The flux through the hemispherical surface

  • Thread starter Thread starter gracy
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Flux Surface
Click For Summary

Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around calculating the electric flux through a hemispherical surface in the context of Gauss's law and electric fields. Participants explore the implications of using a hemispherical surface versus a closed surface and the relationship between the flux through the disk and the hemisphere.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Conceptual clarification

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants discuss the formula for flux through closed surfaces and question how it applies to a hemispherical surface. There are attempts to relate the flux through the hemisphere to the flux through a disk, with some participants suggesting that the flux through the hemisphere should equal the negative of the flux through the disk.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with various interpretations being explored regarding the relationship between the flux through the disk and the hemisphere. Some participants have provided guidance on visualizing the problem by considering the electric field and its interaction with the surfaces involved.

Contextual Notes

There is an ongoing examination of the definitions of area versus surface area, particularly in the context of applying Gauss's law. Participants are also considering the implications of having a uniform electric field and the absence of charge within the closed volume formed by the disk and hemisphere.

  • #31
gracy said:
What is surface area of disk?
A disk can be a three-dimensional body like a floppy disk http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disk. In that case, it is a flat right cylinder, having a side and two bases. The surface are is twice the area of the base plus the area of the side.
In your problem, the disk is a circle. You need to calculate the flux through the circle .
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #32
gracy said:
So,how surface area of sphere comes out to be 4 pi r^2?Does it include 4 circles?I don't think so
Gracy, I can not believe that you never learned the area of the sphere. It does not mean that it consists of 4 circles.
 
  • #33
gracy said:
So,how surface area of sphere comes out to be 4 pi r^2?Does it include 4 circles?I don't think so
It happens to have the same area as four circles of the same radius. But it's a curved surface, so you would have to cut it into infinitely many pieces to compose it of plane areas. Anyway, I was not suggesting the closed surface necessarily be cut into plane areas. You could cut it into eight octants, say, and each would turn out to have an area ##\pi r^2/2##. I was just trying to show you that there is no fundamental difference between surface area of a closed 3D region and area of a surface (which might or might not be a plane surface).
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: gracy
  • #34
ehild said:
I can not believe that you never learned the area of the sphere.
Yes! I never heard ,I only knew surface area of sphere.
 
  • #35
gracy said:
Yes! I never heard ,I only knew surface area of sphere.
ehild is referring to the surface area of a sphere. There is an ambiguity here. The term sphere is used equally to mean a solid sphere or a spherical surface. The area of a spherical surface means the same as the surface area of a solid sphere. The qualifier "surface" area is only needed/appropriate when "sphere" means a solid sphere.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: gracy
  • #36
gracy said:
it should be πR^2E
I got why!Thanks haru!
 
  • #37
gracy said:
It was always there!
This does not help me at all. Sorry.
 
  • #38
BvU said:
This does not help me at all
What do you mean?
 
  • #39
BvU said:
This does not help me at all
Oh!understood.Even when you say/write something straight forward I tend to take it logically or sarcastically to be more precise.
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
1K
Replies
51
Views
7K
Replies
5
Views
2K
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
2K
Replies
21
Views
2K
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
9K
  • · Replies 8 ·
Replies
8
Views
2K
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
3K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
5K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
4K