3/15/2021
Zoom meeting passcode: 21787
FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICS II
Instructor: Dr. Haeyeon Yang
Spring 2021 PHYS110 CRN: 21787
Lectures meet at 10:00AM on Mondays and
Wednesdays at CH94
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HOW TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN PHYSICS?
HOW TO
SUCCEED IN
PHYSICS?
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Topics of 3/15/2021
Monday
March 15, 2021
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•You may use your phone to join the zoom session
and make your face visible in video during the
class.
•In-person class students come to the classroom.
•Link to Zoom Meeting:
https://zoom.us/j/97213656304?pwd=S2VyOWxy
LzIxRkhKUHVxanV2VTNmUT09
•Meeting ID: 972 1365 6304; Passcode: 21787
• Physics is a hard subject.
• Doing good with Physics is like making good friends: you
spend time with your friend to be a GOOD friend.
(1) Budget your time, i.e. 3 hours every other day to study
(2) Don’t miss class
(3) Approach physics problems systematically
(4) Unsympathetically assess your level of understanding.
1. Potential gradient
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Goals for Chapter 18

Chapter 18 • To calculate electrical potential energy.

• To define potential.
Electric Potential and • To study equipotential surfaces.

Capacitance
• To examine capacitors.
• To determine electrical field energy.

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Potential gradient
• We can draw equipotentials so that adjacent surfaces
have equal potential differences.

POTENTIAL GRADIENT
• Then, in regions where the magnitude of 𝐸 is large,
the equipotential surfaces are close together because
the field does a relatively large amount of work on a
test charge in a relatively small displacement.
• Conversely, in regions where the field is weaker, the
equipotential surfaces are farther apart.
• This is similar to the equal height lines in a map

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Potential gradient Potential gradient

• Suppose we have two adjacent equipotential surfaces • The definition of potential (potential energy per unit
separated by a small distance Ds, with a potential charge) tells that this work is also equal to −𝑞 ∆𝑉
difference DV between them. • Equating these two expressions
• If Ds is very small, the electric field is approximately 𝑞 𝐸 Ds = −𝑞 ∆𝑉
constant over that distance, so the work done by the ∆
electric field on a test charge 𝑞′ that moves from one 𝐸 = −
∆
surface to the other in the direction of 𝐸 is equal to Unit: V/m or N/C
𝑞 𝐸 Ds. • The ratio ∆𝑉/∆𝑠 is sometimes referred to as the
potential gradient.

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Electric field as potential gradient Component of E-field as a potential gradient

• The magnitude of the electric field at any point on an • Coordinate system: 𝑥-component of Electric field
equipotential surface equals the rate of change of can be calculated from the potential gradient
potential, ∆𝑉, with distance ∆𝑠 as the point moves ∆
𝐸 = −
perpendicularly from the surface to an adjacent one a ∆
distance ∆𝑠 away: • Similar equations hold for the 𝑦 and 𝑧 components
𝐸 = −
∆ of 𝐸
∆ ∆
• The negative sign reflects the fact that when a charge 𝐸 = −
∆
moves in the direction of the electric field, its 𝐸 = −
∆
potential decreases. ∆

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Potential inside charged parallel plates

EQUIPOTENTIAL SURFACE
INSIDE PLATES
EXAMPLE 8.5

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Electric field lines and equipotential surfaces

ELECTRON VOLT
SCALE OF ENERGY FOR
ELECTRONS
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Electron volt Electron volt

• When a particle with charge 𝑞 moves from a point • This quantity of energy is defined as 1 electronvolt or
where the potential is 𝑉 to a point where it is 𝑉 , the 1 eV
change ∆𝑈 in the potential energy 𝑈 is • 1 eV = (1.602x10–19 𝐶) 1𝑉 =1.602x10–19 J
• ∆𝑈 = 𝑞 𝑉 − 𝑉 = 𝑎𝑉 • 1 meV = 10–3 eV=1.602x10–22 J
• If the charge 𝑞 equals the magnitude 𝑒 of the • 1 MeV = 106 eV=1.602x10–13 J
electron charge, 1.602x10–19 C, and the potential
• 1 GeV = 109 eV =1.602x10–10 J
difference 𝑉 equals 1 V
• 1 TeV = 1012 eV =1.602x10–7 J
• Then, the change of energy for this work is
 ∆𝑈 = (1.602x10–19 𝐶) 1𝑉 =1.602x10–19 J

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Capacitors
• A capacitor is a device that stores electric potential
energy and electric charge.

CAPACITORS • For instance, a camera flash requires a brief burst of

power much greater than a camera battery can
deliver.
• The flash is powered by a capacitor, which stores up
energy from the battery and delivers it in a pulse
when needed.

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Capacitors Capacitors
of high
• Capacitors are also used in energy-storage units for
pulsed lasers, in computer chips that store
voltage
information, in circuits that improve the efficiency of
power transmission lines, and in thousands of other
devices.
• The study of capacitors will help us to develop insight
into the behavior of electric fields and their
interactions with matter.

High-voltage capacitors that are used in power distribution systems, such as those that bring electricity to your home.

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Capacitors Capacitors
found in
consumer •In principle, a
electronics capacitor consists of
any two conductors
separated by
vacuum or an
insulating material.

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Capacitors
• When charges with equal magnitude and opposite
sign are placed on the conductors, an electric field is
established in the region between the conductors,
and there is a potential difference between them.
• In most practical applications, the conductors have
charges with equal magnitude and opposite signs,
and the net charge on the capacitor is zero.
Capacitors
• We'll assume throughout this section that that is the
case.
• When we say that a capacitor has charge Q, we mean
that the conductor at higher potential has charge Q
and the conductor at lower potential has charge —Q
(assuming that Q is positive).
• Keep this in mind in the discussion and examples that
follow.

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Capacitors Capacitors
• For a capacitor with a given charged surface area, the
• For a capacitor with a given charged surface area, the
electric field at any point in the region between the
electric field at any point in the region between the
conductors is proportional to the magnitude Q of the
conductors is proportional to the magnitude Q of the
charge on each conductor.
charge on each conductor.
• It follows that the potential difference Vab between
• It follows that the potential difference 𝑉 between the
the conductors is also proportional to Q. If we double
conductors is also proportional to Q.
the charge Q on the capacitor, the electric field at
each point and the potential difference between the
conductors both double, but the ratio of charge Q to
potential difference Val, does not change.
• We define the capacitance C of a capacitor as follows:
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Double the charge Q and the ratio Unit of capacitance

• If we double the charge Q on the capacitor, the electric • Charge divided by voltage or C/V
field at each point and the potential difference • C/V is also called farad, F
between the conductors both double, but the ratio of • 1 F = 1 Coulomb/Volt
charge Q to potential difference 𝑉 , does not change.
• Most used units of farad are microfarad or mF and
• This nature can be used to characterize a capacitor picofarad or pF
This ratio is called capacitance, 𝐶 • 1 mF = 10–6 F
𝐶 = • 1 pF = 10–12 F

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Symbol for capacitor

PARALLEL-PLATE
Typical

CAPACITORS

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Parallel-Plate Capacitors Electric Field due to a Parallel-Plate Capacitor

• The most common
form of capacitor
consists of two
parallel conducting
plates, each with
area A, separated
by a distance d that
is small in
comparison with Nearly all the field of such a capacitor is localized in the
their dimensions. region between the plates.

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Ignoring the fringing fields Surface charge density

• There is some "fringing" of the field at the edges, also
shown in the figure, but if the distance between the
plates is small in comparison to their size, we can
ignore this effect.
• The field between the plates is then uniform, and the
charges on the plates are uniformly distributed over
their opposing surfaces.
• We call this arrangement a parallel-plate capacitor.
• The electric-field magnitude in the region between the
plates is directly proportional to the electric charge per
unit area of the plate, since the charge on each plate
distributes itself evenly over the surface that faces the
opposite plate.  why?
• This quantity is called the surface charge density and is
denoted by the lowercase Greek letter sigma, s.

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Surface charge density Vacuum dielectric constant, 𝜖

• Consider a pair of plates with area A and total charges
Q and –Q.
• The surface charge densities on the plates are s = Q/A
and s= –Q /A.
• Gauss's law can be used to prove that, for the parallel-
plate situation, the field magnitude E is related very
simply to Q and s :
• 𝜖 = 8.854x10
• 𝜖 is a universal constant of nature
• 𝜖 is called vacuum dielectric constant or electric
permittivity of vacuum
• Note the constant in Coulomb’s law, 𝑘 = 1/(4𝜋𝜖 )
• Dielectric constant is material dependent coefficient
• For the given material, it does not change

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Capacitance of a parallel-plate capacitor Capacitance unit

•𝑉 = 𝐸𝑑 = for a parallel-plate capacitor • The unit of 𝜖 is and area/thickness has unit of 𝑚

• C = Q/ 𝑉 • So, the unit of capacitance, Farad, 1 𝐹 = 1 =1
C=𝜖 • Note 1 V = 1 J/C (energy per charge)
• C the capacitance does not depend on charge or
voltage •1 = 1 𝐹/𝑚

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Sandwiched material between the plates

• These equations for parallel-plate capacitors are correct
when there is only vacuum in the space between the
plates
CAPACITANCE AND AREA
• Other material can be inserted to increase the
capacitance of the parallel-plate capacitor
OF CAPACITOR
EXAMPLE 8.6

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Capacitance and area of capacitor

Capacitance and area of capacitor

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PROPERTIES OF A
PARALLEL-PLATE
CAPACITOR
EXAMPLE 8.7
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Properties of a Parallel-Plate capacitor Properties of a Parallel-Plate capacitor

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