Physics 12

Unit 6 - Electrostatics
1. Review of static electricity
• It is our daily experience that if we comb dry hair briskly, the comb
will be able to attract not only hair but also small pieces of paper or
threads. Apparently we create an attractive power between these
items through rubbing. This process is called electrification.
• It has been observed by a French scientist, Charles du Fay in the early
1700’s that there are two types of electricity that may exist in rubbed
objects.
1. Two glass rods rubbed with silk repel one another. So do two
amber rods rubbed with fur.
2. An electrified glass rod and an electrified amber rod attract each
other.
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• By convention:
1. A glass rod rubbed with silk is said to carry a positive charge and
is filled with a positive static electricity.
2. An amber rod rubbed with fur is said to carry a negative charge
and is filled with a negative static electricity.
• There are many other materials that demonstrate a similar behavior
as glass rods and amber rods. For example:

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 3
 • What is the origin of static electricity?
• Let’s review the basic concept of atomic structure as proposed by
Dalton and Rutherford, respectively:
• Discovered by J. J.
Thomson
• Discovered by Rutherford • Negatively charged
• Positively charged particle particle

• Discovered by Chadwick • Internal structure of nucleus

• Neutral particle that glues • Positively charged nucleus
protons together surrounded by electrons
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• In an atom, the number of protons equals the number of electrons;
therefore atom is neutral. In other words, it does not carry a net
charge.
• Electrons and protons attract each other strongly by an electrical
force. This force is much greater than the gravitational force exerted
by Earth.
• The attraction between protons and electrons depends on distance;
the farther they are, the weaker they are attracted. Hence, the
innermost electrons in an atom are tightly bound to the nucleus
while the outermost electrons are only loosely bound.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 5
• The latter ones therefore can be dislodged if sufficient stimulation is
provided.
• Electrons can be either removed from or added to an atom:
• If an electron is removed, there will be an excess proton giving
rise to a net positive charge.
• The resulting ion is called a cation.
• If an electron is added, there will be an excess electron giving rise
to a net negative charge.
• The resulting ion is called an anion.

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• Using the atomic theory, we are able to explain how an object is
electrified.

• Since vinyl has a stronger affinity to electrons; therefore when it is

rubbed with wool, electrons move from wool to the vinyl rod.
Consequently, the vinyl rod becomes negatively charged yet the wool
becomes positively charged.
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• Different materials possess different degree of
affinity to electrons. The relative strength of the
electron affinity of various materials is
summarized as a triboelectric series as shown.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 8
• Substances can be classified into 3 types:
(1) Conductors
• They are the materials in which charged particles can move easily.
• Many metals are good conductors; they can conduct electricity.
• They can conduct because they have free electrons.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 9
(2) Insulators
• They have a strong resistance to the flow of charged particles
because electrons are strongly bound within atoms.
• They are poor conductors; many of them cannot conduct electricity
(e.g. wood, plastics, rubbers).
• They can be used as the protecting sheath for electrical cables.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 10
(3) Semiconductors
• They are the materials with a very small number of electrons
possessing a limited degree of movement. The number of accessible
electrons increases with temperature.
• Hence, they behave like typical insulators at low temperatures, but
become conducting at high temperatures.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 11
• We have studied how static electricity arises. In practice, how can an
object be electrified? How can a charge be placed on an object?
• There are two possible methods:
(1) Charging by conduction
• If a charged conductor is in contact with a neutral conductor,
electrons will move immediately from one to the another in one of
the following directions:
(i) from more negative to less negative
(ii) from less positive to more positive
(iii) from negative to positive

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 12
• Consider the following example:

• When a positively charged acetate strip is placed in contact with a

neutral metal ball, some negative charges transfer from the metal ball
to the strip, making the metal ball positively charged.
• Since both objects are now positively charged, they repel one
another.
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• Note that such transfer of charge is not possible for insulators. When
a charged insulator is put in contact with a neutral conductor, no
electron moves from the insulator to the conductor.
• Instead, charge can conduct between insulators by means of rubbing
(or called technically charging by friction). In this process, electrons
are transferred from the materials in which its outermost electrons
are loosely bound to the materials in which its outermost electrons
are tightly bound.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 14
(2) Charging by induction
• Electrons in a conductor can move easily. Hence, when a charged
object is placed near to a neutral conductor, the electrons in the
conductor either:
• move away from the external charge if it is negative
• move toward the external charge if it is positive

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• This phenomenon is called polarization, and is crucial in charging by
induction.
• Consider the following situation in which a positively charged acetate
rod is brought close to two neutral conducting spheres.

• The two spheres are charged negatively and positively, respectively.

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• Charging by induction can also be achieved by earthing (or
grounding):

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• Alternatively,

• Note that the object to be charged must be a conductor. For

insulators, a nearby charge only polarizes the materials slightly but is
impossible to separate the charges completely. Therefore, grounding
does not work.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 18
• The idea of induction can be utilized to determine the type and size of
the charge an object carries. Such a tool is called an electroscope.
• A popular electroscope used in laboratory is Gold-leaf electroscope
developed by Abraham Bennet in 1787.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 19
(1) Determination of the size of charge
• The gold-leaf electroscope must be earthed before use!
• When a charged object is brought into contact with the electroscope,
the gold leaf starts to bend up. The degree of bending is proportional
to the charge that the object possesses.
• The bending of the gold leaf is due to the charging of the
electroscope by conduction.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 20
• If the charged object is not in contact with the knob but very close to
it, then the electroscope should be earthed before the object is
removed.

• In this case, the electroscope is charged by induction.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 21
• How much the gold leaf is spread apart depends on how much charge
is transferred or induced to the electroscope. Therefore, a calibrated
electroscope can be used to determine the charge carried by an
object placed on it.

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(2) Determination of the type of charge
• Both positive and negative test charges of the same size can induce
the same degree of spreading of the gold leaf.
• In order to determine the type of a test charge, we have to use a
charged electroscope. This can be achieved by either conduction or
induction.
• Suppose the type of charge on the electroscope is known. If an object
with the same charge is placed nearby, it will induce the like charge to
move away, causing the gold leaf to spread further.
• If an object with the opposite charge is placed nearby instead, it will
attract the unlike charge on the gold leaf, reducing the repulsion and
making the gold leaf less spread out.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 23
• The mechanism of how it works is as follows:

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 24
• Example: The leaves of a metal leaf electroscope are slightly
separated. When you bring a negatively charged rod near the sphere,
the leaves spread farther apart. What charge is on the electroscope?
Draw diagrams to explain your answer.

Unit 6 - Electrostatics 25