Electric Charges and Fields Part -1

Charges are additive in nature. Conductors have free electrons on Like charges repel;Unlike charges attract

q1 q2
q3 the surface which allows current to
pass through. Insulators don’t.
+ve + - Attract
Cable jacket
Q A leg insulator
Charges + +
} Repel
B leg insulator -ve - -
Q = q1 + q2 + q3 Conductors

Electric charge is quantized.

Electrical Conductors Electrical Insulator
COULOMB’S LAW

Q=n x e q1 Fe = kq12q 2 q2
r
1
r k=
4 Ꮛ0
CONDUCTOR allows the INSULATOR does not
energy to pass through it allows the energy

Ꮛ0 = permittivity of vaccum
to pass through it
Charge is a conserved quantity.
Steel Wood -12 2 -1 2
=8.854 x 10 C N m
Net Charge q=0
(neutral) Vector form of Coulomb’s Law
Silver Gold Glass Rubber

F 21= 1 q1 q 2 r r21= r2- r1

4 Ꮛ0 r 221 21
Sea Water Copper Plastic Oil

gains 2 electrons loses 2 electrons F21= -F21

Electric Field
A region around a charged particle or The electric field intensity is the measure k.q
/. Q/d k.Q
2

object within which a force would be of the strength of an electric field at any E= F = =
q q/ d
2

exerted on other charged particles or point.

objects. k.Q
It is equal to the electric force per unit E= 2
Newton / Coulomb
charge experienced by a test charge whi- d ( NC-1 )
ch is placed at that point

Field lines The electric field intensity between

two points is the vector sum of all the
+ _ electric fields acting at that point.

+ _
E=E 1 + E 2 +......+ E n

The electric field from an The electric field from an = kq 1 /r 12 + kq 2 /r 22 +..... + kq n /rn 2
isolated positive charge isolated negative charge

Electric Field Lines: Properties

Electric field lines start from a positive charge and end at a

negative charge.
In case of a single charge, electric field lines end at infinity.
In a charge-free region, electric field lines are continuous + +
and smooth.
Two electric field lines never intersect or cross each other.
Electric field lines never form a closed loop because
electric field is conservative in nature.