Lab.

 01-­‐Exploring  electric  charges  

CHRIS SMITH
PURPOSE:  USE  SIMULATIONS  TO  EXPLORE  ELECTROSTATIC  INTERACTIONS  
In  this  online  lab  you  will  use  simulations  to  check  your  knowledge  regarding  electrostatic  interactions.    
 

Balloons  and  Static  Electricity  Simulation  

 
To  interactively  explore  some  of  the  concepts  you  have  learned  so  far  please  go  to  the  Physics  Education  
Technology  Web  site  (http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/new).  We  will  start  with  the  
Balloons  and  Static  Electricity  simulation,  found  under  Physics  -­‐>  Electricity,  Magnets  and  Circuits.    
 
The  image  on  the  webpage  should  look  
like  the  one  on  the  left.  
 
The  simulation  “Balloons  and  Static  
Electricity”  can  be  run  online  (chose  
“Run  now”)  or  downloaded  and  runs  
on  your  own  computer  (choose  
“Download”).  
 
Once  your  application  has  started,  click  
“Reset  All”.  Make  sure  that  only  the  
“show  all  charges”  and  “wall”  buttons  
are  selected.  
 
1) Look  at  the  balloon.  What  can  you  say  about  its  charge?  (Hint:  count  both  types  of  charges)  
 
  The balloon's charge is neutral with 4 protons and 4 electrons
 
2) Click  and  drag  the  balloon  and  rub  it  against  the  sweater.  What  happens  to  the  balloon?  
 
  The balloon becomes negatively charged, picking up the sweater's electrons
 
3) How  did  the  balloon  get  charged,  with  what  type  of  charge?  
 
  The balloon is charged through direct contact with the sweater
 
4) Where  did  that  charge  come  from?  
 
  The charge came from the sweater's electrons.
 
5) What  happened  to  the  sweater?  How  did  it  get  charged?  
 
  The sweater got charged postively by loosing its electrons as they attached to the balloon.
 
6) Bring  the  balloon  in  the  middle,  between  the  sweater  and  the  wall.  What  happens  to  the  
balloon  when  you  let  it  go?  Explain.  
  The balloon goes back to the sweater because the positively charged sweater
  and the negatively charged balloon are attracted to each other. So the balloon returns
and sticks to the sweater.
 7) What  is  the  overall  charge  of  the  wall?  
 
  The overall charged of the wall is neutral because it has an equal amount
  of protons and neutrons.
8) What  do  you  think  will  happen  when  the  balloon  is  brought  close  to  the  wall?  Predict  first.  
 
  The wall will repell the balloon.
 
 
9) Bring  the  balloon  in  contact  with  the  wall.  What  happens  to  the  charges  in  the  wall?  
 
 
  The balloon sticks to the wall, but the electrons of the wall are repelled away
  from the balloon.
 
10) Let  go  of  the  balloon.  What  happens?  Explain.  
  The balloon sticks, because having repelled the electrons, the protons on the wall
  allow it to stick.
 
 
 
11) Click  the  “Reset  All”  button.  Select  “show  all  charges”,  and  “Two  balloons”.  What  can  you  tell  
about  the  overall  charge  of  all  the  objects  in  your  simulation  window?    
 
  The overall charge is neutral for all objects.
 
 
 
12) Select  “Show  charge  differences”.  Rub  each  balloon  against  the  sweater.  What  happens  to  each  
one  of  them?  
 
  The balloons and sweater go from showing nothing to showing that balloons are negatively
  charged while the sweater becomes positively charged.
 
 
13) Why  are  the  two  balloons  stuck  on  the  sweater?  
 
  Because the balloons are negatively charged and the sweater is positively charged
  and because opposites attract, they become stuck on the sweater.
 
 
 
14) Try  to  get  one  balloon  off  the  sweater  by  using  the  other  balloon.  Can  you  do  it?  If  yes,  explain  
why  this  is  possible.  
 
  Yes, because the balloons are charged the same, they repell each other so by
  moving the yellow balloon towards the green one, the yellow balloon shoots off
  and sticks to  the wall.
Go  back  to  your  web  browser  window  and  from  the  simulations  under  Physics  -­‐>  Electricity,  Magnets  
and  Circuits,  select  “John  Travoltage”.  
 

 
 
1) Predict  what  will  happen  to  John  if  he  rubs  his  foot  against  the  carpet.  
 
  John will gain a charge.
 
 
2) Rub  John’s  foot  on  the  carpet  by  clicking  and  dragging  his  foot  few  times.  What  happens?  
 
  John gains electrons throughout his body
 
 
3) Predict  what  will  happen  if  John  touches  the  door  knob.  
 
 
John will got shocked.
 
 
4) Click  and  drag  John’s  hand  such  that  it  touched  the  doorknob.  What  happened?  
 
  John's charge equalizes as the electrons move through his hand
  and into the doorknob. The result is a shock to his finger.
 
5) What  would  you  call  what  happened  to  John?  
 
  A static electric jolt.
 
 
6) How  is  this  different  from  the  balloon  and  sweater  or  balloon  and  wall  touching  each  other?  
 
The electrons are moved out of John's body and into the doorknob.
Meanwhile, the balloon, wall, and sweater does not allow the movement of charge
from one to another.