Understanding Coulomb's Law: Force of Repulsion Between Charged Objects

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on Coulomb's Law, specifically the equation Fe = (Kq1q2)/d^2, which quantifies the force of repulsion or attraction between two charged objects. It is established that Fe represents the force experienced by both objects, in accordance with Newton's third law of motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. For instance, if a positive charge exerts a force of 200N on a negative charge, the negative charge exerts an equal force of 200N back on the positive charge. This principle is analogous to gravitational forces, such as the Earth pulling on a person with 700N of force, where the person also exerts 700N of force on the Earth.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Coulomb's Law and its formula
  • Familiarity with Newton's third law of motion
  • Basic knowledge of electric charge and forces
  • Concept of gravitational force and its equivalence
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the derivation of Coulomb's Law and its applications in electrostatics
  • Explore examples of forces between charged particles in different configurations
  • Learn about the implications of Newton's laws in various physical scenarios
  • Investigate the relationship between electric and gravitational forces
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Students of physics, educators teaching electrostatics, and anyone interested in the fundamental principles of forces between charged objects.

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Actually, this is not a homework question, but more of a concept problem (Sorry I can;t follow the format). We are given that the force of repulsion or attraction between 2 charged objects can be represented by : Fe = (Kq1q2)/d^2. Does this mean that the sum of the force between both objects equals Fe, or is it that Fe represents the force felt by only one of the objects?
 
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What is Newton's third law? ;-).

Fe is the force that both of them feel because for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

For example if you have a positive charge and a negative charge and you figure out that Fe = 200N, then the positive charge pulls on the negative charge with 200N of force. This means that the negative charge must also pull on the positive charge with 200N of force just as Newton's third law of motion says.

Its the same as Fg(or any other force, I am just providing you with another example), if the Earth pulls on you with 700N of force, then you pull on the Earth with 700N of force as well.
 
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Ahh thank you. It makes a lot more sense to make the equation geared towards one object anyway :D
 

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