CHAPTER 4

ENERGY AND POTENTIAL

4.1 ENERGY TO MOVE A POINT CHARGE
THROUGH A FIELD
Force on Q due to an electric field
FE QE
Differential work done by an external source moving Q

Work required to move a charge a finite distance

dW QE dL
4.2 LINE INTEGRAL
final
Work expression without using vectors 
W Q  E L dL

initial

EL is the component of E in the dL direction

Uniform electric field density

W QE L BA
EXAMPLE

y  .8  1
E( x y )   x  A   .6  B   0 
2 2
Q  2 Path: x y 1 z 1
     
2 1  1
Calculate the work to cary the charge from point B to point A.
A A A
 0  1  2
W Q  E( x y ) d x  Q  E( x y ) d y  Q  E( x y ) d z
 0  1  2
B B B
0 1 2

Plug path in for x and y in E(x,y)

   
A A A
 0  1  2
1  y  0 1 d y  Q  E( 0  0) d z
2 2
W  Q  E 0  1  x 0 d x  Q  E W  0.96
B B  2
0 1
B
2
 EXAMPLE

y  .8  1
E( x y )   x  Q  2 A   .6  B   0  Path: y 3( x  1) z 1
     
2 1  1 (straight line)

Calculate the work to cary the charge from point B to point A.

A A A
 0  1  2
W Q  E( x y ) d x  Q  E( x y ) d y  Q  E( x y ) d z
 0  1  2
B B B
0 1 2

Plug path in for x and y in E(x,y)

A A1 A2
 0  
E  1  0 1 d y  Q 
 y
W  Q E[ 0  3( x  1) ] d x  Q  E( 0  0) d z W  0.96
 0   3   2
B   B2
0 B1

Same amount of work with a different path

Line integrals are path independent
4.3 POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE
Potential Difference

Using radial distances from the point charge

4.3 POTENTIAL
Measure potential difference between a point and something which
has zero potential “ground”

V AB VA  VB
EXAMPLE – D4.4
 6x2 
 
E( x y  z)   6y 
 4 
 
a) Find Vmn

2  3  
M0

M1 M2

M   6  N   3 
2
VMN   6x d x   6y d y   4 dz VMN  139
    N N N
 1  2 0 1 2

b) Find Vm if V =0 at Q(4,-2,-35)

 4  
M0

M1

M2
Q   2 
2
VM   6x d x   6y d y   4 dz VM  120
  Q Q Q
 35  0 1 2

c) Find Vn if V=2 at P (1, 2, -4)

1 
N0

N1

N2
P   2 
2
VN   6x d x   6y d y   4 dz  2 VN  19
  P P P
 4  0 1 2
4.4 POTENTIAL FIELD OF A POINT
CHARGE
Let V=0 at infinity

Equipotential surface:
 A surface composed of all points having the same potential
EXAMPLE – D4.5
 2 
P1   3 
9  12
Q  15 10 0  8.85 10
 
Q is located at the origin  1 

a) Find V1 if V =0 at (6,5,4)

 6
P0   5   1  1 
Q
V1   V1  20.677
  4 0  P1 P0 
 4 

b) Find V1 if V =0 at infinity

Q 1
V1  V1  36.047
4 0 P1

c) Find V1 if V=5 at (2,0,4)

 2
P5   0   1  1 5
Q
V1   V1  10.888
  4 0  P1 P5 
 4 
 Potential field of single point
charge
Q1
V ( r) Move A
4     0  r  r1 A
from infinity

|r - r1|
Q1
 Potential due to two charges
Q1 Q2
V( r) 
4   0 r  r1 4   0 r  r2

Move A
A
from infinity
|r - r1|

Q1 |r - r2|

Q2
 Potential due to n point charges
Continue adding charges

Q1 Q2 Qn
V( r)   .... 
4   0 r  r1 4   0 r  r2 4   0 r  r n

n

Qm
V( r)
4   0 r  r m
m1
Potential as point charges become
infinite

 
 v r prime 
Volume of charge V( r) 
4   0 r  r prime
d v prime




 
 L r prime 
V( r)  d L prime
Line of charge  4   0 r  r prime



 
 S r prime 
Surface of charge V( r)  d S prime
 4   0 r  r prime

 Example
Find V on the z
axis for a uniform
line charge L in
the form of a ring


 
 L r prime 
V( r)  d L prime
 4   0 r  r prime

 Conservative field
No work is done (energy is conserved) around a
closed path

KVL is an application of this

 4.6
Potential gradient Relationship between
potential and electric field intensity

V=- 

EddL
Two characteristics of relationship:

1. The magnitude of the electric field intensity is given

by the maximum value of the rate of change of potential
with distance

2. This maximum value is obtained when the direction

of E is opposite to the direction in which the potential is
increasing the most rapidly
 Gradient
• The gradient of a scalar is a vector

• The gradient shows the maximum space rate of change

of a scalar quantity and the direction in which the
maximum occurs

• The operation on V by which -E is obtained

E = - grad V = - V
Gradients in different coordinate
systems
The following equations are found on page 104 and
inside the back cover of the text:

V V V
gradV a x  a y  a z Cartesian
x y z

V 1 V V
gradV a    a   a z Cylindrical
   z

V 1 V 1 V
gradV a r   a    a  Spherical
r r  r sin    
 Example 4.3
Given the potential field, V = 2x2y - 5z, and a point P(-4,
3, 6), find the following: potential V, electric field intensity
E. the electric flux density.and volume charge intensity

potential VP = 2(-4)2(3) - 5(6) = 66 V

electric field intensity - use gradient operation

E = -4xyax - 2x2ay + 5az

EP = 48ax - 32ay + 5az
 Dipole
The name given to two point charges of equal magnitude
and opposite sign, separated by a distance which is small
compared to the distance to the point P, at which we want
to know the electric and potential fields
Potential
To approximate the
potential of a dipole,
assume R1 and R2 are
parallel since the point
P is very distant

  
Q 1 1
V  
4   0  R1 R2 

Q d  cos   
V
2
4   0 r
 Dipole moment
The dipole moment is assigned the symbol p and is
equal to the product of charge and separation

p = Q*d

The dipole moment expression simplifies the

potential field equation
 Example
An electric dipole located at the origin in free space
has a moment p = 3*ax - 2*ay + az nC*m. Find V at
the points (2, 3, 4) and (2.5, 30°, 40°).
  3 10 9 
 
p   2 10 9 
 12
0  8.85410

 
 9 
 1 10 

 2
P   3 
p P
V   V  0.23
 
4  0  P  2 P
 4

 2.5 
 
 30   Transform this
Pspherical   180  into rectangular
  
coordinates
 40 
 180 

 2.5 sin  30    cos  40   

    
 180   180 
   0.958

Prectangular   2.5 sin  30
   sin 40  

Prectangular   0.803
  
  180   180    
   2.165
 
2.5 cos  30
 


  180  

p Prectangular
V   V  1.973

4  0 Prectangular  2 Prectangular
 Potential energy
Bringing a positive charge from infinity into the field
of another positive charge requires work. The work is
done by the external source that moves the charge into
position. If the source released its hold on the charge,
the charge would accelerate, turning its potential
energy into kinetic energy.

The potential energy of a system is found by finding

the work done by an external source in positioning the
charge.
 Empty universe
Positioning the first charge, Q1, requires no work (no field present)

Positioning more charges does take work

Total positioning work = potential energy of field = WE =

Q2V2,1 + Q3V3,1 + Q3V3,2 + Q4V4,1 + Q4V4,2 + Q4V4,3 + ...

Manipulate this expression to get

WE = 0.5(Q1V 1 + Q2V2 + Q3V3 + …)
 Where is energy stored?
The location of potential energy cannot be precisely
pinned down in terms of physical location - in the
molecules of the pencil, the gravitational field, etc?

So where is the energy in a capacitor stored?

Electromagnetic theory makes it easy to believe that

the energy is stored in the field itself