Insights Blog
-- Browse All Articles --
Physics Articles
Physics Tutorials
Physics Guides
Physics FAQ
Math Articles
Math Tutorials
Math Guides
Math FAQ
Education Articles
Education Guides
Bio/Chem Articles
Technology Guides
Computer Science Tutorials
Forums
Trending
Featured Threads
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Menu
Log in
Register
Navigation
More options
Contact us
Close Menu
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Forums
Physics
Classical Physics
Electromagnetism
Capacitance of an isolated sphere - solid vs hollow
Reply to thread
Message
[QUOTE="elisagroup, post: 6205915, member: 664365"] Seems the physics books agree that there is no difference in capacitance whether an isolated sphere is solid or hollow. And the reason mentioned for that always sounds something like the following: [I]"The reason that the capacitance C, and hence the charge Q, is not affected by whether or not the sphere is hollow or solid is because, in a perfect conductor, like charges are free to take up equilibrium positions in response to the mutual electrostatic (Coulomb) repulsion between them. This means that all of the charges will move to the outer surface of the sphere, and will be distributed uniformly over the surface of the sphere, in order to 'get as far away as possible' from their neighbors. This is the energetically most favorable distribution of the charge. Since the material of which the sphere is made is a conductor, all charges can find their way to the outer surface, whether the interior is hollow or solid. "[/I] But does it account for the scenario where the sphere would be charged to such a degree that the outer surface would get crowded, with charges looking for a more relaxed state and redistributing themselves on the inner layers of the sphere as well. And If that is true, wouldn't that mean that under certain conditions there is a difference in capacitance between solid vs hollow configurations? [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Post reply
Forums
Physics
Classical Physics
Electromagnetism
Capacitance of an isolated sphere - solid vs hollow
Back
Top