Question

Air will break down (lose its insulating quality) and sparking will result if the field strength is increased to about 3 × 106 N/C. What acceleration will an electron experience in such a field? The mass of the electron is 9.109 × 10−31 kg and the fundamental charge is 1.602 × 10−19 C. Let the electric field lie along the positive x-axis. Answer in units of m/s 2

Answer 1

Acceleration,
`a=5.27* 10^(17)\ m/s^2`

Step-by-step explanation:

Given that,

Electric field strength,
`E=3* 10^6\ N/C`

Mass of the electron,
`m=9.109* 10^(-31)\ kg`

Charge on electron,
`q=1.602* 10^(-19)\ C`

Let a is the acceleration experienced by an electron. It can be calculated as :

`ma=qE`

`a=(qE)/(m)`

`a=(1.602* 10^(-19)* 3* 10^6)/(9.109* 10^(-31))`

`a=5.27* 10^(17)\ m/s^2`

Hence, this is the required solution.