Electric Fields (II)

1
 Introduction

In AS level we learned that electric fields are generated from

point-like particles such as electrons

Electric field is defined as a region around an isolated charge

where an electric force is experienced if a positive test charge
placed in the region

2
 Introduction

The electric field is a vector quantity

Its magnitude, called the electric field strength, E, is represented

by the density of field lines – closer lines implies stronger field

Increasing E →

The stronger the E, the stronger the force experienced by a

surrounding charge
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 Introduction

It turns out that the electric field is essentially a force field that
attracts or repels other electric charges

The direction of electric field shows how a positive test charge

will move if it is placed anywhere in the field

But remember, the direction defined here is purely conventional

due to historical reasons
4
 Introduction

Consequently, we can relate the electric field strength, E with

the force, F experienced by a charge, q

Formulas
𝑭
𝑬=
𝒒

Definition
Electric field strength is defined as force per unit
charge, on a positive and stationary* charge

5
 Coulomb’s law

In 1784, French physicist Coulomb found a physical law that

describes force interacting between stationary charged particles

He found that the electric force between two point particles

depend on the amount of charges each particle has, and the
distance between them

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 Coulomb’s law

Definition
Coulomb’s law states that the force between two particles is
proportional to the product of the two point charges
and inversely proportional to the square of their separation

Formulas
𝟏 𝒒𝟏 𝒒𝟐
𝑭=
𝟒 𝝅 𝝐𝟎 𝒓𝟐

Here is known as the permittivity of free space. The unit F

stands for Farad, a unit of capacitance*.
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 Discussion
Motivation
Coulomb’s law of electricity bears a striking resemblance to the
Newton’s law of gravitation. Do you know why is it so? What
are the similarity and difference between them?

Similarity:
1. Both the field/force obey inverse square law
2. Both are radial fields
3. The field lines are normal to surface

Difference:
1. gravitational field/force is always attractive while electric
field/force can be attractive or repulsive
2. Electric force is much stronger than gravity
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 Example
Two isolated protons are separated in a vacuum by a distance x.
Calculate the ratio of the electric force and the gravitational force
between the two protons.
−𝟏𝟗 𝟐
𝟏 ( 𝟏 . 𝟔× 𝟏 𝟎 )
𝑭 𝑬= −𝟏𝟐 𝟐
𝟒 𝝅 (𝟖 . 𝟖𝟓 ×𝟏 𝟎 ) 𝒙
− 𝟐𝟕 𝟐
( 𝟏 .𝟔𝟕 ×𝟏 𝟎 )
𝑭 𝑮= ( 𝟔 .𝟔𝟕 ×𝟏 𝟎 − 𝟏𝟏
)
𝒙𝟐

𝑭𝑬
=𝟏 .𝟐 ×𝟏 𝟎𝟑𝟔
𝑭𝑮

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 Electric Field of a Point Charge

The electric field of a point charge is subsequently given by

Formulas
𝑭 𝟏 𝑸
𝑬= =
𝒒 𝟒 𝝅 𝝐𝟎 𝒓 𝟐

Note the two different symbol used: q and Q. By convention

• q is used for charges that “experience” the force of field, or
the test charge;
• Q is used for charges that generate the field

Loosely speaking, q is like the earth and Q is like the sun

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 Example
An isolated metal sphere is to be used to store charge at high
potential. The charge stored may be assumed to be a point charge
at the centre of the sphere. The sphere has a radius of 25 cm.

Electrical breakdown (a spark) occurs in the air surrounding the

sphere when the electric field strength at the surface of the sphere
exceeds 1.8 × 104 V cm–1.

Show that the maximum charge that can

be stored on the sphere is 12.5 μC.

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 Discussion
Motivation
Why can we assume such a huge metal sphere to act like a
point charge, when it is clearly, not a “point”?

They are in fact acting like a

point charge!

The field lines are perpendicular

to the surface and appear to
come from centre

This means that effectively, a perfectly symmetrical spherical

conductor (i.e. metal ball) can be seen as a point charge
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 Electric Field Inside a Conducting Sphere

But wait! Does this means there is no difference between a

spherical conductor and a point charge?

Of course not! It turns out that the electric field inside the
conductor is precisely zero

Conclusion: Only points outside a spherical conductor can the

charges on the sphere be considered to act as a point charge at
its centre
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 Discussion
Motivation
But how do we know that the electric field inside is zero?

Any net electric field would cause charge to

move. Since charges are abundant and mobile
in conductors, they will move until E = 0

The mutual repulsion of like charges from

Coulomb's Law demands that the charges be
as far apart as possible, hence all the net
charges will move to the surface of the
conductor

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 Electric Potential and Potential Energy

In AS we learned about the concept of electrical potential and

potential energy

If a positive charge is moving towards a higher potential, it will

slow down, losing its kinetic energy

We say that work is done on the particle – it converts its KE into

EPE, similar to a ball being thrown up

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 Electric Potential and Potential Energy

This analogy allows us to view electrical potential the same way

as the gravitational potential

But unlike the gravitational case

where a mass can only “go down”
the potential

In electric field, we have a

“positive ball” that will always
“go down” and…

a “negative ball” that can only

“go up”!

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 Electric Potential of a Point Charge

Definition
The electric potential is defined as work done per unit charge
in bringing a small test charge from infinity to the point

Formulas
𝑾 𝟏 𝑸
𝑽= =
𝒒 𝟒 𝝅 𝝐𝟎 𝒓

Similar to the gravitational case, we define infinity to be the zero

potential, or the “ground”

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 Example
An isolated metal sphere is to be used to store charge at high
potential. The charge stored may be assumed to be a point charge
at the centre of the sphere. The sphere has a radius of 25 cm.

Electrical breakdown (a spark) occurs in the air surrounding the

sphere when the electric field strength at the surface of the sphere
exceeds 1.8 × 104 V cm–1.

(a) Show that the maximum charge that can be stored on the
sphere is 12.5 μC.
(b) Calculate the potential of the sphere for this maximum charge.

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 Discussion
Motivation
What is the relationship between the electric field, E, and the
electric potential, V?

A higher slope will cause the “ball”

to move faster, i.e. experiencing a
larger force!

The electric field strength is equal

to the negative gradient of the
potential

𝑬=−𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝 𝑽
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 Discussion

A direct implication of this theorem is that the potential inside a

spherical conductor is actually a constant!

The gradient of a
“constant” potential is
equal to zero (field)

A “ball” sitting on a “flat” surface doesn’t have the urge to move

because there is no potential difference!
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 Field vs Potential

What happens when there are more than one charge?

It turns out that both electric fields and potential obey the
principle of superposition – the resultant quantity is equal to
the sum of the individual components

However, there is one crucial difference:

• The electric field is a vector: both the magnitude and

direction is summed. Negative sign indicates direction.
• The electric potential is a scalar: only magnitude is
summed. Negative sign indicates magnitude*.

Remember, magnitudes don’t have to be always positive!

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 Example
Two point charges are separated by a distance of 10.0 cm. One has
a charge of -25 μC and the other +50 μC. Determine the direction
and magnitude of the electric field at point P.

As can be seen above, the two electric fields due to Q1 and Q2 both
points in the same direction

𝑬 =𝑬 𝟏+ 𝑬 𝟐=
𝟏
(
𝑸 𝟏 𝒌 𝑸𝟐
𝟒 𝝅 𝝐 𝟎 𝒓 𝟐𝟏
+ 𝟐
𝒓𝟐
=𝟔. 𝟑
)×𝟏 𝟎
𝟖
𝐍 𝐂
−𝟏

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 Example
Determine the the electric potential at point P.

Although the potential itself is a scalar, this doesn’t mean the

potential can’t be negative

𝑽 =𝑽 𝟏+𝑽 𝟐=
𝟏 𝑸𝟏 𝑸𝟐
+
(
𝟒 𝝅 𝝐𝟎 𝒓 𝟏 𝒓 𝟐
=
𝟏
) −𝟐𝟓 𝝁 𝟓𝟎 𝝁
+
𝟒 𝝅 𝝐 𝟎 𝟎 .𝟎𝟐 𝟎 . 𝟎𝟖( )
𝑽 =−𝟓 . 𝟒×𝟏 𝟎𝟔 𝐕
A negative charge will generate a negative potential!

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 Summary
Electric field is a vector:
1. Determine the direction of the electric field contributed by
each charge by assuming a positive test charge
2. Draw a free body diagram showing all fields together

3. The resultant field is simply equal to all the fields pointing to

the right minus those pointing to the left

Electric potential is a scalar:

1. Simply add all the potentials due to positive charges and
subtract those due to negative charges
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