Electric Dipoles / Electric Fields

Started by EZR
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EZR

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Attached is a picture of a dipole from MCAT-review.org.
Can anyone confirm that the picture on the right is in fact the stable alignment [in which the potential nrg of the system is most negative/stablest?]

If so, why? Is it because the field of the dipole itself points left, in opposition of the existing field to the right?
 
Attached is a picture of a dipole from MCAT-review.org.
Can anyone confirm that the picture on the right is in fact the stable alignment [in which the potential nrg of the system is most negative/stablest?]

If so, why? Is it because the field of the dipole itself points left, in opposition of the existing field to the right?


Did you forget to attach something?
 
Attached is a picture of a dipole from MCAT-review.org.
Can anyone confirm that the picture on the right is in fact the stable alignment [in which the potential nrg of the system is most negative/stablest?]

If so, why? Is it because the field of the dipole itself points left, in opposition of the existing field to the right?

I don't really know from a quantitative standpoint, but when you put a dipole into an electric field, the electric field force will torque the dipole until it is aligned with the field. In this case, since the e-field is pointing to the right, the positive part of the dipole will end up on the right since that is, by convention, the direction that positive charges "want to go."