Uniformly Distributed Surface Charge
For an infinite sheet of charge, the electric field will be perpendicular to the surface. Therefore only the ends of a cylindrical Gaussian surface will contribute to the electric flux . In this case a cylindrical Gaussian surface perpendicular to the charge sheet is used. The resulting field is half that of a conductor at equilibrium with this surface charge density.
Check Your Understanding
1. An infinite plane lies in the yz-plane and it has a uniform surface charge density. The electric field at a distance x from the plane is
A. decreases linearly with x.
B. decreases as 1/x2.
C. is constant and does not depend on x.
D. increases linearly with x.
E. is undetermined.
Answer: C
The value of the electric field does not depend on distance in the case a uniform surface charge.
1. An infinite plane lies in the yz-plane and it has a uniform surface charge density. The electric field at a distance x from the plane is
A. decreases linearly with x.
B. decreases as 1/x2.
C. is constant and does not depend on x.
D. increases linearly with x.
E. is undetermined.
Answer: C
The value of the electric field does not depend on distance in the case a uniform surface charge.