The Difference in Force Experienced by Charges q and 2q

Why is the force experienced by charge q at point A larger in magnitude than the force experienced by charge 2q at point B?

The Difference in Forces

Based on the given information, we have a fixed source charge and two test charges, q and 2q, placed at points A and B, respectively. The distance from the source charge to point A is r, while the distance from the source charge to point B is 2r.

To compare the forces experienced by the test charges, we can use Coulomb's law, which states that the force (F) between two charges is given by:

F = k * (|q1| * |q2|) / r^2

where k is the Coulomb's constant, |q1| and |q2| are the magnitudes of the charges, and r is the distance between them.

Let's compare the forces experienced by the charges q and 2q:

1. Force on charge q at point A:
F1 = k * (|q| * |source charge|) / r^2

2. Force on charge 2q at point B:
F2 = (1/2) * k * (|q| * |source charge|) / r^2

Comparing F1 and F2, we can see that F2 is half the magnitude of F1. This means that the force experienced by the charge 2q at point B is half of the force experienced by the charge q at point A.

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