one charge of +10 uC is placed at the origin, a second charge of +5uC is placed at (2cm, 4cm) and a third charge (-15 uC) is placed at (4cm, 1 cm). What is the magnitude and direction of the electric force exerted on the first charge by the other two?
I drew out the triangle, determined the distance between q1 and q2, then q1 and q3; after that I found the force of q3 on q1 and q2 on q1... not sure if that is right. The final answer is supposed to be F = 670.16 N @ -0.8 degrees.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
2 answers
did you add the forces as vectors?
Am I supposed to take the x and y component for each, then add them together to determine the overall force on q1? that would suggest I need to determine all the angles as well?