The electric flux is the amount of electric field passing through a particular surface area. The surface area is the size of the surface boundary that encloses an object.
The term “flux” refers to how much flow passes through a particular surface area per unit of time. In the case of electric flux, it is the rate at which electric field passes through a particular surface area per unit of time.
Calculating the electric flux is one way to determine what effect external forces have on an object within a given environment. How much electric flux passes through an object depends on what external forces affect it, such as other objects or fields.
Within a given environment, like in vacuum (a void space with no outside force influence), determining the amount of electric flux that passes through a specific surface area is simple.
Calculate the total surface area of object 1 and 2
To calculate the electric flux through the surface that encloses object 1 and 2, you first have to find the total surface area of object 1 and 2.
You can do this by drawing a single wire frame around both objects, adding up all of the sides, and dividing by two because there are two sides of each object.
The difficulty here is determining whether to include internal components or not. If including internal components increases the total surface area, then you should include them. If not, then do not!
A good way to test if an internal component increases the total surface area is to draw just a single side of it and see if that adds any additional size to the outside of the object.
Calculate the total surface area of object 2 and 3
Now let’s go back to our original question: What is the electric flux through the surface A1 that encloses all three objects?
To answer this, we need to calculate the total surface area of object 2 and 3. We already know the total surface area of object 2, since it is a single sphere with a radius of r2.
To find the total surface area of object 3, we can use the formula for finding the total surface area of any polygon: S = 1/2(ab + bc + ca + da + ef + gh) where a, b, c, d, e, f, g are the sides of the polygon.
Solving for a, b, c, d gives us: 1/2(a+b+c+d) which equals 1/2(a+b+c) since we cannot divide by zero. Therefore: S = (1/2)(abcd) which equals ((1/2)(abc))d. Thus A3 = ad.
Calculate the total surface area of all three objects
Now let’s calculate the electric flux through the surface A1 that encloses all three objects.
The electric flux through a surface is calculated by dividing the total electrical force inside the surface by the area of the surface. Newton’s law of viscosity states that the faster fluid moves, the greater its viscosity (resistance to flow).
Similarly, if there is more electrical force inside a given surface, then there must be greater electrical flux through that surface. The greater the difference in potential between two objects, the stronger the electrical force will be and thus, more flux will be present in surrounding surfaces.
We can now calculate the total electric flux through surface A1 that encloses all three objects using these concepts. first{last}{next>{prev
The first object has a charge of +Q and its potential difference with respect to object 2 is |V2|. The second object has a charge of −Q and its potential difference with respect to object 1 is |V1|. Object 3 has a charge −Q and its potential difference with respect to object 1 is also |V1|.
Therefore, we can write:
- Total charge: Q=−Q+Q=2Q
- Total potential difference: V=(−V1)+(−V2)=0
- Surface area A=SASinθ where S=the spherical shell area around object 3; θ=the angle between vectors V3−V1; and SAS=the area of sphere S.
Determine which equation to use for calculating electric flux
The equation you use to calculate electric flux depends on whether the surface enclosing the objects is a plane, a line, or a complete surrounding surface. Calculating electric flux for a plane surface is done with the following equation:
where:
ε0 = 8.85×10−12 F/m is the per meter constant of proportionality, also called the permittivity of free space; V is the volume of the solid consisting of only air; A is the area of one face of the solid (in this case, a plane); and n is the number of faces (three).
You can find these variables in relation to your problem by determining what spatial properties make up your system. In this case, you have a flat surface that encloses all three objects, so A=1 and n=3. Therefore, V=1 and A=0, so ε0=8.85×10−12 F/m.
Plug in numbers to get your answer
So, let’s get down to business and solve this problem. First, we need to assign values to the unknowns. We’ll call the radius of the inner sphere r1, the radius of the outer sphere r2, and the distance between the centers of the spheres d.
We also need to know how many rings there are around each object. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll say there are one hundred rings on each object (though that will not affect our answer).
Now we can plug these numbers into our formula: Ē=I∫A1dA where I is current, A1 is area 1, and d is diameter. Ē=8.85×10−6; I∫A1dA=8.85×10−6J·m2·mm−2·m3.
Check your answer using math principles
As mentioned before, the two basic principles of geometry are the postulate and the theorem. A postulate is an assumption that is taken for granted, whereas a theorem is derived from other facts or assumptions.
Postulates are typically definitions that are taken for granted and assumed to be true. The theorem is proving this definition is true by using other facts or assumptions.
In mathematics, a fact can be something proven by someone or society as a whole as truth. An assumption is something taken to be true in proving a truth.
- Surface area A=SASinθ where S=the spherical shell area around object 3; θ=the angle between vectors V3−V1; and SAS=the area of sphere S.
- Total potential difference: V=(−V1)+(−V2)=0
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