Question

How does the force b/w 2 point charges change if the dielectric constant of the medium in which they are kept increases ?

Answer 1

Problem:

How does the force b/w 2 point charges change if the dielectric constant of the medium in which they are kept increases?

Solution:

According to Coulomb's law:

$$F = \frac {1}{4 \pi \varepsilon_ {0}} \frac {q _ {1} q _ {2}}{\varepsilon R ^ {2}}$$

Where F – electrical force acting between two point charges;

$q_{1}, q_{2}$ – value of charges;

$\varepsilon$ – dielectric constant of the medium;

R – distance between charges;

$\varepsilon_0 = 8.85 * 10^{-12} \frac{F}{m}$ – universal electric constant;

Thus, according to the formula provided above, when $\varepsilon$ increases F decreases.

Answer: decreases.