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Electrostatic potential of a uniformly charged triangle in Barycentric

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Page 1 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
KPOP E-2020-09

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2 Electrostatic Potential of a Uniformly Charged Triangle in Barycentric Coordinates
3
4 U-Rae Kim,* Wooyong Han,„ Dong-Won Jung, Jungil Lee,§ and Chaehyun Yu¶

pt
KPOPE Collaboration, Department of Physics, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea
5 (Dated: March 24, 2021)
6
7 We compute the electrostatic potential of a uniformly charged triangle. Barycentric coordinates
8 are employed to express the field point, the parametrization of the surface integral, and the gradient
operator. The resultant analytic expression for the electrostatic potential is expressed in terms of
9

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the side lengths of the triangle, the altitude of the field point from the plane in which the triangle is
10 placed, and the barycentric coordinates of the field point relative to the triangle. Our results are in
11 good agreement with available numerical results. The asymptotic behaviors of the analytic expres-
12 sion are investigated in special limits that satisfy known values. The resultant analytic expressions
13 for the asymptotic regions are useful in improving the numerical convergence at boundaries. As
14 an application, we provide a strategy to compute the electrostatic potential of a uniformly charged
15 polygon. The electrostatic potential of a uniformly charged rectangle is considered as a simple exam-
ple that agrees with a previous result. Appendices provide a complete set of integral tables that are
16

us
necessary to evaluate the double integral over the barycentric coordinates, an explicit parametriza-
17 tion of the gradient operator in the barycentric coordinates, and useful coordinate-transformation
18 rules between the barycentric and Cartesian coordinates.
19
Keywords: electrostatic potential, barycentric coordinates, triangle
20
21
22
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28
I.
an
INTRODUCTION
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The electrostatic force F exerting on a single point test charge q due to another point charge q 0 is well described
29 by Coulomb’s law. According to the superposition principle, that still works in electrostatics, one can compute the
30 electrostatic force on the test charge q due to a charge distribution over the space by adding the differential contribution
31 dF to the electrostatic force on q due to the differential charge element dq 0 by integration for a continuous distribution
32 or by summation if the distribution is discrete. In practice, it is convenient to compute the corresponding electric field
33 E, which is independent of the test charge and depends only on the surrounding charge distribution, first and then
34 multiply the charge q to obtain the electrostatic force as F = qE. R Because the electrostatic force is conservative, the
35 electric field can be obtained as E = −∇V (x), where V (x) = dq 0 /(4πε0 |x − x0 |) is the electrostatic potential that
36 is a scalar field. Here, we consider the free space only, ε0 is the permittivity of the free space, x is the position vector
37 of the field point at which the electric field is measured, and x0 is the position of the differential charge element dq 0
38 of the charge distribution. Thus, once we know what the electrostatic potential V (x) is, we can compute the electric
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39 field E and eventually the electrostatic force in a straightforward manner. Furthermore, the electrostatic energy due
40 to a given charge distribution can also be interpreted as the energy carried by the electric field in the space with
41 density 12 ε0 E 2 . If the distribution is isolated to a certain geometric object such as a capacitor, then the concept can
42 be used to compute the capacitance of the capacitor.
43 Most of textbooks like Halliday et al [1] of general physics and [2, 3] on electromagnetism deal with only extremely
44 ideal uniform charge distributions over geometric objects such as a straight line, a circle, a disc, a shell, and a sphere.
45 Among them, an infinite straight line and a shell are relatively easy to deal with because the cylindrical and spherical
46 symmetries, respectively, allow one to compute the electric field directly by employing Gauss’ law. Although the
computation of the electrostatic potential for a finite line segment or a circle are rather tedious, they are in principle
ce

47
48 calculable if one is familiar with freshman calculus. The direct computation of the electrostatic potential of a uniform
charge distribution over a disc, a shell, and a sphere involves multiple integrals that are calculable if one is able to
49
deal with the spherical polar coordinates and is skilled with multivariable calculus, mathematical physics, or possibly
50
engineering mathematics of undergraduate level.
51
52
Ac

53
54 * sadafada@korea.ac.kr
§ jungil@korea.ac.kr; Corresponding author; Director of the Korea
55 „ gksdndyd@korea.ac.kr
Pragmatist Organization for Physics Education (KPOP E)
56 dongwonj@korea.ac.kr ¶ chyu@korea.ac.kr
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2 However, the charge distribution other than the cases listed above is not easy to deal with in an analytic way and
one mostly relies on numerical computation. In that case, by applying the superposition principle, one may divide the
3
given charge distribution into small pieces each of which may match with an elementary charge distribution whose
4

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analytic expression for the electrostatic potential is known exactly or approximately with available quantitative error
5
estimations. For example, if the distribution is over an arbitrary-shaped polygon, then one can divide the surface into
6 the sum of subtriangles. Such method is called the surface-patch model [4], a kind of the finite-element method [5],
7 which can be applicable to an arbitrary-shaped charged surface in the electrostatic case with a method of moments
8 [6]. The finite-element method [5] is a numerical method that approximates an unknown function of a system. This
9 method divides the domain of the system into smaller systems called finite elements by discretizing the complete

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10 system. The unknown function of the complete system is expressed as the assembly of the piecewise functions of the
11 finite elements.
12 The electrostatic potential of a uniformly charged triangle is not only an educative topic that student can learn how
13 to deal with a case without geometric symmetries in the electrostatics but also can be utilized to enhance the accuracy
14 and the stability in numerical computation of the electrostatic potential of an arbitrary-shaped charged surface based
15 on the surface-patch model as mentioned in Rao et al [4]. The analytic expression for the corresponding potential at a
16 field point P has been derived in references [4, 7]. While the parametrizations of the surface integral over a triangle in

us
17 references [4, 7] are equivalent to the barycentric coordinates, the authors employed different representations for the
18 field point. The use of different coordinates for the field point and the source make it difficult for one to compare these
19 two results in references [4, 7]. Thus we consider the same problem described in terms of the barycentric coordinates
20 for both the field point and source completely. The computation of the electric field can also be carried out by making
21 use of the barycentric coordinates. The barycentric coordinate system is a particularly convenient representation of
22 coordinates of a point inside a simplex like a triangle, a polygon, or a tetrahedron. For example, any surface integral of
23
24
25
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27
28
a function
R 1 f over
R 1 a region
R1

an
inside a triangle can be parametrized as simple scalar integrals over barycentric coordinates
κi , 2S 0 dκa 0 dκb 0 dκc δ(1 − κa − κb − κc )f (κa , κb , κc ), where S is the area of the triangle. This coordinate system
was first introduced by Möbius [8] to study the orbital motions of celestial bodies and have been widely employed
in physics [9–12] as well as projective geometry [13–18]. If the convergence of the integral near the boundaries of
the triangular region is poor or the integral is even divergent near the endpoints, then one can easily investigate
the behavior near zeros of the barycentric coordinates. In computing higher-order correction terms in the gauge field
dM
theory, such a divergence appears at these boundary regions and they isolate these divergent contributions analytically
29
at the lower or upper limit of the integral over a barycentric coordinate. This is another merit of the barycentric
30 coordinates against the Cartesian coordinates. For more advanced materials involving barycentric coordinates, we
31 recommend the reader to refer to Ungar [19] and references therein.
32 In this paper, we compute the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged arbitrary triangle at any field point.
33 The barycentric coordinates are employed both to represent the field point and to parametrize the surface integral
34 over the triangle. The computation of the electrostatic potential is performed in a completely analytic manner in the
35 barycentric coordinates. In order to check the validity of the computation, we investigate asymptotic behaviors of the
36 result in various special limits analytically. Our analytic expression is checked against available results numerically
37 and agrees well with the previous results except for a single data point of a reference.
38 This paper is organized as follows: In section II, we introduce definitions for terminologies and notations involving
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39 barycentric-coordinate computations that are frequently used in the remainder of this paper. The details of the
40 computation of the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged triangle, the check for the validity of our
41 expression, and the asymptotic behaviors of the potential are provided in section III. A general strategy to compute
42 the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged polygon is given in section IV with the result of the electrostatic
43 potential of a uniformly charged rectangle as a simple example. The conclusion follows in section V. Useful relations
44 including the derivation of the gradient in barycentric coordinates are presented in appendices.
45
46
ce

47 II. DEFINITIONS
48
49 In this section, we introduce definitions and notations involving the barycentric coordinate system that are used in
50 the remainder of this paper. Consider a triangle ∆ABC located in a plane V as shown in figure 1. The orientation
51 of the vertices A, B, and C is counterclockwise about the unit vector n̂ normal to the plane V whose tail is placed at
52 a point inside the triangle. We denote the position vectors of the vertices A, B, and C by A, B, and C, respectively.
Ac

53 The position vector for a point X in the plane V is denoted by X. Throughout this paper, we use a capital italic letter
54 X to represent a point, an italic bold letter X to represent a Euclidean position vector corresponding to the point
55 X, a lower-case italic letter x to represent a sidelength of a triangle opposite to a vertex X, and an italic lower-case
56 bold letter x to represent a sidevector of a triangle opposite to a vertex X.
We define SXY Z by the signed area of the triangle ∆XY Z whose sign is positive if the orientation of the vertices
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9

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10 FIG. 1. A triangle ∆ABC located in a plane V. n̂ is a unit vector normal to the plane V whose tail is placed at a point
11 inside the triangle. A, B, C, and X are position vectors of the vertices A, B, C, and the point X, respectively, which depend
on the origin O of the coordinate system. The side vectors a ≡ C − B, b ≡ A − C, and c ≡ B − A of ∆ABC are independent
12
of the origin O.
13
14
15
16

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17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
FIG. 2. an
The regions Vx1 x2 x3 classified by the signs of the signed areas x1 = SXBC /|SXBC |, x2 = SXCA /|SXCA |, and
x3 = SXAB /|SXAB |, when X is placed in those regions. x1 , x2 , and x3 indicate the signs of the barycentric coordinates κa , κb ,
and κc of X, respectively, defined in equation (4) that are the ratios of the signed areas of the triangles ∆XBC, ∆XCA, and
←→ ←→ ←→
∆XAB, respectively, to the area S of ∆ABC. On the straight lines BC, CA, and AB, the barycentric coordinates κa , κb , and
dM
κc vanish, respectively. At vertices A, B, and C, κb = κc = 0, κc = κa = 0, and κa = κb = 0, respectively.
29
30
31 X, Y , and Z is counterclockwise and negative if clockwise. The triangle ∆ABC can be decomposed into the union of
32 three subtriangles ∆XAB, ∆XBC, and ∆XCA. Thus the area vectors for the three subtriangles can be expressed
33 in terms of the signed areas and the unit vector n̂:
34
35 1
(A − X) × (B − X) = SXAB n̂, (1a)
36 2
37 1
(B − X) × (C − X) = SXBC n̂, (1b)
38 2
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39 1
(C − X) × (A − X) = SXCA n̂. (1c)
40 2
41 The signed areas satisfy the identity
42
43 S ≡ SABC = SXAB + SXBC + SXCA . (2)
44
45 Our choice of the orientation of the vertices A, B, and C guarantees that S ≡ SABC is positive. If the point X is
46 inside the triangle, then all of the three signed areas are positive definite. SXAB is positive if X and C are in the
←→ ←→ ←→
ce

47 same half-plane bisected by the straight line AB and is negative if the line segment XC crosses AB. If X is on AB,
48 then SXAB = 0. We can identify the signs of SXBC and SXCA in a similar manner. The complete cases of the signs
49 of the signed areas SXAB , SXBC , and SXCA are displayed in figure 2. According to the theorem of Möbius [8] on the
50 barycentric coordinates that is reviewed in Crowe [20], the position vector X of the point X can be expressed as a
51 linear combination of the position vectors of the vertices as
52
Ac

53 X = κa A + κb B + κc C, κa + κb + κc = 1, (3)
54
55 where the coefficients P
κi are the barycentric coordinates. Here, we have taken the normalization of the barycentric
56 coordinates κi to be i κi = 1. Such barycentric coordinates are called special barycentric coordinates. (See, for
example, Ungar [19].) Note that only two of the three barycentric coordinates are linearly independent. Each
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2 barycentric coordinate is given as the ratio of the signed area of a subtriangle in units of S as
3 SXBC SXCA SXAB
4 κa = , κb = , κc = , (4)
S S S

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5
6 which can be derived from the signed areas in equation (1) and the Jacobi identity
7 (A − X) × [(B − X) × (C − X)] + (B − X) × [(C − X) × (A − X)] + (C − X) × [(A − X) × (B − X)] = 0. (5)
8
9 According to the definitions in equation (4), the barycentric coordinates κa , κb , and κc for the point X vanish on

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10 the sides BC, CA, and AB, respectively, as shown in figure 2. At vertices A, B, and C, κb = κc = 0, κc = κa = 0,
11 and κa = κb = 0, respectively. Thus the three sides behave like the coordinate axes. That is the reason why the
12 coordinate axes for the plane V are not shown in figure 1.
13 As is displayed in figure 1, we define the side vectors a, b, and c as
14 −−→
a ≡ BC = C − B, (6a)
15 −→
16 b ≡ CA = A − C, (6b)

us
17 −−→
c ≡ AB = B − A, (6c)
18
19 which are independent of the origin O of the coordinate system. Manifestly, the sum of the three side vectors vanishes:
20
a + b + c = 0. (7)
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
From equation (7), the law of cosines can be derived as

an
â · b̂ = − cos ∠C =

b̂ · ĉ = − cos ∠A =
c2 − a2 − b2
2ab
a2 − b2 − c2
2bc
b2 − c2 − a2
,

,
(8a)

(8b)
dM
ĉ · â = − cos ∠B = , (8c)
29 2ca
30 where a = |a|, b = |b|,√and c = |c| are sidelengths of the triangle. We denote the unit vector along a vector v by
31
v̂ = v/|v|, where |v| ≡ v 2 . The area S of the triangle ∆ABC can also be expressed by the sidelengths as
32
33 1 1 1 1p
S= ab sin ∠C = bc sin ∠A = ca sin ∠B = −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ), (9)
34 2 2 2 4
35
36 where λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) = a4 + b4 + c4 − 2a2 b2 − 2b2 c2 − 2c2 a2 is the Källén function [21, 22]. It is manifest in equation (9)
that λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) < 0 for any triangle. If any two sides overlap, then the area vanishes and, therefore, λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) = 0
37
in that limit.
38
The position vectors P and Q of two arbitrary points P and Q in space can be expressed in terms of the barycentric
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39
coordinates as
40
41 P = ρa A + ρb B + ρc C + z n̂ = ρa b − ρb a + C + z n̂,
42 (10)
Q = ηa A + ηb B + ηc C + z 0 n̂ = ηa b − ηb a + C + z 0 n̂,
43
44 where we have made use of the identities ρc = 1 − ρa − ρb and ηc = 1 − ηa − ηb for the barycentric coordinates of P
45 and Q, respectively, and the definitions of the side vectors in equation (6). Here, z and z 0 are the coordinates of P
46 and Q, respectively, normal to the plane V. The squared distance between P and Q can be evaluated as
ce

47 |P − Q|2 = a2 (ρb − ηb )2 + b2 (ρa − ηa )2 − 2a · b(ρa − ηa )(ρb − ηb ) + (z − z 0 )2

48
49 = a2 (ρb − ηb )2 + b2 (ρa − ηa )2 + (a2 + b2 − c2 )(ρa − ηa )(ρb − ηb ) + (z − z 0 )2
50
51 = −a2 (ρb − ηb )(ρc − ηc ) − b2 (ρc − ηc )(ρa − ηa ) − c2 (ρa − ηa )(ρb − ηb ) + (z − z 0 )2 , (11)
52 where we have used theR law of cosine in equation (8) in the second line.
Ac

53 The surface integral ∆ABC dσ over the region inside ∆ABC can be expressed in the barycentric coordinate system
54 as
55 Z Z 1 Z 1 Z 1
56 dσ = 2S dκa dκb dκc δ(κa + κb + κc − 1). (12)
57 ∆ABC 0 0 0
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10
11
12
13
14 FIG. 3. A triangle sheet ∆ABC uniformly charged with Q lying in the plane V. z = 0 in the plane V. X(κa , κb , κc , 0) is a
0
15 source point inside
√ ∆ABC. P (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) is a field point. P (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0) is the foot of the perpendicular from P to the plane
16 V. |P − X| = z 2 + d2 is the distance between the field point P and the source point X, where d2 = d2 (κa , κb ) is defined in

us
equation (16).
17
18
19
Therefore, we can parametrize any surface integral of a scalar field φ[X] over the inner region of ∆ABC as
20
21 Z Z 1 Z 1 Z 1
22 dσ φ[X] = 2S dκa dκb dκc δ(κa + κb + κc − 1) φ[X(κa , κb , κc )], (13)
23
24
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∆ABC 0 0

an 0

where X = X(κa , κb , κc ) is the position vector of a point X inside the triangle.

III. ELECTROSTATIC POTENTIAL OF A UNIFORMLY CHARGED TRIANGLE

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29 A. Analytic Computation
30
31 Let us compute the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) at a point P due to a uniformly charged triangle ∆ABC with
32 net charge Q that lies in the plane V as shown in figure 3. The point P 0 in the plane V denotes the foot of the
33 perpendicular from P with the altitude z. In the barycentric coordinate system with respect to ∆ABC, the position
34 vectors X of a point X inside the triangle and P of a field point P are expressed as
35
36 X = κa A + κb B + κc C, κa + κb + κc = 1,
37 (14)
P = ξa A + ξb B + ξc C + z ẑ, ξa + ξb + ξc = 1,
38
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39 where κi and ξi are barycentric coordinates for X and P , respectively, and ẑ = n̂ is a unit vector normal to the
40 plane V. Then the barycentric coordinates ξi for P are the same as those for P 0 . We have set z = 0 in the plane V
41 for convenience. By making use of the parametrization in equation (13), we evaluate the potential VABC (P ) in the
42 barycentric coordinate system as
43 Z
1 Q 1
44 VABC (P ) = dσ p
45 4πε0 ∆ABC S (X − P )2
46
Z 1 Z 1 Z 1
Q δ(κa + κb + κc − 1)
= dκa dκb dκc p
ce

47 2πε0 0 0 0 [X(κa , κb , κc ) − P (ξa , ξb , ξc , z)]2

48 Z 1 Z 1−κa
49 Q dκb
= dκa p , (15)
50 2πε0 0 0 z + d2 (κa , κb )
2

51
where d2 (κa , κb ) is the square of the horizontal distance between P and X parallel to the plane V. We can simplify
52
d2 (κa , κb ) with the aid of the identity in equation (11) as
Ac

53
54 d2 (κa , κb ) = a2 (κb − ξb )2 + b2 (κa − ξa )2 − (c2 − a2 − b2 )(κa − ξa )(κb − ξb )
55 2
a2 + b2 − c2 λ(a2 , b2 , c2 )

56 2
= a (κb − ξb ) + (κa − ξa ) − (κa − ξa )2 . (16)
57 2a2 4a2
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6
1
2 The double integral can be reparametrized by the following dimensionless variables:
3 a2 + b2 − c2
4 κ0a ≡ (κa − ξa ), κ0b ≡ κb − ξb + κ0a . (17)
2a2

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5
6 The change of variables in equation (17) reduces the double integral in (15) into
7 Z a2 +b2 −c2
(1−ξa ) Z 1−ξa −ξb − a
2 2
c +a −b 2 0
2 +b2 −c2 κa
Q 2a 2a2
8 VABC (P ) = dκ0a dκ0b
9 2πε0 a2 + b2 − c2 −a
2 +b2 −c2
ξa −ξb +κ0a
2a2

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10 1
11 ×q . (18)
z2 λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 )
+ (κ0b )2 − 0 2
(a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κa )
12 a2

13 Note that the upper and lower limits of the integrals over κ0a and κ0b are determined by the corresponding ranges [0, 1]
14 2 2 2 2

15 and [0, 1 − κb ] for the integrals over κa and κb , respectively. It is apparent that A2 ≡ az 2 − (aλ(a ,b ,c ) 0 2
2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κa ) is positive
0 2 2 2 2 2 2
16 definite because both z/a and κa /(a + b − c ) are real and −λ(a , b , c ) > 0 for any triangle of sidelengths a, b,

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17 and c according to the Heron’s formula in equation (9). In the limit that the triangle collapses into a line segment
18 with vanishing area, A2 approaches (z/a)2 which vanishes when z = 0. Thus we can set x = κ0b and make use of the
19 following integral table [23],
20 Z
dx x
21 √
2 2
= arcsinh √ , A ∈ R − {0}, (19)
x +A A2
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
to integrate out κ0b in equation (18) as
Z

−ξb +κ0a

2
1−ξa −ξb − ca2+a
2−b 2
κ0
+b2 −c2 a
dκ0b q
z2
a2 +
an
(κ0b )2


−
1
λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 ) 0 2
(a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κa )

dM
2 2
−b2 0
1 − ξa − ξb − ca2+a 2 −c2 κa −ξ + κ 0
29 = arcsinh  q +b  − arcsinh  q b a , (20)
30 z2
a2 − λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 )
(a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κ0 )2
a
z2
a2 − λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 )
(a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κ0 )2
a
31
32 where κ0a is defined in equation (17). Note that the integral in equation (19) also appears in the computation of the
33 electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged straight wire. The corresponding integral table can be found, for
34 example, on pp 606–607 of Halliday et al [1]:
35 Z
dx h p i
36 √ = ln x + x2 + A2 . (21)
37 x2 + A2
38 √
The expression in equation (21) reduces into the expression in (19) by the identity arcsinh x = ln(x + x2 + 1) if
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39 A 6= 0, which is always true in our case.

40 Now we carry out the κ0a integral for VABC (P ):
41
42 Q 2a
Z a2 +b22−c2 (1−ξa )
2a
43 VABC (P ) = dκ0a
2πε0 a2 + b2 − c2 − a2 +b22−c2 ξa
44 2a

45
  2 2
  
−b2 0
1 − ξa − ξb − ca2+a +b −c2 2 κa −ξ b + κ 0
a
46 × arcsinh  q  − arcsinh  q  . (22)
z2 λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 ) z2 λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 )
ce

0 0
47 a2 − (a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κa )
2
a2 − (a2 +b2 −c2 )2 (κa )
2

48
49 Note that both z 2 /a2 and −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 )(κ0a )2 /(a2 + b2 − c2 )2 in the square root are positive definite. Thus the
50 arguments of the arcsine hyperbolic functions are both real numbers. We introduce a dimensionless variable η to
51 change the variables
52 p
a −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) 0
Ac

53 η≡ κ . (23)
54 |z|(a2 + b2 − c2 ) a
55 p
Here, both a and |z| are of dimensions of length and −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) is of dimensions of area to make η dimensionless. It
56 p
is manifest that the factor a −λ(a , b , c )/[|z|(a +b −c2 )] is positive definite because every factor is positive definite.
2 2 2 2 2
57
58
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60
Page 7 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
7
1 0 2 2 2 2
2 p range of the integral over κa is determined as (a + b − c )/(2a )[−ξa , 1 − ξa ].
According to equation (17), the physical
2 2 2
Thus the range of η is determined as −λ(a , b , c )/(2a|z|)[−ξa , 1 − ξa ].
3
4 The change of variables in equation (23) reduces the integral in equation (22) into the following form:

pt
5
6
Q 2|z|
7 VABC (P ) = p × I. (24)
8 2πε0 −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 )
9

cri
10 All of the dimensionful factors are pulled out of the dimensionless integral I that depends on the barycentric coordi-
11 nates ξi for the field point P :
12
13
√   2 2 2
  2 2 2

14 Z −λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 )
(1−ξa )
a
|z| (1 − ξa − ξb ) − √(c +a2 −b2 )2 η a
− |z| ξb + √(a +b2 −c2 )2 η
2a|z| −λ(a ,b ,c )  −λ(a ,b ,c ) 
15 I≡ √ dη arcsinh 
 
p  − arcsinh 

p  .
−λ(a2 ,b2 ,c2 ) 2 2
16 − ξa η +1 η +1

us
2a|z|

17 (25)
18 By employing the integral table in equation (A6) in appendix A, we evaluate the integral I in equation (25) as
19
20
21 I = F (p2 , q2 , η2 ) − F (p2 , q2 , η1 ) − F (p1 , q1 , η2 ) + F (p1 , q1 , η1 ), (26)
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
where the function F is defined by

F (p, q, η) ≡ η arcsinh
pη + q
p
η2 + 1
!
+p
p2 + 1
q
arcsinh p
an "
(p2 + 1)η + pq
p2 + q 2 + 1
#
− arctan p
qη − p
(pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1
!
. (27)
dM
29
30 The dimensionless parameters on the right-hand side of equation (26) are defined by
31
32
33 a2 + b2 − c2
34 p1 = p = cot ∠C, (28a)
−λ(a2 , b2 , c2 )
35
c2 + a2 − b2
36 p2 = − p = − cot ∠B, (28b)
37 −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 )
√
38
p
−λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) 1 2S
η1 = − ξa = − ξa , (28c)
pte

39 2a|z| Ca |z|
40 p √
41 −λ(a2 , b2 , c2 ) 1 2S
η2 = (1 − ξa ) = (1 − ξa ), (28d)
42 2a|z| Ca |z|
√
43 a 2S
44 q1 = − ξb = −Ca ξb , (28e)
|z| |z|
45 √
a 2S
46 q2 = (1 − ξa − ξb ) = Ca ξc , (28f)
|z| |z|
ce

47
48
49 where Ca is defined by
50
51 √
52 Ca = cot ∠B + cot ∠C. (29)
Ac

53
54
Note that cot ∠B +cot ∠C = sin(∠B +∠C)/(sin ∠B sin ∠C)
√ is a finite and positive number if ∆ABC forms a triangle.
55 p
56 We have also made the substitution a = 2S(p1 − p2 ) = 2SCa to express the parameters in equation (28) in terms
of S, ∠B, ∠C, ξi , and z.
57
58
59
60
 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1 Page 8 of 17
8
1
2 We finally obtain the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) due to a uniformly charged triangle ∆ABC as
3 √  
4 σ S  ξa cot ∠C + ξb C2a ξa cot ∠B + ξc C2a 
VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) = √ ξa arcsinh q + arcsinh q

pt
5 2 2πε0 Ca z 2 C2
ξa2 + 2Sa
z 2 C2
ξa2 + 2Sa
6
√ 
csc2 ∠C csc2 ∠C

7 σ SCa  (1 − ξa ) 2
Ca − ξ b cot ∠C ξ a C2 + ξ b cot ∠C
8 + √ ξb arcsinh q + arcsinh q a 
2 2πε0 csc ∠C 2 z 2 csc2 ∠C
ξb + 2SC2
2 csc2 ∠C
ξb2 + z 2SC
9 a
2
a

cri
10 √  
csc2 ∠B csc2 ∠B
σ SCa  (1 − ξa ) C2 − ξc cot ∠B ξa C2 + ξc cot ∠B
11 + √ ξc arcsinh q a
+ arcsinh q a 
12 2 2πε0 csc ∠B 2 csc2 ∠B
ξc2 + z 2SC ξ 2 + z 2 csc2 ∠B
2 c 2SC2a
13
a

14 σ|z|  2Sξa ξb − z 2 cot ∠C 2Sξa ξc − z 2 cot ∠B
15 − arctan q + arctan q
4πε0 z2 1 +
2 2
2S[ξa +(ξa cot ∠C+ξb Ca ) ] 2
z2 1 +
2S[ξa2 +(ξ cot ∠B+ξ C2 )2 ]
a c a
16 z 2 C2a z 2 C2a

us
17 2S(ξb + ξc )ξc + z 2 cot ∠B
18 + arctan q 2 ∠B−ξc cot ∠C)2 ]
z 2 1 + 2S[(ξb +ξc ) +(ξbzcot
19 2 C2
a

20

2S(ξb + ξc )ξb + z 2 cot ∠C
21 + arctan q , (30)
2S[(ξb +ξc )2 +(ξb cot ∠B−ξc cot ∠C)2 ]
22 z2
23
24
25
26
27
28
where σ ≡ Q/S is the surface charge density.
1+

B.
an
Numerical Results
z 2 C2a
dM
29 While the analytic expression for the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) in equation (30) is valid for any field point
30 P and any triangle, it is still worthwhile to carry out the validity check of the results against known results. Another
31 version of the analytic expression for VABC (P ) is available in Rao et al [4]. However, the direct comparison of the
32 expression in Rao et al [4] with our result equation (30) is not easy because the two expressions are in terms of different
33 parametrizations whose relations are too complicated to display. The corresponding numerical results can be found
in table 1 of Okon et al [7]. Therefore, we evaluate the numerical values for the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) in
34
equation (30) and the corresponding numerical values that can be obtained by carrying out the numerical integration
35
of the double integral in equation (15) at selected field points. As the reference points, we adopt the eight sample field
36 points P with vertices of Cartesian coordinates A = (0, 0, 0), B = (1, 0, 0), and C = (0.25, 1, 0) in units of a common
37 length scale L that are considered in Okon et al [7]. The comparison with the analytic result in Rao et al [4] is made
38 by evaluating the corresponding numerical values by substituting the parameters into the expression given in Rao et
pte

39 al [4].
40 In table I, we summarize the numerical results for the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) described above in units of
41 σ/(4πε0 ). The first column of table I represents the Cartesian coordinates of the eight sample field points P in units
42 of L. The second and the third columns are obtained from the analytic expression in equation (30) and by a numerical
43 integration of equation (15), respectively. The last two columns are from Okon et al [7] and Rao et al [4], respectively.
44 In the case of the last column, we have obtained the numerical values by substituting corresponding parameters into
45 the analytic expression given in Rao et al [4]. In performing the coordinate transformation between the barycentric
46 coordinates and the Cartesian coordinates of a field point or a vertex, we have made use of the identities listed in
ce

47 equation (C4). In order to improve the numerical accuracies, we have also adopted the expressions in equations (33)
48 and (35) in the computation of the potential at field points (2, 2, 0) and (9, 0, 0), respectively, instead of the one in
49 equation (30). Our results are consistent with the previous results except for the point (9, 0, 0). We have found that
50 the result at the point (9, 0, 0) in Okon et al [7] differs from the others in table I, too.
51
52
Ac

C. Electric Field in Barycentric Coordinate System

53
54
55 Let us compute the electric field E of a uniformly charged triangle considered in section III A. The electric field
56 E can be computed straightforwardly as E = −∇V . Because the expression for VABC (P ) in equation (30) is in
terms of the barycentric coordinates, it is convenient to express the gradient operator ∇ in that coordinates. In the
57
58
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60
Page 9 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
9
1
2 TABLE I. The numerical values for the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) due to a uniformly charged triangle ∆ABC at various
3 field points P in units of σ/(4πε0 ), where σ is the surface charge density and the Cartesian coordinates of the vertices are
4 A = (0, 0, 0), B = (1, 0, 0), and C = (0.25, 1, 0) in units of a constant length L. The first column represents the Cartesian

pt
5 coordinates of the field point P in units of L. The second and the third columns are obtained from the analytic expression in
6 equation (30) and by a numerical integration of equation (15), respectively. The last two columns are from Okon et al [7] and
Rao et al [4], respectively.
7
8 P equation (30) N[equation (15)] Okon et al [7] Rao et al [4]
9 (2, 2 , 2) 0.16371 0.16372 0.16252 0.16372

cri
10 (2, 1.62, 2) 0.17447 0.17447 0.17445 0.17447
11 (2, 0 , 2) 0.19379 0.19379 0.19379 0.19379
12
(2, 2 , 0) 0.21748 0.21748 0.21748 0.21748
13
(2, 2 , −2) 0.16372 0.16372 0.16252 0.16372
14
(2, 2 , 9) 0.05380 0.05380 0.05379 0.05380
15
16 (9, 2 , 9) 0.03984 0.03984 0.03989 0.03984

us
17 (9, 0 , 0) 0.05822 0.05822 0.04018 0.05822
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
an
dM
29 FIG. 4. The direction of each component of the gradient in the barycentric coordinate system defined in equation (31).
30
31
32 barycentric coordinate system with respect to the triangle in section III A, the gradient of a scalar φ(P ) at the point
33 P = ξa A + ξb B + ξc C + z ẑ is given as
34  
ẑ × a ∂φ
 
ẑ × b ∂φ ∂φ
35 ∇φ = + + ẑ
2S ∂ξa 2S ∂ξb ∂z
36
37
   
ẑ × b ∂φ ẑ × c ∂φ ∂φ
38 = + + ẑ
2S ∂ξb 2S ∂ξc ∂z
pte

39
40
   
ẑ × c ∂φ ẑ × a ∂φ ∂φ
= + + ẑ , (31)
41 2S ∂ξc 2S ∂ξa ∂z
42
43 where the direction of each component is shown in figure 4.
44 In each identity in equation (31) we have eliminated a linearly dependent barycentric coordinate by making use of
45 the constraint equation ξa + ξb + ξc = 1. A derivation of the gradient operator in equation (31) is provided in appendix
B. Note that the gradient operator is expressed in terms of the partial derivatives with respect to the barycentric
46
coordinates, the side vectors, the normal vector to the triangle, and the area of the triangle which are independent
ce

47
of the origin of the coordinate system. Therefore, the electric field E at the point P in the barycentric coordinate
48
system is expressed in terms of the origin-independent variables as
49
50
 
ẑ × a ∂ ẑ × b ∂ ∂
51 E(P ) = − + + ẑ V (ξa , ξb , 1 − ξa − ξb , z)
2S ∂ξa 2S ∂ξb ∂z
52
Ac

 
53 ẑ × b ∂ ẑ × c ∂ ∂
=− + + ẑ V (1 − ξb − ξc , ξb , ξc , z)
54 2S ∂ξb 2S ∂ξc ∂z
55  
ẑ × c ∂ ẑ × a ∂ ∂
56 =− + + ẑ V (ξa , 1 − ξa − ξc , ξc , z). (32)
57 2S ∂ξc 2S ∂ξa ∂z
58
59
60
 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1 Page 10 of 17
10
1
D. Asymptotic Behaviors
2
3
4 Let us investigate the asymptotic behaviors of the potential in equation (30) in the three special cases: (i) P

pt
5 approaches the plane V so that |z| → 0, (ii) P is placed far away from the triangle so that |z| → ∞, and (iii) the
6 triangle grows to an infinite plane so that S → ∞.
7 We first consider the case (i) z → 0 . In this limit, VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) approaches
8 √ !
σ S ξa cot ∠C + ξb C2a ξa cot ∠B + ξc C2a
9 VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0) = √ ξa arcsinh + arcsinh

cri
p p
10 2 2πε0 Ca ξa2 ξa2
11 √  2 2

12 σ SCa  (1 − ξa ) cscC2∠C − ξb cot ∠C ξa cscC2∠C + ξb cot ∠C
+ √ ξb arcsinh a
+ arcsinh a
13
p p 
2 2πε0 csc ∠C ξb2 ξb2
14
15 √  2 2

σ SCa  (1 − ξa ) cscC2∠B − ξc cot ∠B ξa cscC2∠B + ξc cot ∠B
16 + √ a a

us
ξc arcsinh + arcsinh .
17
p p
2 2πε0 csc ∠B ξc2 ξc2
18
(33)
19
20 Note that every arctangent contribution in equation (30) is multiplied by the factor |z| and, therefore, vanishes in
21 the limit z → 0. When P is on a straight line passing through any two vertices of the triangle, one or two of the
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
barycentric coordinates ξa , ξb , and ξc must be zero.

an
The potential at any point near the three sides of the triangle is in principle finite. However, a direct substitution
of the end-point value ξi = 0 to the expression in equation (30) leads to a failure to evaluate the correct value. The
reason is that there are several terms involving the inverse sine hyperbolic function whose argument has vanishing
denominator. Thus we have to evaluate the limit. A practical way of numerical evaluation of such a limit is to
substitute a non-vanishing tiny number to the expression in equation (30) and test the numerical convergence to
a fixed value keeping the machine accuracies controlled. Such a numerical artifact can be avoided if we evaluate
dM
29 the limit of the function in a completely analytic way. In comparison with the Cartesian-coordinate expression, for
30 example, in Rao et al [4], the parametrization in equation (30) in barycentric-coordinate representation is particularly
31 convenient to evaluate the analytic expression in that limit. The analytic expression for the limit of the potential
32 VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0) as ξi → 0 can be extracted from equation (30) as
33
"p
#
αi ξi + βi βi2 log 4βi2 − 2 log ξi
34 lim ξi arcsinh p 2 = lim ξi + O(ξi ) = 0, (34)
ξi →0 ξi ξi →0 2βi
35
36 which vanishes as ξi → 0. Here, αi and βi are some constants and O(ξi ) is a polynomial function in ξi of degree 1 or
37 ←→
higher. For example, when P is on the straight line AB, ξc = 0 and the potential reduces into the form:
38
√
pte

39
!
σ S ξa cot ∠C + ξb C2a ξa cot ∠B + ξc C2a
40 VABC (ξa , ξb , 0, 0) = √ ξa arcsinh p + arcsinh p
41 2 2πε0 Ca ξa2 ξa2
42 √ 
csc2 ∠C csc2 ∠C

43 σ SCa  (1 − ξ a ) C2a − ξb cot ∠C ξ a C2a + ξ b cot ∠C
+ √ ξb arcsinh + arcsinh .
44
p p
2 2πε0 csc ∠C 2
ξb 2
ξb
45
46 (35)
ce

47 Next, we consider the case (ii) |z|  Max[a, b, c]. In this limit, the electrostatic potential can be approximated
48 as the one due to a point charge Q neglecting the correction terms of order 1/z 2 or higher that contribute to the
49 multipole expansion. The asymptotic form of the potential is obtained as
50
51 lim VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) =
σS
+ O 1/z 2 ,


(36)
52 |z|→∞ 4πε0 |z|
Ac

53
54 which is in accord with the potential due to a point charge Q = σS as expected.
55 As the last extreme case, we consider the case (iii) S → ∞ keeping the surface charge density σ = Q/S invariant.
56 It is convenient to choose the barycentric coordinates ξa , ξb , and ξc of the field point P (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) that match with
those for a point well inside the triangle to avoid the contamination originated from the edge effect. Keeping the
57
58
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60
Page 11 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
11
1
2 shape of the triangle, we can dilate all three sidelengths with a common scaling factor ζ as (a, b, c) → (ζa, ζb, ζc) and
take the limit ζ → ∞ which leads to S → ∞. Then the expressions depending on ∠A, ∠B, ∠C, or Ca are invariant
3
in equation (30). The resultant asymptotic form of the potential in the limit S → ∞ can be expanded as
4

pt
5 σ  √ 
lim VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) = − |z| + VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0) + O 1/ S . (37)
6 S→∞ 2ε0
7
8 The first term comes from the asymptotic expansion of the arctangent functions. This contribution
√ is finite because
9 we have kept σ = Q/S invariant. The contribution VABC (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0) is proportional to S and, therefore, divergent

cri
10 as S → ∞. Although the electrostatic potential contains such a divergent contribution, the electric field, which
11 is physical, is well defined because the components
√ of the gradient operator √ in equation (31) with respect to the
12 barycentric coordinates ξi are proportional to 1/ S in the limit, which cancel S in V (ξa , ξb , ξc , 0). The ẑ-component
13 of the electric field E obtained from the asymptotic form of the potential reproduces the electric field of the infinite
plane
14
15 ∂V (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) σ
16 (E · ẑ)ẑ = − ẑ = sgn(z) ẑ. (38)

us
∂z 2ε0
17
18 Here, the signum function sgn(z) is defined by +1 for positive z and −1 for negative z.
19
20
21 IV. ELECTROSTATIC POTENTIAL OF A UNIFORMLY CHARGED POLYGON
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
an
One of well-known properties of a polygon is that any polygon can be decomposed into a set of subtriangles. It
means that the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged polygon sheet can also be described as the sum of
the potentials of subtriangles because the superposition principle holds in the electrostatic potential. Let us consider
a uniformly charged polygon P that can be decomposed into the sum of uniformly charged subtriangles ∆Ai Bi Ci

P=
X
∆Ai Bi Ci . (39)
dM
i
29
30 The position vector P of a field point P can be described by the barycentric coordinates of each subtriangle as
31
32 P = Ai ξia + Bi ξib + Ci ξic + z ẑ, ξia + ξib + ξic = 1, (40)
33 where ẑ is defined to be perpendicular to the plane V that the polygon P lies on. Here, the barycentric coordinates
34 can be determined straightforwardly by solving the simultaneous linear equations with given P , Ai , Bi , and Ci .
35 A set of coordinate-transformation rules from the Cartesian coordinates to the barycentric coordinates are provided
36 in equation (C4) in appendix C. If we define VAi Bi Ci (P ) as the electrostatic potential at P due to the uniformly
37 charged subtriangle ∆Ai Bi Ci , then the potential VP (P ) of the uniformly charged polygon P at P can be computed
38 by employing the superposition principle as
pte

39 X
40 VP (P ) = VAi Bi Ci (ξia , ξib , ξic , z), (41)
41 i
42 where the potentials of subtriangles can be determined from the analytic expression in equation (30).
43 As an application, we evaluate the electrostatic potential VABCD (P ) at a point P of a uniformly charged rectangular
44 plate ABCD as shown in figure 5. We can choose the coordinate axes so that the Cartesian coordinates of the
45 position vectors A, B, C, and D of vertices A, B, C, and D are given by
46
ce

47 A = (0, 0, 0), B = (a, 0, 0), C = (a, b, 0), D = (0, b, 0). (42)

48
The rectangle ABCD can be divided into two subtriangles ∆BDA and ∆DBC. The position vector P = (x, y, z)
49 of a field point P can be described by the barycentric coordinates of each subtriangle as
50
51 P = (x, y, z) = ξa B + ξb D + ξc A + z ẑ = ηa D + ηb B + ηc C + z ẑ. (43)
52
Ac

By making use of the coordinate-transformation rules (C4) in appendix C, we obtain

53
54 x y x y
55 ξa = , ξb = , ξc = 1 − − ,
a b a b (44)
56 x y x y
ηa = 1− , ηb = 1− , ηc = −1 + + .
57 a b a b
58
59
60
 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1 Page 12 of 17
12
1
2
3
4

pt
5
6
7
8
9

cri
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

us
17 FIG. 5. A uniformly charged rectangle ABCD with surface charge density σ located on the xy plane. ABCD can be
18 decomposed into the sum of two uniformly charged subtriangles ∆BDA and ∆DBC with the same surface charge density σ.
19
20
21 Then, the electrostatic potential VABCD (P ) of the rectangle ABCD at the point P can be computed as
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
= VBDA

=
σ
4πε0
x y

" a b
(a − x) arcsinh p
a
an
VABCD (P ) = VBDA (ξa , ξb , ξc , z) + VDBC (ηa , ηb , ηc , z)
x y 
b
y
2
(a − x) + z

, , 1 − − , z + VDBC 1 − , 1 − , −1 + +

2
x
a
y
b

+ arcsinh p
b−y
x y
a b !

(a − x)2 + z 2
dM
 
b−y y
29 +x arcsinh √ + arcsinh √
30 x2 + z 2 x2 + z 2
!
31 x a−x
32 +(b − y) arcsinh p + arcsinh p
(b − y)2 + z 2 (b − y)2 + z 2
33 !
34 a−x x
+y arcsinh p + arcsinh p
35 2
y +z 2 y + z2
2
36
37 (a − x)(b − y) x(b − y)
−z arctan p + arctan p
38 2 2
z (a − x) + (b − y) + z 2 z x + (b − y)2 + z 2
2
pte

39 !#
(a − x)y xy
40 + arctan p + arctan p , (45)
41 z (a − x)2 + y 2 + z 2 z x2 + y 2 + z 2
42
43 where we have used the result in equation (30) for VBDA (P ) and VDBC (P ).
44 When a = b = L and z = 0,
45   
σL 1 − ȳ ȳ
46 VABCD (P ) = |x̄| arcsinh + arcsinh
4πε0 x̄ x̄
ce

47 a,b→1,z→0
48
 
1 − ȳ ȳ
+|1 − x̄| arcsinh + arcsinh
49 1 − x̄ 1 − x̄
50 
1 − x̄ x̄

51 +|ȳ| arcsinh + arcsinh
ȳ ȳ
52
Ac

 
53 1 − x̄ x̄
+|1 − ȳ| arcsinh + arcsinh , (46)
54 1 − ȳ 1 − ȳ
55
56 where x̄ = x/L and ȳ = y/L. This is in agreement with the result of the electrostatic potential of uniformly charged
square in equation (32) in [24], after the replacements x̄ → x and ȳ → y.
57
58
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60
Page 13 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
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1
V. CONCLUSION
2
3
4 We have computed the electrostatic potential VABC (P ) at an arbitrary field point P due to a uniformly charged

pt
5 triangle sheet ∆ABC in the barycentric coordinate system, which is convenient in dealing with problems having
6 triangle geometry. The computation has been carried out in a completely analytic manner without approximation
7 and there is no restriction to the shape and size of the triangle. The corresponding analytic expression in equation (30)
8 fully respects the cyclic symmetries of the sidelengths and internal angles. We have carried out the validity check of
9 our analytic expression for VABC (P ) in equation (30) against known results in references [4, 7]. While the result in

cri
10 Rao et al [4] is also analytic, the direct comparison of the expression in Rao et al [4] with our result is not easy because
11 the two expressions are in terms of different parametrizations involving too complicated relations. A numerical cross
check against these two references have revealed that our results are in agreement with those of [4, 7] except that the
12
result at the field point (9, 0, 0) in Okon et al [7] differs from ours and that of Rao et al [4].
13
14 Computing the electric field with the electrostatic potential is straightforward by applying the operator −∇. The
15 derivation of the gradient operator in the barycentric coordinates presented in appendix B should be useful for
various computations involving triangle geometry. A convenient set of the coordinate-transformation rules between
16

us
the barycentric and Cartesian coordinates is also available in appendix C.
17
18 The asymptotic behaviors of the analytic expressions for VABC (P ) in three special limits have been investigated:
19 (i) P approaches the plane V on which the triangle is placed, (ii) P is far away from the triangle, and (iii) ∆ABC
grows to cover the infinite plane that are displayed in equations (33), (36), and (37), respectively. As a special
20
case of the limit (i), we have also found the asymptotic form when P is on the straight line connecting any two
21
vertices in equation (35). The analytic expressions for the asymptotic forms in equations (33) and (35) are exact
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
an
values that may help one with enhancing the numerical accuracies in those limits and result in saving computing
time or resources. These can also be used when one computes the values of the electrostatic potential at borders of
subtriangles constructing a bigger object such as a polygon conveniently.
As an application, we have provided a strategy to obtain the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged
polygon using the potential of a uniformly charged triangle based on the basic property of the polygon and the super-
position principle. We have computed the electrostatic potential due to a uniformly charged rectangle. Our result in
dM
equation (46) for the potential VABCD (P ) of a uniformly charged rectangle agrees with the result in Aghamohammadi
29 [24]. In comparison with the expressions in references [4, 7], our result expressed in terms of the barycentric coordi-
30 nates completely is convenient to use. To our best knowledge, the general analytic expression in equation (30) for the
31 electrostatic potential VABC (P ) due to a uniformly charged arbitrary triangle expressed in terms of the barycentric
32 coordinates and special values such as equation (33) are new.
33
34
35
36 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
37
38 As members of the Korea Pragmatist Organization for Physics Education (KPOP E), the authors thank the remain-
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39 ing members of KPOP E for useful discussions. This work is supported in part by the National Research Foundation
40 of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) under Contract Nos. NRF-2020R1A2C3009918 (U-
41 R.K. and J.L.), NRF-2017R1E1A1A01074699 (D.W.J. and J.L.), NRF-2018R1D1A1B07047812 (D.W.J.). The work
42 of C.Y. is supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF)
43 funded by the Ministry of Education (2020R1I1A1A01073770). The work is also supported in part by the National
44 Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) under the BK21 FOUR program at Korea University, Initiative for science
45 frontiers on upcoming challenges.
46 All authors contributed equally to this work.
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47
48
49
50 Appendix A: Integral Table
51
52 In this section, we provide the integral table that is necessary to evaluate the electrostatic potential due to a
Ac

53 uniformly charged triangle. Let us consider the integral with arbitrary constants p and q
54
55 Z !
pη + q
56 J= dη arcsinh p . (A1)
η2 + 1
57
58
59
60
 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1 Page 14 of 17
14
1
2 We assume that p, q, and η are all real numbers. Integrating by parts, we have
3 ! Z
4 pη + q qη 2 − pη
J = η arcsinh p + dη . (A2)

pt
p
5 η2 + 1 (η 2 + 1) (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1
6
7 The integrand in the second term in (A2) can be reduced as
8
qη 2 − pη q pη + q
9 =p − . (A3)

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p p
10 (η 2 + 1) (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1 (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1 (η 2 + 1) (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1
11
The integral table for each part in (A3) is given by
12
13
" #
(p2 + 1)η + pq
Z
q q
14 dη p =p arcsinh p , (A4)
15 (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1 p2 + 1 p2 + q 2 + 1
16
!
qη − p
Z
pη + q

us
17 dη p = arctan p . (A5)
(η 2 + 1) (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1 (pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1
18
19 Therefore,
20
21
! " # !
pη + q q (p2 + 1)η + pq qη − p
22 J = η arcsinh +p arcsinh p − arctan . (A6)
23
24
25
26
27
28
p
η2 + 1 p2 + 1

an p2 + q 2 + 1

Appendix B: Gradient in Barycentric Coordinates

p
(pη + q)2 + η 2 + 1

In this section, we derive the gradient operator in a barycentric coordinate system with respect to a triangle ∆ABC
dM
with vertices A, B, and C whose position vectors are given by A, B, and C, respectively. Readers who are not
29
familiar with tensor analysis in a non-orthogonal coordinate system are recommended to refer to textbooks on tensor
30
analysis such as Lebedev et al [25].
31
The position vector P of a field point P can be expressed in terms of the position vectors A, B, and C as
32
33 P = ξa A + ξb B + ξc C + z ẑ, (B1)
34
35 where ξa , ξb , and ξc are the barycentric coordinates and ẑ is the unit vector normal to the triangle. Since only two
36 of the barycentric coordinates are independent, we substitute 1 − ξa − ξb for ξc to find that
37
38 P = ξa A + ξb B + ξc C + z ẑ = ξa b − ξb a + C + z ẑ, (B2)
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39
40 where the side vectors a and b are defined in equation (6). Then, the displacement vector ∆P is given as
41
42 ∆P = ∆ξa b − ∆ξb a + ∆z ẑ. (B3)
43 P3
44 A standard way of representing a vector X = i=1 X i vi in tensor analysis is to use a lower vector index for a basis
vector vi that is called covariant and use an upper index for a component X i that is called contravariant. This distinct
45
attachment and naming of indices is to respect the invariance of the vector X resulting in the mutually reciprocal
46
transformation rules for the covariant and contravariant quantities. In the linear decomposition of the vector ∆P in
ce

47 equation (B3), the vectors (b, −a, ẑ) and the corresponding coefficients (∆ξa , ∆ξb , ∆z) can be treated, accordingly,
48 as the covariant bases ei and their contravariant components ∆P i , respectively:
49
50 3
X
51 ∆P = ∆P i ei , (∆P 1 , ∆P 2 , ∆P 3 ) ≡ (∆ξa , ∆ξb , ∆z), (e1 , e2 , e3 ) ≡ (b, −a, ẑ) . (B4)
52 i=1
Ac

53
54 It is manifest that ∆P in equation (B4) has the dependence on a contravariant component ∆P i as ∆P i ei . Hence,
55 the partial derivative of P with respect to a contravariant component P i must be proportional to the corresponding
56 covariant basis vector ei . Thus the partial derivative ∂/∂P i must transform covariantly while P i transforms con-
travariantly. As a result, we attach a lower vector index representing a covariant vector for the partial derivative with
57
58
59
60
Page 15 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
15
1
2 respect to a contravariant vector as ∂i ≡ ∂/∂P i . Accordingly, the covariant bases can be expressed by the following
partial derivatives:
3
4 (P 1 , P 2 , P 3 ) ≡ (ξa , ξb , z), (B5)

pt
5    
∂P ∂P ∂P ∂P ∂P ∂P
6 (∂1 P , ∂2 P , ∂3 P ) ≡ , , = , , = (b, −a, ẑ) = (e1 , e2 , e3 ), (B6)
∂P 1 ∂P 2 ∂P 3 ∂ξa ∂ξb ∂z
7
8 The invariance of the scalar product is also valid for any two basis vectors. Thus it is convenient to introduce the
9 dual basis v i , which transforms contravariantly, corresponding to a covariant basis vector vi . The dual basis v i is

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10 defined to be satisfying the following relation
11
12
(
i i 1, i = j,
13 v · vj = δj = (B7)
0, i 6= j,
14
15 where δji is the Kronecker delta , which is symmetric.
16

us
The invariance of a vector X guarantees that the expansion in terms of covariant basis vectors vi and that in terms
17 of contravariant dual basis vectors v i are equivalent:
18
19 3
X 3
X
20 X= X i vi = Xi v i , (B8)
21 i=1 i=1
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
X ·Y =
X3
!  3
Xi v i · 
i=1
X

j=1


Y j vj  =
X 3
X i vi · 
i=1
an
where the corresponding components are transforming mutually reciprocal to the basis vectors. By making use of
equations (B7) and (B8), the scalar product of any pair of vectors X and Y can be expressed as
!  3
X


Yj v j  =
3 X
X

j=1
3
Xi Y j δji =
X 3
3 X
X i Yj δij .
i=1 j=1
(B9)
i=1 j=1
dM
29 The scalar product X · Y can also be computed with the same representation for both X and Y in equation (B8) as
30
31 !  3  !  3 
3 3 3 X 3 3 X
3
32
X X X X X X
X ·Y = X i vi ·  Y j vj  = Xi v i ·  Yj v j  = X i Y j gij = Xi Yj g ij , (B10)
33 i=1 j=1 i=1 j=1 i j i j
34
35 where the metric tensor gij and its dual g ij are defined by
36
37 gij ≡ vi · vj , g ij ≡ v i · v j . (B11)
38
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39 Summarizing the results in equations (B9), (B10), and (B11), we obtain the transformation rules between a covariant
40 component and the corresponding contravariant component as
41 3 3 3
42 X
j i
X
ij
X
Xi = gij X , X = g Xj , g ij gjk = δki , (B12)
43
j=1 j=1 j=1
44
45 where the last equation implies that g ij and gij are mutually reciprocal.
46 Let us consider a scalar field φ(X) that is differentiable at any point X in a three-dimensional Euclidean space R3 .
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47 For arbitrary points X1 and X2 in R3 , the difference φ(X2 ) − φ(X1 ) can be expressed as
48
49 Z X2

50 φ(X2 ) − φ(X1 ) = ∇φ(X) · dX, (B13)

X1
51
52 where the integral is independent of the path that connects the two points. We can define the gradient ∇φ of a scalar
Ac

53 field φ that respects the covariant transformation rules illustrated in equation (B12) as
54
55 3 X
X 3 3
X 3
X
56 ∇φ = (∂i φ)g ij vj ≡ (∇φ)j vj , (∇φ)j ≡ (∂i φ)g ij , (B14)
57 i=1 j=1 j=1 i=1

58
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60
 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1 Page 16 of 17
16
1 ∂φ ∂X
2 where g ij is the inverse metric tensor defined in equation (B11), ∂i φ ≡ i
and vj ≡ . In the barycentric
∂X ∂X j
3 coordinate system,
4

pt
5 ∂φ
6 ∂i φ = , vj = ej , (B15)
∂P i
7
8 and the matrix representations for the metric tensor and its inverse are determined as
9

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   
10 b2 −a · b 0 a2 /(4S 2 ) (a · b)/(4S 2 ) 0
11 (gij ) = (ei · ej ) =  −a · b

a2 0  ,

(g ij ) =  (a · b)/(4S 2 )

b2 /(4S 2 ) 0  ,

(B16)
12 0 0 1 0 0 1
13
14
where ei are the bases in equation (B4). From equations (B15) and (B16), we obtain the components (∇φ)j of the
15
gradient as
16

us
17 3
18
X 1
(∇φ)1 = (∂i φ)g i1 = a2 ∂1 φ + a · b ∂2 φ ,


4S 2
19 i=1
20 3
1
21
X
(∇φ)2 = (∂i φ)g i2 = a · b ∂2 φ + b2 ∂1 φ ,


4S 2
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
(∇φ)3 =
i=1
3
X

an
(∂i φ)g i3 = ∂3 φ.
i=1

As a result, the gradient in the barycentric coordinate system is given as

(B17)
dM
29 ∇φ = (∇φ)1 b − (∇φ)2 a + (∇φ)3 ẑ
30
a2 b − (a · b)a ∂φ b2 a − (a · b)b ∂φ ∂φ
31 = 2 1
− 2 2
+
4S ∂P 4S ∂P ∂P 3
32
33 ẑ × a ∂φ ẑ × b ∂φ ∂φ
= + + ẑ . (B18)
34 2S ∂ξa 2S ∂ξb ∂z
35
36 If we set the independent variables as ξb , ξc , and z, then the gradient of a scalar function φ is
37
38 ∂φ ẑ × b ∂φ ẑ × c ∂φ
∇φ = + + ẑ. (B19)
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39 ∂ξb 2S ∂ξc 2S ∂z
40
41 Similarly, if we set the independent variables as ξc , ξa , and z, then the gradient of a scalar function φ is
42
43 ∂φ ẑ × c ∂φ ẑ × a ∂φ
∇φ = + + ẑ. (B20)
44 ∂ξc 2S ∂ξa 2S ∂z
45
46
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47 Appendix C: Coordinate-Transformation Rules

48
49
If the Cartesian coordinates of the vertices of a triangle 4ABC are given by A = (Ax , Ay , 0), B = (Bx , By , 0), and
50 C = (Cx , Cy , 0), then the barycentric coordinates of a point P = (x, y, z) = ξa A + ξb B + ξc C + z ẑ can be obtained
51 by solving the following simultaneous equations:
52
Ac

53 x = ξa Ax + ξb Bx + ξc Cx , (C1)
54
55 y = ξa Ay + ξb By + ξc Cy , (C2)
56
1 = ξa + ξb + ξc . (C3)
57
58
59
60
Page 17 of 17 AUTHOR SUBMITTED MANUSCRIPT - EJP-106135.R1
17
1
2 The solution is
3 ẑ · [B × C − P 0 × (C − B)] ẑ · (B × C − P 0 × a)
ξa = = , (C4a)
4 ẑ · (A × B + B × C + C × A) 2SABC

pt
5
6 ẑ · [C × A − P 0 × (A − C)] ẑ · (C × A − P 0 × b)
ξb = = , (C4b)
7 ẑ · (A × B + B × C + C × A) 2SABC
8
9 ẑ · [A × B − P 0 × (B − A)] ẑ · (A × B − P 0 × c)
ξc = = , (C4c)

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10 ẑ · (A × B + B × C + C × A) 2SABC
11 where
12
13 P 0 = P |z→0 = (x, y, 0). (C5)
14
15
16

us
17
18
19
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