---
title: "A thin circular ring of radius \\(R\\) lies in the \\(xy\\)-plane, centered at the origin, and carries a total positive charge \\(Q\\) distributed uniformly along its circumference. Which of the following graphs best represents the magnitude of the electric field \\(E\\) along the positive \\(z\\)-axis as a function of distance \\(z\\) from the center of the ring?"
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url: "https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/117985/"
date_modified: "2026-08-04T08:02:46+00:00"
---

# A thin circular ring of radius \(R\) lies in the \(xy\)-plane, centered at the origin, and carries a total positive charge \(Q\) distributed uniformly along its circumference. Which of the following graphs best represents the magnitude of the electric field \(E\) along the positive \(z\)-axis as a function of distance \(z\) from the center of the ring?

A thin circular ring of radius \(R\) lies in the \(xy\)-plane, centered at the origin, and carries a total positive charge \(Q\) distributed uniformly along its circumference. Which of the following graphs best represents the magnitude of the electric field \(E\) along the positive \(z\)-axis as a function of distance \(z\) from the center of the ring?

![A thin ring of radius R sits horizontally in the xy-plane, depicted as a tilted flat ellipse with its center at the origin. A vertical z-axis line extends upward from the center, terminating with an arrow labeled z at the top. A point P is marked on the z-axis at a distance z above the origin. Multiple small positive signs (+) are placed uniformly along the perimeter of the ring to represent a uniform positive charge Q. A straight solid line segment connects the center of the ring to its outer edge, labeled R. A dashed line segment connects point P to the outer edge of the ring, labeled r. No other labels, lines, text, or axes appear.](https://nerd-notes.com/wp-content/uploads/ubq-frq-generated/stem-ring-diagram-1785830565-bPd3DB.jpg)

- **A.** A graph that starts at zero at \(z = 0\), rises to a maximum at a finite positive distance, and then decreases asymptotically toward zero as \(z \to \infty\).
- **B.** A graph that has its maximum value at \(z = 0\) and decreases monotonically toward zero as \(z \to \infty\).
- **C.** A graph that increases linearly with \(z\) for all \(z > 0\).
- **D.** A graph that is zero from \(z = 0\) to \(z = R\) and then decreases smoothly toward zero for \(z > R\).

*The answer key and step-by-step explanation are available to logged-in users at https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/117985/*