An initially uncharged hollow metallic sphere with radius of 6 cm has a small object with a charge of +14 µC carefully placed at the center of the sphere through a hole in the latter's surface.With the charge in place,what charge is now present on the outside surface of the sphere?
A)zero
B)−14 µC
C)+5 600 µC
D)+14 µC
E)−5 600 µC

Question

An initially uncharged hollow metallic sphere with radius of 6 cm has a small object with a charge of +14 µC carefully placed at the center of the sphere through a hole in the latter's surface.With the charge in place,what charge is now present on the outside surface of the sphere?​
A)zero
B)−14 µC
C)+5 600 µC
D)+14 µC
E)​−5 600 µC

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the principle of electrostatics, the charge on the outer surface of a conductor is always located on its surface. Therefore, the charge on the outer surface of this initially uncharged hollow metallic sphere will be induced by the +14 µC charge placed at the center of the sphere.

Since the sphere is metallic, the charge distribution on its surface will be such that the electric field inside it is zero. Therefore, the charge on the outer surface of the sphere will be -14 µC, which is equal in magnitude but opposite in sign to the +14 µC charge placed at the center of the sphere.

Hence, the answer is D, +14 µC.

An Initially Uncharged Hollow Metallic Sphere with Radius of 6