General Physics 2

CHAPTER 1: ELECTROSTATICS
Lesson 1: Electric Charge

Lesson 1: Electric Charge

Learning Outcomes:

 Describe using a diagram charging by rubbing and charging by induction

 Explain the role of electron transfer in electrostatic charging by rubbing
 Describe experiments to show electrostatic charging by induction
 State that there are positive and negative charges and that charge is measured in
coulombs
 Predict charge distributions, and the resulting attraction or repulsion, in a system of
charged insulators and conductors

Electric Charge
A property of particles that traces all electrical effects to electrons and protons inside every
atom.

 Charge is a fundamental property of subatomic particles. The smallest amount of charge

is called an elementary charge. The elementary charge has a magnitude of
1.60x10-19C
where:
C stands for coulomb, named after French physicist Charles Agustin Coulomb.

Figure 1.1 (a) neutral atom (b) positively charged atom (c) negatively charged atom
General Physics 2
CHAPTER 1: ELECTROSTATICS
Lesson 1: Electric Charge

1. Aluminum has atomic number 13. This means that it has 13 electrons and 13 protons.
What is the total charge of all the electron in an aluminum atom?

(1) Q=ne
Where:
Q= total charge
n= number of electrons
e= elementary charge
Solution:

Q=ne
Q= 13(-1.60x10-19 C)
Q= -2.08x10-18C

The charge of one electron is -1.60x10-19 C. Therefore, if there are 13 electrons each of
this has a charge of -1.60x10-19 C. Then the total charge is -2.08x10-18C.

Thirteen electrons altogether still have a very small charge.

2. How many electrons must an object lose so that it has a net positive charge of +1C?

We let n be the number of electrons lost and e the charge of every electron then the total
charge Q is
Q=ne

The number of electrons the object must lose so that it will have a net positive charge of +1C
is

(2) n=

Solution:

n=

n=
n=6.25x1018

Conductors and Insulators

 Conductors
Materials where outermost or valence electrons are free to move around the entire
material. E.g. copper, silver and other metals

 Insulators
Materials where electrons are tightly bound to the atom and do not easily move. E.g.
wood and glass
General Physics 2
CHAPTER 1: ELECTROSTATICS
Lesson 1: Electric Charge

 Good conductors are poor insulators; poor conductors are good insulators. Most metals
are conductors while most nonmetals are insulators
 In a conductor, valence electrons are not bound to the atoms but are free to float over
the material called free electrons
 When energy is applied to the free electrons, they move in a more organized way,
producing electric current

Charging
Transferring charge carriers from one object to another either by rubbing, by conduction, or
by induction.

 A material can be given a net charge by adding or removing electrons. There are ways
of charging objects:

1. Using friction

By rubbing things together, electrons can peel off one material and remain in the other.
Figure 1.2 a rubber rod is rubbed on a wool cloth. In the process, the electrons were lost in the
wool cloth to the rod which result in both rod and the cloth being charged.

FIGURE 1.2

2. By touching

Electrons are transferred when a charged object comes in contact with another object, thus
charging the second object.
Figure 1.3 shows a small Styrofoam ball hanging on an insulated
stand. Bringing a negatively charged rubber rod to the ball and simply touching it, electrons from
the rod transfer to the ball. This time, both the ball and the rod are negatively charged so they
repel each other. This process is also called charging by conduction.

FIGURE 1.3 (a) The ball acquires negative charge from the rod (b) The ball
is repelled by the rod
General Physics 2
CHAPTER 1: ELECTROSTATICS
Lesson 1: Electric Charge

3. By induction

In charging by induction, there is no actual contact between the charged object and the
object which will be charged. In this way, the charged object does not lose its charge to the
object that gets charged in the process.
Through charging by induction, a negatively charged rod is brought close to the ball without
touching it (Figure1.4) . Electrons in the ball move away from the rod, which makes the far end
of the ball negative and the near side positive. The ball is now polarized.
Now, the near positive side of the ball is attracted to the rod.

FIGURE 1.4 The ball is polarized and behaves as f it is charged

While we cannot see electrons, it is possible to see the behavior of charged objects using
simple experiments. More about the attraction and repulsion of charges will be discussed in the
next lesson.

Reference:
Cook, C. (2018). Breaking Through General Physics 2.839 EDSA, South Triangle, Quezon
City. C&E Publishing Inc.