1. Understand Coulomb's Law
Coulomb's Law describes the electrostatic force between two charged objects:
* F = k * (q1 * q2) / r²
Where:
* F is the force between the charges (in Newtons)
* k is Coulomb's constant (approximately 8.98755 × 10⁹ N⋅m²/C²)
* q1 and q2 are the magnitudes of the charges (in Coulombs)
* r is the distance between the centers of the charges (in meters)
2. Set Up the Equation
Since the spheres have identical charges, we can simplify the equation:
* F = k * (q²) / r²
3. Convert Units
* Convert the distance from centimeters to meters: 75 cm = 0.75 m
4. Solve for the Charge (q)
* Rearrange the equation to solve for 'q':
* q² = (F * r²) / k
* q = √((F * r²) / k)
* Plug in the values:
* q = √((0.30 N * (0.75 m)²) / (8.98755 × 10⁹ N⋅m²/C²))
* Calculate the result:
* q ≈ 1.77 × 10⁻⁶ C
Answer
The magnitude of the charge on each sphere is approximately 1.77 × 10⁻⁶ Coulombs (or 1.77 micro Coulombs).