Energy of Coaxial Cylindrical Shells

Join the discussion
Registration is free. Ask a follow-up in this thread, or start your own.
1 reply · 3K views
NeedPhysHelp8
Messages
38
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement



Calculate the energy per unit length for two long coaxial cylindrical shells, neglecting end effects. The inner and outer cylinders have radii a and b, and linear charge densities λ and -λ, uniformly distributed on the surface, respectively.

2. The attempt at a solution

Alright so first thing I did was calculate the electric field in various regions using Gauss' Law:
i) for r<a E=0
ii) for a<r<b [tex]E=\frac{\lambda}{2\pi \epsilon r}[/tex]
iii) for r>b E=0

Now I'm not too sure how to find the energy per unit length: we have the formula [tex]E=1/2 \int \lambda V \ dl[/tex] so should I just find the potential V(r) then sub it into that equation?
I can find V(r) by [tex]\int E \ dl[/tex]
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Haha Phys 400? I am having similar trouble...