EXPERIMENT

Electric Field and Equipotential Lines

Objectives

By the end of this activity, you should be able to:

• draw equipotential lines due to a charge distribution

• obtain an estimate of the magnitude of the electric field in the vicinity of a charged
distribution using a plot of the equipotential lines

• draw the electric field vector at a specific point using a plot of the equipotential
lines

Introduction

Electric charge is an intrinsic property of an object: it can be either positive, negative,

or zero. Two charged objects will exert an electric force on one another. The electric
force is attractive or repulsive, depending on whether the objects are oppositely charged
or not. Two oppositely charged objects will attract one another, while objects with like
charges (i.e., both positive or both negative) will repel each other.
A charge does not need to be in contact with another charge to exert a force on it.
To explain how this action-at-a-distance phenomenon can occur, we develop the concept
of the electric field. One can think of the electric field as an intermediary between the
two interacting charges, which we label A and B. Charge A creates an electric field, and
it is this field that charge B experiences. In other words, the force that is exerted by
charge A on charge B is due to the electric field that charge A generates.
However, the electric field is not directly measurable. To determine the electric field
from experiments, we use another related quantity, the electric potential. Let us go back
to our two-charge example. The force that charge A exerts on charge B is conservative,
and thus has an associated potential energy function. This potential energy function per
unit charge of charge B is defined as the electric potential. Like the potential energy
function, the electric potential is only defined up to an arbitrary constant – that is, there
is no single value of the potential, unless we define a reference point where the potential
is zero. This is similar to the case of the gravitational potential energy, which has to be
measured with respect to a specific point where it is zero. It is more common to hear of
the voltage or potential difference, the difference in the electric potential between a
point and the reference point.

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1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021 Physics 72.1

In this activity, you will investigate physical quantities related to attraction or repul-
sion of charge. Particularly, you will relate the abstract concept of electric field and a
measurable quantity, the potential difference.

Theory
Fields
In physics, a field is an assignment of values to points in a space. This value may be
a single number in which case it is called a scalar field. The picture of this is that you
put one (and only one) number at each point. For example in your regular x-y plane,
you may have a scalar field where you have the number “0.7” at the point (0, 1), “0.4”
at (1, 2), “0.5” at (3, 5), and so on. Thus if I call out a random point (x, y), you can
always shout back with a unique value V (x, y) you see at that point (see Figure 1). You
can also make a different kind of field by using a different set of mathematical object. A
vector field is a space where points are assigned a unique vector or arrow. For example
in our x-y plane again, we can have a 1-unit-long south-pointing arrow at (8, 8), and the
arrow 5x̂ + 6ŷ at (7, 1). Notice that we now need more numbers to put on a single point
in a vector field than in a scalar field. In 2D, we need two numbers a, b to represent an
arbitrary arrow ax̂ + bŷ; in 3D, we need three.

y
V (3, 5) = 0.5

y0 V (x0 , y0 )

V (1, 2) = 0.4

V (0, 1) = 0.7

x
x0

Figure 1. An example of a scalar field showing sample points.

Electric field and the electric potential

The electric field that charged objects in our universe create is an example of a vec-
tor field. That is, at each point (x, y, z) we get an electric field vector E(x, y, z), or
equivalently, three numbers

Ex (x, y, z), Ey (x, y, z), Ez (x, y, z),

where E = Ex x̂ + Ey ŷ + Ez ẑ. In electrostatics, where charge distributions are constant

in time, it turns out that the electric field can be completely derived from a scalar field
V . This means we can condense all the information in an electric field, which has three
numbers for every point, into a much simpler scalar field, which only has one. We call

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Physics 72.1 1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021

this scalar field V the electric potential. Given the electric potential, one can obtain
the electric field through this relation:

E = −∇V, (1)

where ∇V is the gradient of V .

Equipotential curves
How do we visualize the electric field E if we are only given the electric potential field
V ? We note the following:

The gradient vectors of a function is always perpendicular to its level curves.

Level curves are curves on a field where the field value is constant. Level curves of electric
potential are called equipotential curves.

y y

V0
V0 V = V0 V = V0

V0

x x
Figure 2. All points on a level curve have a constant field value (left) and all gradient
vectors at each point is perpendicular to the tangent line at that point (right).

Let us now prove the quoted statement above. For the sake of discussion, consider a
smooth function V in R2 . Let the curve r(t), parametrized by t, be a level curve where
V = V0 = constant. Along this curve, we have

dV
= 0, (2)
dt
since V is unchanging at any point on the curve. By chain rule, we have

∂V dx ∂V dy
+ = 0. (3)
∂x dt ∂y dt

Notice that the left-hand side of Eq. (3) is just the dot product of the vectors

∂V ∂V
∇V = x̂ + ŷ, (4)
∂x ∂x
which is the gradient of V , and

dr dx dy
= x̂ + ŷ, (5)
dt dt dt

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1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021 Physics 72.1

which is a tangent vector of the curve r(t). Eq. (3) can then be written as

dr
∇V · = 0, (6)
dt
which says that the gradient at a point is always perpendicular to the tangent vector of
the level curve at that point. QED.
So, if we draw out the level curves of an electric potential V , the perpendicular lines
through these curves should give out the direction of the electric field vectors. The
presence of the negative sign in Eq. (1) says that the electric field vectors point to
decreasing values of V .
We have worked how to get the direction of electric field vectors from the landscape
of V . Now, we want to infer the length of these vectors. Recall that the magnitude of
∇V at a point p is the derivative of V along the perpendicular direction with respect to
the level curve at p. That is,

∆V 
|∇V |p = lim , (7)
∆l⊥ →0 ∆l⊥ 
p

where ∆l⊥ is the perpendicular length between the two ”adjacent” level curves being
considered. If we then draw the level curves of V at equal increments, e.g. {V = 1, V =
2, V = 3, ...} as in Figure 3, high gradient regions will have curves that are close together,
while low gradient regions will have spaced level curves. Thus, the density of level curves
around a point tells us how strong the electric field vector is at that point.

y
V =1

V =2

V =3
V =4
V =5
V =6
V =7

Figure 3. Level curves of equal ∆V increments. Notice how the density of level curves
mirror the magnitude of the gradient vector.

For example, consider the potential field in Figure 3. Notice the following:

• the electric field vector at a point is perpendicular to the equipotential curve that
passes through that point; since the equipotential curves here are arcs of a circle,
the electric field vectors point radially,

• the electric field vectors point towards decreasing values of V , and

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Physics 72.1 1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021

• at the curve V = 6 the electric field vectors are longer (have higher magnitude)
compared to those at V = 2; the potential varies much faster around the curve
V = 6 than at V = 2, as seen from the spacing of the equipotential curves.

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1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021 Physics 72.1

Materials

1. Rod and disc electrodes

2. Electrolytic tank
3. Power supply
4. Potential probe
5. Voltmeter
6. Connectors
7. Water
8. Rags

Figure 4. Materials

Procedure

A. Tracing Equipotential Lines

1. Using the grid in the electrolytic tank as a guide, position the disc electrode at
(0, 8) and the rod electrode at (0, −8) inside the tank. The rod electrode should be
oriented parallel to the x-axis.
2. With the power supply turned off, connect the disc electrode to the positive terminal
of the power supply, and the rod electrode to the negative terminal of the power
supply.
3. Connect the probe to the positive terminal of the voltmeter, and connect the neg-
ative terminal of the voltmeter to the negative terminal of the power supply.

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Physics 72.1 1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021

4. Pour water onto the tank until the base has been completely covered with water.
It is advised to fill the tank to half its maximum capacity.

5. Turn on the voltmeter, and adjust its range so that the reading on the voltmeter
will be in Volts (V) and will have only one decimal place.

6. By touching the electrodes with the probe tip, measure the potential on the surface
of each electrode and write down the values in Table W1. Does the voltage reading
depend on where you put the probe tip on the electrode’s surface?

7. Measure the potential at various points along the line x = −6. To do this sys-
tematically, scan the x = −6 line using your probe tip starting from one end of
the line and then gradually move to the other end. In Table W1, write down the
coordinates in which the reading is equal to 1.5 V, 2.0 V, 3.0 V and so on. The
same procedure should be done for x = 0, ±2, ±4, and ±6. Avoid the points on
the tank which are covered by the electrodes.

8. Plot the points from Table W1 in Figure W1. Draw a smooth curve connecting
coordinates where the same voltage reading was obtained. These curves are the
equipotential lines. Indicate the sign of the charge of each electrode.

B. Drawing electric field vectors

1. On Figure W1, mark the points where the 6.0 V line intersects with x = 0, 2, 4 and
6.

2. For each point of intersection, draw a line perpendicular to the 6.0 V equipotential
line that passes through this point. Measure the length of the segment that goes
from the 6.0 V equipotential line to the next adjacent equipotential line (here,
choose the 5.5 V line). This is ∆`⊥ for that particular point of intersection.

3. Estimate the magnitude of the electric field by using Equation (7), noting that the
potential difference between two adjacent equipotential lines is 0.5 V. Write down
your answers in Table W2.

4. On Figure W1, draw the electric field vectors at each point of intersection. Use
the scale 2.0cm : 1.0V/cm. It is important that the vectors are drawn accurately,
showing the appropriate direction and length.

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1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021 Physics 72.1

Datasheet: Electric Field and Equipotential Lines

Instructions: Do not forget to indicate the units of your measurements. Write down
the units in the space provided in the column headings; if such space is unavailable, write
down the units for every measurement taken. Make sure that all graphs have properly
labeled axes with the corresponding units. All tables and figures must be accomplished
during the class period.

A. Raw Data
Please refer to the data sheet file of this experiment.

B. Data Summary
Graph the equipotential lines in the disc-rod configuration in the grid provided. Indicate
the value of each equipotential line. Draw the electric field vectors at the points where
the 6.0 V equipotential line intersects with the lines x = 0, ±2, ±4 and ±6. Make sure
that the arrows point in the appropriate directions and show the relative magnitudes of
the electric field. In your diagram, indicate the sign of the charge for each electrode.

Figure W1. Equipotential and electric field lines of the electrodes

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Physics 72.1 1st Sem, A.Y. 2020-2021

Table W1. Electric field vectors

x ∆`⊥ (cm) ∆V (V) ~ | (V/cm)

|E
0
2
4
6

C. Questions
1. Why can’t the electric field have components along an equipotential line?

2. Suppose we introduce a positive test charge in the disc-rod system. Where would
you expect it to go? How about a negative charge? Explain.

3. In which region(s) is the electric field the strongest? the weakest? How are these
determined from Figure W1?

4. Suppose that the rod is configured to have the higher potential.

a. In which region(s) is the electric field the strongest? the weakest?

b. What will be the general direction of the electric field?

B1 - (10 / 8 / 5 / 3)
B2 - (10 / 8 / 5)
C - 2 points each item (5x2)
Maximum score: 30

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