Coloumb torque on a charge sphere?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the classical model of the hydrogen atom, specifically examining the conservation of electron spin when external torque about the center of mass is zero. The user seeks to prove that the sum of torques, represented by the equation ∑_i r_i' × F_i = 0, holds true under the assumption that the electron is modeled as a uniformly charged sphere. The conversation also touches on the implications of modeling the proton as a point charge and the nature of the forces involved, particularly the standard Coulomb attraction force.

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center o bass
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I'm trying to explore a classical model of the hydrogen atom and here I find that the electrons spin will be conserved if we the external torque about it's center of mass is zero. I'm trying to prove to myself that indeed it is, but then I have to show that

[tex]\sum_i \vec r_i' \times \vec F_i = 0 .[/tex]

Where [tex]\vec r_i'[/tex] is the vector from the center of mass to the i'th charge element dq of the sphere and [tex]\vec F_i[/tex] is the force on proton. I'm assuming that the electron is a uniformly charged sphere and not a point particle. Does anyone know how to show this or know a link to somewhere the calculation has been done? I suspect an equivalent calculation has been done in relation to planetary motion.. torque on a planet due to another.
 
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center o bass said:
... and ##\vec F_i## is the force on proton.
Is this the standard Coulomb attraction force? Are you modeling the proton as a point charge? If the answer to both questions is "yes", the torque on ##dq## will be zero because ##\vec r'_i## is antiparallel to ##vec F'_i## which would make the cross product zero. If there is a "no" answer, please be more specific about your model. A separate question is what do you mean by spin? Are you imagining the electron as a charged "spinning" sphere?
 

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