Q.A hemisphere is uniformly charged positively. The electric field at a point on a diameter away from the centre is directed
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🔒 Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →Concept understanding — Gauss Law
Gauss's Law is a shortcut. Instead of adding up the Coulomb contribution of every charge — a nightmare of vectors and integrals — it lets you read the field straight off the symmetry of a problem. The whole idea rests on one quantity: electric flux.
Flux — field-lines counted through a surface. For a uniform field E crossing a flat area A, the flux is Φ = E·A = EA cosθ, where θ is the angle between the field and the normal to the surface. Picture the field as a bundle of lines; flux is how many pierce the surface. When E is edge-on (θ = 90°) nothing passes through and Φ = 0; when E is ⊥ to the surface (θ = 0) the count is maximal. For a closed surface, Φ is the net number of lines leaving it — lines that enter and exit cancel.
The law itself. Gauss's law states that the net flux out of any closed surface depends only on the charge trapped inside:
Φ = q_enclosed / ε₀.
Two consequences do most of the work. First, only enclosed charge counts — a charge outside sends as many lines in as out, so its net contribution is exactly zero. Second, the surface's shape is irrelevant; move the charge around inside or deform the surface, and Φ never changes.
Why symmetry makes it powerful. By itself Φ = q/ε₀ has E buried in an integral. It becomes a tool only when you pick a Gaussian surface matched to the symmetry — one where E is constant and everywhere either ⊥ to the surface (so Φ = EA) or ∥ to it (contributing nothing). Then E slides out and you solve in one line. This works for exactly three geometries:
1 — Infinite line charge (linear density λ). Use a coaxial cylinder: E = λ / 2πε₀r, falling off as ∝ 1/r.
2 — Infinite sheet (surface density σ). Use a pillbox pierced through the sheet: E = σ / 2ε₀ — uniform and completely independent of distance. The field near a large charged plane simply doesn't weaken as you step back. …
Why this formula?
Gauss's Law: Why It Holds
Gauss's Law is one of the four Maxwell's equations and a cornerstone of electromagnetism. Let's build the understanding from the ground up — not just the formula, but the why.
1. The Core Idea: Flux as "Flow" of Field
Imagine an electric field E passing through a small patch of area dA. The electric flux through that patch is:
dΦE=E⋅dA=EdAcosθ
where θ is the angle between E and the outward normal to the surface.
Why this definition?
- If E is perpendicular to the surface (θ=0), maximum field "flows through".
- If E is parallel (θ=90∘), no flux — the field just slides along the surface.
Total flux through a closed surface S is:
ΦE=∮SE⋅dA
2. The Key Insight: Flux Depends Only on Enclosed Charge
Consider a single point charge +q at the centre of a spherical surface of radius r.
- By Coulomb's law, at every point on the sphere: E=4πε01r2q, radially outward.
- The area vector dA is also radially outward.
- So E⋅dA=EdA everywhere.
The total flux:
ΦE=∮EdA=E∮dA=(4πε01r2q)(4πr2)=ε0q
Notice: The r2 cancels! The flux is independent of the radius.
3. Why Shape Doesn't Matter
Now, what if the surface is not spherical but any closed shape enclosing the charge?
- Draw a small cone from the charge to the surface.
- The flux through a patch dA at distance r is dΦ=4πε01r2qcosθdA.
- But r2cosθdA is exactly the solid angle dΩ subtended by dA at the charge.
So dΦ=4πε0qdΩ.
Integrating over the entire closed surface: ∮dΩ=4π (total solid angle around a point).
Hence:
ΦE=4πε0q⋅4π=ε0q
Result: For any closed surface enclosing q, the flux is ε0q.
4. Multiple Charges: Superposition
If there are many charges q1,q2,…,qn inside the surface, the total electric field is the vector sum of individual fields:
E=E1+E2+⋯+En
Flux is linear: …
Concept: field of a uniformly charged hemisphere at points on its base.
By mirror symmetry about the plane through the axis and the diameter, the field at any point P on the diameter has no component out of that plane. At the centre, full symmetry makes the field purely axial (perpendicular to every diameter). Moving to a point away from the centre, the nearby part of the curved shell (whose outward normal there is nearly along the diameter) contributes an increasingly la …
By mirror symmetry the field at P lies in the plane containing the axis and the diameter; it is purely axial only at the centre and becomes increasingly aligned with the diameter near the rim, so at a general point away from the centre it is tilted towards the diameter — option (c).
Setting up the symmetry
Model the hemisphere as a uniformly (positively) charged hemispherical shell of radius R, flat circular face in a plane, with a diameter of that face lying along, say, the x-axis through the centre O. Let P be a point on this diameter at distance d from O (0<d<R), still in the plane of the flat face.
Step 1 — Kill the out-of-plane component. The hemisphere is symmetric under reflection through the plane containing the axis (the z-axis, perpendicular to the base) and the chosen diameter (the xz-plane). Every charge element at y>0 has a mirror partner at −y contributing an equal and opposite y-component of field at P (which itself sits at y=0). So Ey(P)=0: the resultant field must lie in the xz-plane, i.e., in the plane of the axis and the diameter.
Step 2 — What happens exactly at the centre. At O (d=0), the hemisphere has full rotational symmetry about the axis, so by the same mirror argument applied to EVERY diameter through O, all horizontal components cancel and only the axial (z) component survives. This is the familiar result EO=4ε0σ, directed along the axis, away from the curved surface — i.e., perpendicular to every diameter.
Step 3 — What happens near the rim. As P moves out to d→R (near the edge of the flat face), it approaches the ring where the curved surface meets the base — the "equator." Right there, the nearby patch of the curved shell is almost tangent to a vertical cylinder, i.e., its outward normal is nearly horizontal, along the diameter direction itself. A point just inside that patch sits in the field of what looks locally like a charged sheet whose normal is along the diameter — so the dominant, nearby contribution to E at points close to the rim is along the diameter, not axial. …
Concept: Superposition & Symmetry in Electrostatics
For a uniformly charged hemisphere, the electric field at a point on the axis (the diameter line) is not simply radial — it has a net direction due to the broken spherical symmetry.
Method: Superposition of Two Half-Spheres
Why this method?
A full uniformly charged sphere produces zero net field at its centre (by symmetry). A hemisphere is exactly half of that sphere. So we can think:
Full sphere = Hemisphere A + Hemisphere B (identical, oppositely oriented)
At the centre of the full sphere, the field is zero. Therefore, the field due to one hemisphere must be equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to the field due to the other hemisphere.
Steps
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Imagine a full sphere of radius R, uniformly charged with total charge +2Q (so each hemisphere has charge +Q).
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At the centre O of the full sphere, by symmetry:
Efull=0
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Let Ehemi be the field at O due to one hemisphere (say the upper half).
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The other hemisphere (lower half) produces field −Ehemi at O, so that:
Ehemi+(−Ehemi)=0
- Key result: The field at the centre of a uniformly charged hemisphere is not zero — it points away from the flat face (if positively charged). …
Here are the common mistakes students make when analyzing the electric field direction for a uniformly charged hemisphere, along with how to avoid each.
Mistake 1: Assuming the field is radial (like a full sphere)
The error: Students treat the hemisphere like a full sphere and conclude the field at a point on the axis (the diameter) is directed radially outward (away from the centre in all directions).
Why it’s wrong: A full sphere has spherical symmetry — every bit of charge pulls equally in all directions, so the net field at the centre is zero, and outside it is radial. A hemisphere breaks that symmetry. There is no charge on the missing half, so the field cannot be purely radial.
How to avoid: Always check for symmetry first.
- Full sphere: Symmetric → radial field.
- Hemisphere: Only half the charge exists. The missing half means the field will point away from the centre but also away from the flat face (i.e., along the axis, away from the flat side).
Mistake 2: Thinking the field points toward the flat face
The error: Some students imagine the field lines “leaking” out of the flat circular face and conclude the field points toward that face.
Why it’s wrong: The hemisphere is positively charged. Electric field lines point away from positive charge. The flat face has no charge (it’s an imaginary surface), so the field cannot point toward it. The field must point away from the bulk of the positive charge.
How to avoid: Remember the fundamental rule:
- Positive charge → field lines radiate outward.
- The field at any point is the vector sum of contributions from all charge elements. For a point on the axis (the diameter), the net field points away from the centre and away from the flat face — i.e., along the axis, outward from the curved side.
Mistake 3: Forgetting to use vector addition (superposition)
The error: Students try to guess the direction intuitively without summing contributions from all parts of the hemisphere.
Why it’s wrong: The field at a point is the vector sum of fields from every infinitesimal charge element. Without superposition, you miss that horizontal components cancel (due to symmetry about the axis) but vertical components add.
How to avoid: Always break the problem into components:
- Choose a coordinate system (e.g., axis along the diameter).
- For each charge element, find the field direction.
- Cancel components perpendicular to the axis (they sum to zero).
- Add components along the axis — they all point in the same direction (away from the flat face).
Mistake 4: Confusing “on a diameter” with “at the centre”
The error: Students think “on a diameter” means exactly at the centre of the hemisphere.
Why it’s wrong: The question says “on a diameter away from the centre” — meaning a point on the axis outside the centre, not at it. At the exact centre, the field is not zero (unlike a full sphere), but the direction is still along the axis away from the flat face.
How to avoid: Read carefully:
- “On a diameter” = on the axis of symmetry.
- “Away from the centre” = not at the centre, but somewhere along that line. …
- TG EAPCET 2026Set eng-2026-05-11-FN1 markMCQQ.If ϕA and ϕB are the electric fluxes leaving and entering a Gaussian surface respectively, then the charge enclosed in the surface is (A) (ϕA−ϕB)εo (B) εo(ϕA+ϕB) (C) (ϕA+ϕB)εo (D) εo(ϕB−ϕA)
›Reveal solutionSolution
Gauss’s law relates the net electric flux through a closed surface to the enclosed charge. The net flux is the flux leaving minus the flux entering, so the enclosed charge is (ϕA−ϕB)ε0, which corresponds to option (A).
Concept & Intuition
Gauss’s law states that the total electric flux through any closed surface equals the charge enclosed divided by ε0. But “total flux” means the net flux — the sum of contributions over the entire surface, taking direction into account.
- Flux leaving the surface (outward) is taken as positive.
- Flux entering the surface (inward) is taken as negative. So if ϕA is the outward (leaving) flux and ϕB is the inward (entering) flux, the net flux is ϕA−ϕB (since entering flux contributes negatively). Gauss’s law then gives the enclosed charge directly.
Step-by-step reasoning
- Recall Gauss’s law For any closed Gaussian surface,
Φnet=∮E⋅dA=ε0Qenc
where Φnet is the net electric flux through the surface.
-
Interpret the given fluxes
- ϕA = flux leaving the surface (outward direction).
- ϕB = flux entering the surface (inward direction). By convention, outward flux is positive, inward flux is negative.
-
Write the net flux
The net flux is the algebraic sum:
Φnet=ϕA+(−ϕB)=ϕA−ϕB
- Apply Gauss’s law Substitute into Gauss’s law:
- TG EAPCET 2025Set eng-2025-05-03-AN1 markMCQQ.The work done in displacing a particle from y=a to y=2a by a force −y2K acting along y-axis is (A) −8a5K (B) −8a314K (C) −a2K (D) −2aK
›Reveal solutionSolution
Work is the integral of force over displacement. For a variable force F=−K/y2, the work from y=a to y=2a is W=−K/(2a), so the correct option is (D).
Concept & Intuition
Work done by a variable force along a straight line is not simply force times distance — you must integrate. Here, the force depends on position (F=−K/y2), so the work is the area under the F‑vs‑y curve between the limits. The negative sign in the force means it opposes the direction of increasing y; the integral will naturally account for that.
Step‑by‑Step Solution
- Recall the definition of work for a one‑dimensional variable force If a force F(y) acts along the y-axis, the work done in moving a particle from y1 to y2 is
W=∫y1y2F(y)dy.
This is the fundamental relation — no shortcuts when the force isn’t constant.
- Substitute the given force and limits Here F(y)=−y2K, y1=a, y2=2a. So
W=∫a2a(−y2K)dy=−K∫a2ay−2dy.
- Evaluate the integral The antiderivative of y−2 is −y−1 (since dyd(−y−1)=y−2). Thus ∫a2ay−2dy=[−y−1]a2a=(−2a1)−(−a1)=−2a1+a1=2a1.…
- TG EAPCET 2025Set eng-2025-05-03-FN1 markMCQQ.The work done in displacing a particle from y=a to y=2a by a force −y2K acting along y-axis is (A) −8a5K (B) −a2K (C) −8a314K (D) −2aK
›Reveal solutionSolution
The work done by a variable force is the integral of force over displacement. For F=−K/y2 from y=a to y=2a, the work is −2aK, so the correct option is (D).
The key concept here is work as the integral of force with respect to displacement. When a force varies with position, you cannot simply multiply force times distance — you must sum up infinitesimal contributions. The force is given as F=−y2K, acting along the y-axis. The negative sign indicates the force opposes the positive y-direction (like gravity or an attractive central force). Work done by this force when the particle moves from y=a to y=2a is:
W=∫yiyfFdy
We integrate carefully, watching signs and limits.
- Set up the integral The force is F(y)=−y2K. The displacement is along y, so work is:
W=∫a2a(−y2K)dy
- Factor out the constant
W=−K∫a2ay−2dy
- Integrate The antiderivative of y−2 is −y−1 (since dyd(−1/y)=1/y2). So:
∫y−2dy=−y−1=−y1
Thus:
W=−K[−y1]a2a
- Evaluate the definite integral
W=−K((−2a1)−(−a1))
Simplify inside:
=−K(2a1)…=−K(−2a1+a1)
- TG EAPCET 2024Set ap-2024-05-07-AN1 markMCQQ.A paramagnetic substance in the form of a cube of side 3cm has a magnetic moment of 243×10−6Am2, when a magnetic field of intensity 150×103Am−1 is applied. The susceptibility of the substance is (A) 8×10−5 (B) 12×10−5 (C) 6×10−5 (D) 3×10−5
›Reveal solutionSolution
The magnetic susceptibility is the ratio of magnetisation to the applied magnetic field intensity. Using the given magnetic moment and volume, we find magnetisation, then divide by field intensity to get χ=6×10−5.
The key idea here is that magnetic susceptibility (χ) tells us how easily a material gets magnetised in response to an external magnetic field. For a paramagnetic substance, χ is small and positive. The definition is:
χ=HM
where M is the magnetisation (magnetic moment per unit volume) and H is the applied magnetic field intensity. So we need M first.
-
Find the volume of the cube.
Side =3cm=3×10−2m.
Volume V=(3×10−2)3=27×10−6m3=2.7×10−5m3.
-
Magnetisation M is magnetic moment per unit volume:
M=Vmagnetic moment=2.7×10−5243×10−6
Simplify:
M=2.7243×10−1=90×10−1=9A/m
(Check: 243/2.7=90, then 10−6/10−5=10−1, so 90×10−1=9.)
-
Applied field intensity H=150×103A/m=1.5×105A/m.
-
Susceptibility is then:
χ=HM=1.5×1059=6×10−5 …
-
- TG EAPCET 2023Set eng-2023-05-13-FN1 markMCQQ.The flux of the electric field E=24i^+30j^+28k^ NC−1 through an area of 20 m2 on the yz plane is (A) 480 Nm2C−1 (B) 600 Nm2C−1 (C) 560 Nm2C−1 (D) 1640 Nm2C−1
›Reveal solutionSolution
The flux through a surface is the dot product of the electric field with the area vector. For the yz-plane, the area vector points along the x-direction, so only the x-component of the field contributes. The flux is 24×20=480 Nm2C−1, which corresponds to option (A).
The key idea is that electric flux is defined as Φ=E⋅A, where A is the area vector whose direction is perpendicular to the surface. For a surface lying in the yz-plane, the perpendicular direction is the x-axis. That means only the x-component of E contributes to the dot product — the y and z components are parallel to the surface and produce zero flux.
Let’s work through it step by step.
- Identify the area vector. The surface is on the yz-plane. A vector perpendicular to this plane points along the x-axis. The area is given as 20 m2, so the area vector is
A=20 i^ m2.
(We take the positive x-direction by convention; the sign would only matter if we cared about orientation, but here we just want magnitude.)
- Recall the flux formula. Electric flux through a flat surface is
Φ=E⋅A.
This is a dot product, so only components of E parallel to A contribute.
- Compute the dot product. Given E=24i^+30j^+28k^ NC−1 and A=20i^ m2,
Φ=(24i^+30j^+28k^)⋅(20i^)=24×20 (i^⋅i^)+30×20 (j^⋅i^)+28×20 (k^⋅i^).
Since i^⋅i^=1 and j^⋅i^=k^⋅i^=0, this simplifies to
Φ=24×20=480 Nm2C−1.
- Interpret the result. …
- TG EAPCET 2023Set eng-2023-05-14-AN1 markMCQQ.A hollow spherical shell of radius r has a uniform charge density σ. It is kept in a cube of edge 3r such that the centres of the cube and the shell coincide. Then the electric flux coming out of one face of a cube is (ϵ0 - permittivity of free space) (A) ϵ0πr2σ (B) 2π2σ5ϵ0 (C) 6ϵ0πr2σ (D) 3ϵ02πr2σ
›Reveal solutionSolution
The key idea is that the total flux through the cube equals the enclosed charge divided by ϵ0, and by symmetry each of the six faces gets an equal share. The total charge on the shell is 4πr2σ, so the flux per face is 61⋅ϵ04πr2σ=3ϵ02πr2σ, matching option (D).
The problem asks for the electric flux through one face of a cube that contains a charged spherical shell at its center. The shell is hollow, with uniform surface charge density σ, and the cube’s edge is 3r, so the shell fits entirely inside. The key is to use Gauss’s law and symmetry — no integration over the face is needed.
Why this works: Gauss’s law says the total electric flux through any closed surface equals the net charge enclosed divided by ϵ0. The cube is a closed surface, and the shell is entirely inside it. Because the shell is centered in the cube, the electric field has the full symmetry of the cube: each face is identical with respect to the charge distribution. Therefore, the total flux through the cube is shared equally among the six faces.
Let’s go step by step.
- Find the total charge on the spherical shell. The shell has radius r and uniform surface charge density σ. The surface area of a sphere is 4πr2, so the total charge is
Q=σ⋅4πr2=4πr2σ.
- Apply Gauss’s law to the cube. The cube is a closed surface that completely encloses the shell. The net electric flux through the cube is
Φtotal=ϵ0Qenc=ϵ04πr2σ.
- Use symmetry to find the flux through one face. …
- TG EAPCET 2022Set ap-2022-07-30-FN1 markMCQQ.The electric filed in a region is given by E=(4i^+5j^+3k^) V/m. Let θ1 and θ2 be the net flux passing through a square area of side 2 cm parallel to y-z plane and x-z plane respectively. The ratio θ1/θ2 is (A) 0.80 (B) 1.25 (C) 1.33 (D) 0.60
›Reveal solutionSolution
The flux through a surface is the dot product of the electric field and the area vector. For a square parallel to the y-z plane, only the x-component of E contributes; for the x-z plane, only the y-component contributes. The ratio simplifies to 4/5=0.80, so the answer is (A).
The key idea is that electric flux Φ=E⋅A, where A is a vector perpendicular to the surface with magnitude equal to the area. When a surface is parallel to a coordinate plane, its area vector points along the perpendicular axis. So for a square in the y-z plane, A is along i^; for a square in the x-z plane, A is along j^. This means only the corresponding component of E contributes to the flux.
- Identify the area vectors.
- For a square of side 2 cm=0.02 m parallel to the y-z plane, the area vector is perpendicular to that plane, i.e., along the x-axis.
A1=(0.02×0.02)i^=4×10−4i^ m2
- For a square parallel to the x-z plane, the area vector is along the y-axis:
A2=4×10−4j^ m2
- Compute the fluxes.
- Flux through the first square:
θ1=E⋅A1=(4i^+5j^+3k^)⋅(4×10−4i^)=4×4×10−4=16×10−4 Vm
- Flux through the second square: θ2=E⋅A2=(4i^+5j^+3k^)⋅(4×10−4j^)=5×4×10−4=20×10−4 Vm…
- Identify the area vectors.
- TG EAPCET 2022Set eng-2022-07-19-AN1 markMCQQ.6μC charge is placed at the centre of a cube. What will be the electric flux at each face of the cube? [Take 4πϵ01=9×109 Nm2C−2] (A) 9π×102 Nm2/C (B) 36π×103 Nm2/C (C) 3.6π×103 Nm2/C (D) 4π×103 Nm2/C
›Reveal solutionSolution
By Gauss's law the total flux is Q/ε0; a cube's symmetry splits it equally over 6 faces, giving 36π×103 Nm2/C.
Total flux through the closed cube (Gauss's law):
ϕtotal=ε0Q=4πkQ=4π(9×109)(6×10−6)
ϕtotal=4π×54×103=216π×103 Nm2/C …
- TG EAPCET 2021Set ap-2021-08-09-AN1 markMCQQ.An electrical charge distribution is given by volume charge density ρ(r)=αr (0≤r≤R) when r is the radial coordinate. Find the electric flux due to this distribution through a closed cylindrical surface of radius R enclosing the above charge distribution: (A) ϵ04παR4 (B) ϵ02παR4 (C) ϵ0παR4 (D) 2ϵ0παR4
›Reveal solutionSolution
The electric flux through any closed surface equals the total enclosed charge divided by ϵ0 (Gauss’s law). For a spherically symmetric charge density ρ(r)=αr inside radius R, the total charge is found by integration in spherical coordinates, giving Qenc=παR4, so the flux is Φ=ϵ0παR4, which corresponds to option (C).
The key idea is Gauss’s law: the electric flux through a closed surface depends only on the total charge inside, not on the shape of the surface. Here the surface is a cylinder, but that doesn’t matter — we just need the total charge enclosed by the charge distribution itself (which is a sphere of radius R). The charge density is spherically symmetric, so we integrate in spherical coordinates.
- Set up the total charge integral The volume charge density is ρ(r)=αr for 0≤r≤R, and zero elsewhere. In spherical coordinates, a volume element is dV=r2sinθdrdθdϕ. The total charge is
Qenc=∫ρdV=∫r=0R∫θ=0π∫ϕ=02π(αr)(r2sinθdrdθdϕ).
- Separate the integrals The integrand becomes αr3sinθ. Since the limits are independent,
Qenc=α(∫0Rr3dr)(∫0πsinθdθ)(∫02πdϕ).
-
Evaluate each factor
- Radial: ∫0Rr3dr=4R4.
- Polar: ∫0πsinθdθ=[−cosθ]0π=2.
- Azimuthal: ∫02πdϕ=2π.
Multiplying:
Qenc=α⋅4R4⋅2⋅2π=α⋅4R4⋅4π=παR4. …
- TG EAPCET 2021Set ap-2021-08-09-FN1 markMCQQ.The electric field in a region is given as E=(10i^+20j^) V/m. The net flux passing through a square area of side 2 m parallel to x – z plane is: (A) 805 Vm (B) 405 Vm (C) 40 Vm (D) 80 Vm
›Reveal solutionSolution
Flux Φ=E⋅A. The square lies in the x–z plane, so its area vector is along j^; only the j^ component of the field contributes: Φ=20×4=80 Vm, option (D).
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Area vector: a square of side 2 m has area A=22=4 m2. Being parallel to the x–z plane, its normal is along the y-axis, so A=4j^ m2.
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Field: E=(10i^+20j^) V/m.
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Flux: …
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