Online Lab: Coulomb’s Law
Name: JENELYN DAYTIC Date: APRIL 8, 2022
Instructor: MA’AM MARICEL SANTILLAN Section: 12 STEM NEWTON
Objective:
This lab you will determine the factors which affect the electrostatic force, FE, between two charges,
q1 and q2 as well as determine the relationship between FE, q1, q2, and r. Then graphically determine
the value of Coulomb’s Constant, k.
Theory:
Electrostatic force between two charges is (a) directly proportional to the magnitude of the product
the two charges and (b) inversely proportional to the square of the distance between their centers.
If q1 and q2 are the magnitude of the two point charges, and r is the distance between their centers,
electrostatic force between them is expressed by the equation below.
(1)
where k is a constant of proportionality, called Coulomb’s constant, k= 8.99 x 109 N · m2/C2.
Coulomb’s law of Electrostatic Force states that a charged particle attracts or repels other charged
particles with a force which is directly proportional to the product of their charges and inversely
proportional to the square of the distance between their centers.
Online Experiment Setup Instructions:
Developed by Melissa Butner, ETSU 1
1. Go to the following website:
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/coulombs-law/latest/coulombs-law_en.html
2. Click Macro Scale on the PHeT simulation.
3. The simulation should look like the image below.
4. You can control the value of the charges, q1 and q2 with the sliders on the bottom.
5. The distance between the charges, r, can be changed by dragging either charge left or right.
Always measure from the CENTER of the left charge, q1, to the CENTER of the right charge, q2.
6. The force value is represented by white vectors as well as a magnitude in Newtons, N.
Fixed Distance, Changing Charge
1. Place q1 and q2 4 cm apart.
2. SET the values of q1 to -7 µC and q2 to 10 µC.
3. Record the force on q1 by q2, F21 and the force on q2 by q1, F12 in Table 2.
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4. Record if the force arrows are pointing (Toward or Away) from each other in Table 3.
5. Repeat Steps 2 - 4 for each q2 value in Column 2. Table 1: Data Results: Fixed Distance,
Changing Charge
q1 q2 r F21 F12 Away - A
(µC) (µC) (cm) (N) (N) Toward - T
-7 µC 10 µC 4 cm 393.205 N 393.205 N A
-7 µC 8 µC 4 cm 314.564 N 314.564 N A
-7 µC 6 µC 4 cm 235.923 N 235.923 N A
-7 µC 4 µC 4 cm 157.282 N 157.282 N A
-7 µC 2 µC 4 cm 78.641 N 78.641 N A
-7 µC 0 µC 4 cm 0.000 N 0.000 N BALANCE
-7 µC -2 µC 4 cm 78.641 N 78.641 N T
-7 µC -4 µC 4 cm 157.282 N 157.282 N T
-7 µC -6 µC 4 cm 235.923 N 235.923 N T
-7 µC -8 µC 4 cm 314.564 N 314.564 N T
-7 µC -10 µC 4 cm 393.205 N 393.205 N T
Observation and Analysis:
1. What happens to F21 when you doubled q2 while leaving the q1 constant? Select from: Stays
the same, Doubles, Halves, Quadruples
Answer:DOUBLES
2.
If q2 is held constant and q1 is reduced by a factor of 3, what happens to F21?
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Answer: Stays the same
Select from: Stays the same, Triples, Reduced to 1/3 of original value, or
Reduced to 1/9 of original value
Answer: Reduced to 1/3 of original value
Fixed Charge, Changing Distance
1. SET the values of q1 and q2 to 10 µC.
2. DRAG q1 all the way to the left at the 0 cm mark.
3. DRAG q2 all the way to the right at the 10 cm mark.
4. Record the force on q1 due to q2, F12 in Table 2, Column 6.
5. Repeat Steps 3 - 4 for distance of 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2 cm.
6. Convert the distance (r) from cm to m. Record these values in Table 2, Column 4.
7. Calculate 1/r2 in meters (m) for each distance. Record these values in Table 2, Column 5.
Table 2: Data Results: Fixed Charge, Changing Distance
q1 q1 r r 1/r2 F12
(µC) (µC) (cm) (m) (m) (N)
10 µC 10 µC 10 cm 0.1 m 100 m 89.876 N
10 µC 10 µC 9 cm 0.09 m 123.46 m 110.957 N
10 µC 10 µC 8 cm 0,08 m 156.25 m 140.430 N
10 µC 10 µC 7 cm 0.07 m 204.08 m 183.419 N
10 µC 10 µC 6 cm 0.06 m 277.78 m 249.654 N
10 µC 10 µC 5 cm 0.05 m 400 m 359.502 N
10 µC 10 µC 4 cm 0.04 m 625 m 561.722 N
10 µC 10 µC 3 cm 0,03 m 1,111.11 m 998.617 N
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10 µC 10 µC 2 cm 0.02 m 2,500 m 2037.993 N
Observation and Analysis:
1. Based on your data above, describe the relationship between Electrostatic Force, FE, and
distance between the charges, r. Check the box next to your choice below.
A. ✔ Inverse, FE ∝ 1/r (e.g. If r triples, FE is reduced by a factor of 1/3)
B. Inverse Square, FE ∝ 1/r2 (e.g. If r triples, FE is reduced by a factor of 1/32)
C. Direct, FE ∝ r (e.g. If r triples, FE increases by 3)
D. Quadratic or Square, FE ∝ r2 (e.g. If r triples, FE increases by 32)
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E.
Conclusions
1. Using your data in Table 2, Columns 4 and 6, create a graph of F12 on the Y-axis versus r on the
X-axis. Label the x-y axes including units and Title your graph “Coulomb Force vs Charge
Separation“. Upload it with this Lab Report in D2L. Comment on the graph
COULOMB’S FORCE VS. CHANGE SEPARATION
2500
2000 0.02, 2037.993
1500
1000 0.03, 998.617
500 0.04, 561.722
0.05, 359.502
0.06, 249.654
0.07, 183.419
0.08, 140.43
0.09, 110.957
0.1, 89.876
0
0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1 0.12
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2. Using your data in Table 2, Columns 5 and 6, create a graph of F12 on the Y-axis versus on the
X-axis. Label the x-y axes including units and Title your graph “Coulombs Law“. Upload it with
this Lab Report in D2L. Measure and record the slope of the line using any method you are
comfortable with. What is the physical meaning of the slope?
NOTE: When you get the slope you should get something like 0.8987 which is in (N * m2).
Then you divide that by q2 or (10 × 10−6)2 with units of C2.
Coulomb’s Law
2500
2000 2500
1500
1000 1,111.11
500 625
400
277.78
204.08
156.25
123.46
100
0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
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The graph runs and rise over that leads to proof that this is a Coulomb’s Law or the steepnees of
the slope.
3. Discuss how well does your measured k value compare to (kknown = 8.9 × 109 N · m2/C2).
Compare the experimental value of Coulomb’s constant, kmeasured with the accepted value kknown
using the equation below.
% (2)
The electrical force’s true value like Coulomb’s Law os constant. On the other hand, the valueof k
is 9x109 and it acts as the percentage error ulitilizing. The k=8.9x109 x m2/c2 which was
multiplied to 100 measured either the acceptable value or the actual magnitude of the electrical
force.
4. Electric force is a force of attraction or repulsion between objects based on their charges and
their distance apart. When is the electric force attractive?
According to the law of attraction, if a positive charge and a negative charge interac, their forces
act in the same direction, from thepositive to the negative charge. Also, positively charged
objects and newtral objects attract each other and nagetively chagred objects and neutral
objects attract each other.
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5. When is the electric force repulsive?
Eletric force could be repulsive if the charges are alike. If the forces are unlike, the forces are
attractive. If the charges have the same sign, the electric force between them is repulsive. This
could get between two charges is equal to the multiplication if the magnitude of the charges
divided by the square of the distance between them.
6. Does the electric force increase or decrease as objects move closer together?
The size of the force varies inversely a the square of the distance between the two charges.
Therefore, if teh distance between the two charges is doubled, the attraction of repulsion
becomes weaker, decreasing to one- fourth of the original value
7. What evidence do you see that Newton’s third law applies to electrostatic forces?
When two bodies make contact , Newton’s Third law states that they applu forces to each other
that are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction. The law of action and response is another
name for the third law. It appears that this law only applies when two bodies collide. However,
the third law’s classification of force applies to all forms of force. This pair’s xisting scenario also
applies to forces that act at a distance without contacting such as electrostatic or gravitational
forces.
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