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AP Physics 2
10.4 Electric Potential Energy
IntermediateMCQMathematicalConceptual22.9k
Four arrangements of point charges at the corners of a square.
Four arrangements of point charges at the corners of a square.
Four point charges, each of magnitude \(q\), are fixed at the corners of a square of side length \(d\). Four different arrangements of these charges are established:

System I: Four \(+q\) charges.
System II: Three \(+q\) charges and one \(-q\) charge.
System III: Two \(+q\) charges and two \(-q\) charges arranged in alternating order around the perimeter (\(+q, -q, +q, -q\)).
System IV: Two \(+q\) charges along the top edge and two \(-q\) charges along the bottom edge (\(+q, +q, -q, -q\)).

Which of the following correctly ranks the total electrostatic potential energy \(U\) of the systems from greatest to least?

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