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Suppose we have two charged shells with a distance between the two centers that they cannot be considered as point-like charges in the mutual interaction, for example three times the radius. Can we still calculate the force between the two spheres by thinking of them as charges concentrated in their center? and why?

Qmechanic
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Andrew Carrol
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1 Answers1

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Suppose $S$ and $A$ are spherically symmetric distributions. Then the force on $A$ due to the field of $S$ is the same as with $S$ replaced by a point charge $P$. This is opposite to the force on $P$ due to the field of $A$, which is the same as with $A$ replaced by a point charge.

Keith McClary
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