Calculating Potential at Point Above Uniformly Charged Square of Side 2a

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Homework Help Overview

The problem involves calculating the electric potential at a point located a distance 'a' above the midpoint of one side of a uniformly charged square with a side length of '2a'. The context is rooted in electrostatics, specifically dealing with potential due to charge distributions.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to set up a double integral to calculate the potential, expressing uncertainty about evaluating it and noting that it may involve logarithmic functions. Some participants suggest considering the potential due to a small rod instead, prompting questions about how this approach differs from the original setup.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants exploring different methods to approach the problem. There is a lack of explicit consensus on the correct method or solution, and some participants express frustration about the lack of responses.

Contextual Notes

Participants note that the problem requires expressing the answer as a numerical multiple of a specific constant, which adds a layer of complexity to the evaluation. There is also mention of no provided solution, indicating that participants are working independently to derive the answer.

Phymath
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a square of side 2a is uniformly charged with a surface density [tex]\rho[/tex]
find the potential at a point distance a directly above the midpoint of one of the sides, express your answer as a numerical multiple of [tex]k_e \rho a[/tex].

wow ok soo... i got this going for me
[tex] k \rho \int^a_{-a} \int^a_{-a} \frac{1}{\sqrt{(x-x')^2 + (y-y')^2 + z^2}}dy' dx'[/tex] where (x,y,z) is the point simple enough..how do i evaulate this...i know it goes all natural log on me...but damn what do i do then!? suggestions anyone?
 
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Find the potential at the point due to a small rod of length 2a and then integrate from a to a+2a
 
how will that be different? other then a change of limits?
 
Is the solution
2 ln[4+(2)^1/2]* (KP2a)^2 ?
 
probley not considering it asks for a numerical multiple of kpa...
no solution is given i just have to figure it out

make it easier..sorta what's this?

[tex] k \rho \int^a_{-a} \int^a_{-a} \frac{1}{\sqrt{(-x')^2 + (-a-y')^2 + a^2}}dy' dx'[/tex]
 
Last edited:
how come everytime i do one of these no one answers lol...
 

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