux is the surface integral of the Electric field in the direction of the normal to ...
4
votes
3answers
819 views

Coulomb's Law: why is $k = \dfrac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0}$

This was supposed to be a long question but something went wrong and everything I typed was lost. Here goes. Why is $k = \dfrac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0}$ in Coulomb's law? Is this an experimental fact? ...
6
votes
2answers
982 views

Coulomb potential in 2D

I know that the Coulomb potential is logarithmic is two dimensions, and that (see for instance this paper: http://pil.phys.uniroma1.it/~satlongrange/abstracts/samaj.pdf) a length scale naturally ...
2
votes
0answers
185 views

Modified Coulomb potential

I'm working through Byron and Fuller's "Mathematics of Classical and Quantum Physics" and came across this problem: If the electric potential of a point charge were $\phi(r) = ...