side of Gauss ’ s law , however , represents only the total charge inside S . o
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The surface that we choose for the application of Gauss ’ s law is called the Gaussian surface . The Gaussian surface can pass through a continuous charge distribution .
Gauss ’ s law is useful for the calculation of the electrostatic field for a symmetric system .
Gauss ’ s law is based on the inverse square dependence on distance contained in the Coulomb ’ s law . Any violation of Gauss ’ s law will indicate departure from the inverse square law .