Question

Charge 91 = 6.5 nC is located at the coordinate system origin, while charge 92 = -4.5 nC is located at (a,0), where a = 0.65 m. The point P has coordinates (a, b), where b= 0.55 m. A third charge 3 = -19.5 nC will be placed later.

what is the total potential energy u, in joules, of the final configuration of three charges?

Answer 1

The total potential energy of the final configuration of three charges can be found by calculating the potential energy between each pair of charges and summing it up.

Step-by-step explanation:

The total potential energy of the final configuration of three charges can be found by considering the potential energy between each pair of charges and summing it up. The potential energy between two point charges is given by the equation U = k * (q1 * q2) / r, where U is the potential energy, k is the electrostatic constant (9 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2), q1 and q2 are the charges, and r is the separation between them. In this case, we have three charges, so we need to consider the potential energy between charge q1 and q2, charge q1 and q3, and charge q2 and q3.

Let's calculate the potential energy between charge q1 and q2. We have q1 = 6.5 nC = 6.5 * 10^-9 C and q2 = -4.5 nC = -4.5 * 10^-9 C. The distance between them is a = 0.65 m. Plugging these values into the equation, we get U1 = (9 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2) * (6.5 * 10^-9 C) * (-4.5 * 10^-9 C) / 0.65 m.

Similarly, we can calculate the potential energy between charge q1 and q3 and between charge q2 and q3 using the given values. Once we have all three potential energies, we can sum them up to find the total potential energy of the final configuration of three charges.