Biot Savart, Electrons, and Cirucular Currents

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a problem involving a circular wire carrying a current and its interaction with a moving electron. The context includes the application of the Biot-Savart Law to determine the magnetic field and subsequently the force acting on the electron, leading to its acceleration.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to apply the Biot-Savart Law and the force equation to find the electron's acceleration. Some participants question the accuracy of the radius used in calculations, while others suggest considering the direction of the acceleration due to the electron's negative charge.

Discussion Status

Participants are actively discussing the method and calculations, with some guidance provided regarding unit accuracy and the implications of charge sign on acceleration direction. There is no explicit consensus on the correctness of the final answer, and further checks on calculations are suggested.

Contextual Notes

There are indications of potential unit errors and a need to clarify the impact of the electron's negative charge on the direction of acceleration. The original poster has expressed uncertainty about the correctness of their final answer.

cwatki14
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A circular wire ring of diameter 18 cm carries a current of 5.0 A directed as indicated in Figure P.51. A moving electron just happens to be passing through the neighborhood. When the electron is at the center of the circular ring and moving at speed 2.50 multiplied by 106 m/s in the direction indicated in the sketch, find the acceleration of the electron.
p20-51.gif


Equations I found relevant:
The Biot Savart Law:
B=([tex]\mu[/tex]/4[tex]\pi[/tex])(I)([tex]\int[/tex]dl x r / r^2)

F=qv x B

Biot Savart solves for the magnetic field, they I can plug this into the force equation, and once I know the force, I can divide by the mass to get the particles acceleration.
I had some issues with the Biot Savart...

I used the following numbers
B=([tex]\mu[/tex]/4[tex]\pi[/tex])(5A)(circumference of the circle/r^2)
dl= circumference of the circle which eqauls d[tex]\pi[/tex]. or .5654
since r is the distance from the circle to the particle, it equal the circle's radius which is .9m.
Therefore B=3.4906e-5
I substitute this into the force equation giving me
F=qv x B
The v vector and B vector are perpendicular, so it is just scalar multiplication.
I get F=1.3980e-17
I can then divide this by the mass to get the acceleration.
Thus a= 1.5347e13
I used q= 1.602e-19 and m= 9.1093e-31

All of this led me to a wrong answer...
 
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You got the method right, but the metric units are a bit off: the radius is .09m.
 
Gear300 said:
You got the method right, but the metric units are a bit off: the radius is .09m.

that was a typo. my final answer used .09 as the radius, and I still got the problem wrong.
 
I still haven't checked the calculations yet...but for the moment, maybe what is needed is a negative (electrons have a negative charge, so the acceleration vector is in the opposite direction when compared to positively charged particles, such as protons).
 

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