🔋college physics i – introduction review

key term - Coulomb’s law

Definition

Coulomb's Law quantifies the electrostatic force between two charged objects. The force is directly proportional to the product of their charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

  1. Coulomb's Law formula is $F = k \frac{q_1 q_2}{r^2}$, where $F$ is the electrostatic force, $k$ is Coulomb's constant ($8.99 \times 10^9 \text{Nm}^2/\text{C}^2$), $q_1$ and $q_2$ are the charges, and $r$ is the distance between them.
  2. The direction of the force depends on the signs of the charges: like charges repel and opposite charges attract.
  3. Coulomb's Law applies to point charges or spherically symmetric charge distributions.
  4. The law assumes that other forces (e.g., gravitational) are negligible compared to electrostatic forces in most practical scenarios.
  5. In a vacuum, Coulomb's constant ($k$) has a value determined by the permittivity of free space ($\epsilon_0$), where $k = \frac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0}$.

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