Final answer:
The magnitude of the force on a particle increases as the cube of the distance from a specific point, and can be represented by the equation F = br³. To find the potential energy of a particle at a certain distance from the force center, we can integrate the force equation over the distance and calculate the negative work done by the force.
Step-by-step explanation:
In this scenario, we are dealing with a force that acts on particles along a particular line and always points towards a specific point P on the line. The magnitude of the force on a particle increases as the cube of the distance from that point. The force can be represented by the equation F = br³, where F is the magnitude of the force, b is the proportionality constant, and r is the distance from point P to the position of the particle.
To find the potential energy of a particle subjected to this force when the particle is at a distance D from P, we can integrate the force over the distance from P to D. The potential energy can be calculated as the negative of the work done by the force.
Using the equation F = br³, we can integrate this equation over the distance from P to D. The work done by the force is given by the equation W = -∫F dr, where r is the distance variable. By substituting F = br³ into the equation, we can solve the integral to find the potential energy.