Question

Three equal 1.10-μC point charges are placed at the corners of an equilateral triangle whose sides are 0.800 m long. What is the potential energy of the system?

Answer 1

The potential energy of the system of three equal point charges placed at the corners of an equilateral triangle can be calculated using the formula PE = k * (q1 * q2 / r12 + q1 * q3 / r13 + q2 * q3 / r23). Substituting the values and calculating, the potential energy of the system is found to be 4.6 x 10^6 J.

Step-by-step explanation:

The potential energy of a system of point charges can be calculated using the formula:

PE = k * (q1 * q2 / r12 + q1 * q3 / r13 + q2 * q3 / r23)

where PE is the potential energy, k is Coulomb's constant (9 x 10^9 Nm^2/C^2), q1, q2, q3 are the charges, and r12, r13, r23 are the distances between the charges. In this case, we have three charges of magnitude 1.10 μC placed at the corners of an equilateral triangle with sides of length 0.800 m. Since all charges are equal, we can substitute them into the formula:

PE = k * (1.10 * 1.10 / 0.800 + 1.10 * 1.10 / 0.800 + 1.10 * 1.10 / 0.800)

Simplifying the expression gives:

PE = 4.6 x 10^6 J