Question

Which of the following statements is (are) true? a) Electric field lines point inward toward negative charges. b) Electric field lines form circles around positive charges. c) Electric field lines may cross. d) Electric field lines point outward from positive charges. e) A positive point charge released from rest will initially accelerate along a tangent to the electric field line at that point

Short answer

Question: Identify the true statement(s) about electric field lines: a) Electric field lines point inward toward negative charges. b) Electric field lines form circles around positive charges. c) Electric field lines may cross. d) Electric field lines point outward from positive charges. e) A positive point charge released from rest will initially accelerate along a tangent to the electric field line at that point. Answer: a, d, e

Step-by-step solution

Option a) Electric field lines point inward toward negative charges.

This statement is true. Electric field lines point towards the negative charges as they originate from positive charges and terminate at negative charges. So, the direction of electric field lines around a negative charge is always inward.

Option b) Electric field lines form circles around positive charges.

This statement is false. Electric field lines never form perfect circles around positive charges. They always point radially outward from the positive charge and terminate at negative charges. If a charge is isolated, field lines will expand radially outwards to infinity.

Option c) Electric field lines may cross.

This statement is false. Electric field lines cannot cross each other. If they were to cross, they would have more than one direction at the crossing point, which is not possible as the electric field has a unique direction in a particular point in space.

Option d) Electric field lines point outward from positive charges.

This statement is true. Electric field lines originate from positive charges, and they always point radially outward from the positive charge and terminate at negative charges. If a charge is isolated, field lines will expand radially outwards to infinity.

Option e) A positive point charge released from rest will initially accelerate along a tangent to the electric field line at that point.

This statement is true. The electric field is the force acting on a charge per unit charge, so the force direction acting on the positive charge will be along the electric field lines. As a result, a positive point charge in an electric field will initially move in the same direction as that of the tangent to the electric field line at that point. In conclusion, the true statements are: a) Electric field lines point inward toward negative charges. d) Electric field lines point outward from positive charges. e) A positive point charge released from rest will initially accelerate along a tangent to the electric field line at that point.