Question

49W

English
Calculating the Effect of Distance on Force
If the distance between two charge particles is increased by four, the force will decrease by a factor of

Answer 1

16

Step-by-step explanation:

The magnitude of the electrostatic force between two charged particles is given by

`F=(kq_1 q_2)/(r^2)`

where

k is the Coulomb's constant

q1, q2 are the charges of the two particles

r is the separation between the particles

In this problem, the initial force between the particles is F.

Later, the distance between the two particles is increased by four, so

r' = 4r

So, the new force between the particles will be

`F'=(kq_1 q_2)/((4r)^2)=(kq_1 q_2)/(16r^2)=(1)/(16)F`

So, the new force decreases by a factor of 16.