1. What is Coulomb's Law?

Coulomb's Law describes the electrostatic force between two charged particles. The force is proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.

2. How Does the Calculator Work?

The calculator uses Coulomb's Law:

Where:

• \( F \) — Electric force (N)
• \( k \) — Coulomb's constant (8.9875×10⁹ N m²/C²)
• \( q_1 \) — First charge (C)
• \( q_2 \) — Second charge (C)
• \( r \) — Distance between charges (m)

Explanation: The force is attractive if charges have opposite signs and repulsive if they have the same sign. The calculator returns the magnitude of the force.

3. Importance of Electric Force Calculation

Details: Understanding electric forces is fundamental in electromagnetism, atomic physics, and electrical engineering. It helps predict interactions between charged particles.

4. Using the Calculator

Tips: Enter charges in Coulombs (can be positive or negative), distance in meters (must be positive), and Coulomb's constant (default is 9×10⁹ N m²/C²).

5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: What is the direction of the electric force?
A: The force acts along the line joining the two charges - attractive for opposite charges, repulsive for like charges.

Q2: What are typical charge values?
A: Elementary charge is 1.6×10⁻¹⁹ C. Macroscopic objects typically have charges in microcoulombs (μC) to millicoulombs (mC).

Q3: How does distance affect the force?
A: Force decreases with the square of distance - doubling the distance reduces force to 1/4 of original value.

Q4: What is Coulomb's constant in other units?
A: In cgs units, k = 1 dyne·cm²/esu². In atomic units, k = 1/(4πε₀) where ε₀ is vacuum permittivity.

Q5: Does this work for point charges only?
A: The simple form works for point charges or spherical charges with uniform distribution. Complex geometries require integration.