Find electric field of a spherical shell

AI Thread Summary
To find the electric field E at a distance of 10.4 m from the center of a thin spherical shell with a radius of 6.8 m and a total charge of 7.77 C, the formula E = ke * (Q/r^2) is used, where ke = 8.988 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2. A calculation using this formula resulted in an initial answer of 6.4568 * 10^9 N/C, but the user questioned its correctness. It was suggested that the user may have made an arithmetic error, particularly with decimal points, rather than a mistake in the formula itself. Ensuring proper unit handling and careful arithmetic is crucial for accurate results.
unteng10
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1. A thin spherical shell of radius 6.8 m has a total charge of 7.77 C distributed uniformly over its surface. Find the electric field E 10.4 m from the center of the shell. Answer in units of N/C.
ke = 8.988 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2




2. E = ke * (Q/r^2)



3. I did (8.988 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2)(7.77 C/10.4m^2)
The answer I came up with is 6.4568 * 10^9 N/C, am I doing this correctly?
 
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Yes, looks good to me!
 
I thought so too, but for some reason it keeps telling me my answer is incorrect.
 
Do you know the right answer? Are you off by a certain order of magnitude? If yes, you should check to make sure you wrote the units properly. I've forgotten to take into account unit modifiers like micro and nano before. Just a thought, since your work is correct as is.
 
unteng10 said:
3. I did (8.988 * 10^9 Nm^2/C^2)(7.77 C/10.4m^2)
The answer I came up with is 6.4568 * 10^9 N/C, am I doing this correctly?
The formula is fine, you just made an arithmetic error. (Careful with decimal points.)
 
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