Three point charges of magnitude 5 μ C , 0 . 16 μ C and 0 . 3 μ C are located at the vertices A , B , C of a right angled triangle whose sides are A B = 3 cm , B C = 3 2 cm and C A = 3 cm and point A is the right angle corner. Charge at point A experiences _____ N of electrostatic force due to the other two charges.

Step-by-step solution

Using Coulomb's law the electrostatic force on A due to C F A C = K q A q C r A C 2 = k × 5 × 0 . 3 × 10 - 12 9 × 10 - 4 = 9 × 10 9 × 5 × 0 . 3 × 10 - 12 9 × 10 - 4 = 1 . 5 × 10 = 15   N Similarly, the force on A due to B F A B = K q A q B r A B 2 = 9 × 10 9 × 5 × 0 . 16 × 10 - 12 9 × 10 - 4 = 8   N We can see that the forces are perpendicular to each other. Therefore, the net force experienced by charge at A is, F = F A C 2 +