ELECTRICITY

I. Electric Charge (Q)

 The electric charge is a unit of measurement in the International System of Units that
determines a particle's ability to exchange photons.
 It can also be defined as a physical property of some subatomic particles manifested
through repulsion forces and attraction between them by the interaction of
electromagnetic fields.
 basic property of matter carried by some elementary particles. Electric charge, which
can be positive or negative, occurs in discrete natural units and is neither created nor
destroyed.
 the amount of energy or electrons that pass from one body to another by different modes
like conduction, induction or other specific methods.
 when the object has an imbalance in the number of protons and electrons

Properties of Electric Charge

 The charge is a basic property of a material body due to which attracts or repels another
object.
 Friction produces two different types of charge on different materials (such as glass or
plastic).
 Like charges always repel each other.
 Unlike charges always attract each other.
 Repulsion is the sure test of charge on a body.

Types of Charges
1. Positive Charge
“When a material losses electrons then the number of protons increase in the material there
is a net positive electrical charge.”
2. Negative Charge
“When a material gains electrons then the number of electrons increase in the material there
is a net negative electrical charge.”
The electron has a negative charge, while proton has a positive charge.in a material
number of protons, an electrons are equal in numbers. Electrical charge is a, which is a
fundamental characteristic of electrons and protons, is symbolized by Q.
3. Resistive Electrical Charges - those that can resist electricity flow dissipating a certain
amount of this energy in the form of heat.
 4. Inductive Electrical Charges - those that have a type of conductive material that when in
contact with the electric current generates a magnetic field around it.

5. Capacitor Electric Charges - have a capacitor that allows them to store energy and a non-
conductive insulator on both conductive surfaces. This produces that at the moment that
the capacitor makes contact with the electrical energy, electrons accumulate around the
plate attached to the terminal, where the electrical current is applied.

6. Combined Electrical Charges - those that can combine capacitors, inductors and resistors
to perform specific functions.
UNITS, VALUES
The coulomb (symbol: C) is the International System of Units (SI) unit of electric charge.
It is the charge (symbol: Q or q) transported by a constant current of one ampere in one second:
equivalent charge of 6.25x10^18 electrons.
Electron (e) = -1.602 x 10-19 coulomb or -4.803 x 10-10 electrostatic unit or statcoulomb
Proton (p) = +1.602 x 10-19 coulomb
1 Faraday = 9.648533289 × 104 coulomb, the charge of 1 mole of electron

Law of Conservation of Electric Charge follows 2 major principles:

1. “The algebraic sum of all the electric charges in any closed system is constant. Charge
cannot be created and destroyed.”
2. “The magnitude of charge of the electron or proton is a natural unit of charge.”

II. Electric Force

 The repulsive or attractive interaction between any two charged bodies is called as an
electric force.
 The electric force between two electrons is equal to the electric force between two
protons when placed at equal distances. This describes that the electric force is not
based on the mass of the object, but depends on the quantity known as the electric
charge.
Coulomb’s Law
“The value of the electrostatic force of interaction between two point charges is
directly proportional to the scalar multiplication of the charges and inversely proportional
to the square of the distance among them.”
Coulomb’s law is an experimental law that quantifies the amount of force between
two stationary electrically charged particles. The electric force between stationary charged
 body is conventionally known as the electrostatic force or Coulomb’s force. The electrical
force is strongest when the balloons are closest together. Decreasing the separation distance
increases the force. The magnitude of the force and the distance between the two objects is
said to be inversely related.
Thus it can be mathematically stated as:
𝑘 ∗ 𝑄1 ∗ 𝑄2
𝐹=
𝑟2
Where:
F = electrical force, N
k = Coulomb’s law constant
Q1 and Q2 = quantity of charge, C
r = distance
1 𝑁𝑚2
𝑘 = 4𝜋𝜖 ; 𝜖𝑜 = 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑒: 8.85𝑥10−12
𝑜 𝐶2

𝑁𝑚2
For air and vacuum: 8.99 x 109 𝐶2
1
For other materials: 𝑘 = 4𝜋𝜖; 𝜖 = 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑙

𝜖 = 𝑐𝜖𝑜 ; 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑐 𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑐 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡

Example:
1. Suppose that two point charges, each with a charge of +1.00 Coulomb are separated by a
distance of 1.00 meter. Determine the magnitude of the electrical force of repulsion
between them.

2. Two balloons are charged with an identical quantity and type of charge: -6.25 nC. They
are held apart at a separation distance of 61.7 cm. Determine the magnitude of the electrical
force of repulsion between them.
3. Two balloons with charges of +3.37 µC and -8.21 µC attract each other with a force of
0.0626 Newton. Determine the separation distance between the two balloons.

III. Electrical Field

 Region of space where a charged object experiences a force due to its charge
 The region around the electric charge in which the stress or electric force act is called
an electric field or electrostatic field. If the magnitude of charge is large, then it may
create a huge stress around the region. The electric field is represented by the symbol
E.
 The SI unit of the electric field is newton per coulomb which is equal to volts per meter.
 The electric field is radially outward from a positive charge and radially in toward a
negative point charge.

Types of an Electrical Field

1. Uniform Electric Field - When the electric field is constant at every point, then the field
is called the uniform electric field. The constant field is obtained by placing the two
conductor parallel to each other, and the potential difference between them remains
same at every point.
 2. Non-Uniform Electric Field - The field which is irregular at every point is called the
non-uniform electric field. The non-uniform field has a different magnitude and
directions.

Properties of an Electric Field

 Field lines never intersect each other.
 They are perpendicular to the surface charge.
 The field is strong when the lines are close together, and it is weak when the field
lines move apart from each other.
 The number of field lines is directly proportional to the magnitude of the charge.
 The electric field line starts from the positive charge and ends from negative charge.
 If the charge is single, then they start or end at infinity.
 The line curves are continuous in a charge-free region.
When the electric and magnetic field combines, they form the electromagnetic field.

Calculating Electric Field from different point charge

1. Point charge: The electric field of a point charge can be obtained from Coulomb's law:
𝐹 𝑘𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑞 𝑘𝑄𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑐𝑒
𝐸=𝑞= =
𝑞𝑟 2 𝑟2

a. What is the magnitude of a point charge whose E-field at a distance of 25 cm is

3.4 N/C?
 b. A small charge (Q = 6.0 mC) is found in a uniform E-field (E = 2.9 N/C), Determine
the force on the charge.

c. A dipole is set-up with a charge of 2x10-7 C for each charge (one is positive and
one is negative). The distance between the charges is 0.15 m. What is the magnitude
and the direction of the E-field at the midpoint of the dipole? Assume the positive
charge is on the left. Also determine the force magnitude and direction of electron
at that position in the field.

2. Multi point charge: The electric field from multiple point charges can be obtained by taking
the vector sum of the electric fields of the individual charges.
a. Find the resultant field at pt A due to the -3 nC charge and the +6 nC charge arranged as
shown.

IV. Electric Potential and Potential Difference

The electrical potential is defined as the capability of the charged body to do work.
When the body is charged, either electric electrons are supplied to it, or they are removed
from it. In both the cases, the work is done. This work is stored in the body in the form of
electric potential. Thus, the body can do the work by exerting a force of attraction or
repulsion on the other charged particles.

The capacity of the charged body to do work determines the electrical potential on
it. The measure of the electrical potential is the work done to charge a body to one coulomb,
i.e.,
 Units: Since the work done is measured in joules and charge in coulombs, the unit
of electric potential is joules /coulombs, the unit of electric potential is joules/coulomb or
volts.

Hence a body is said to have an electrical potential of 1 volt if one joule of work is
done to charge the body to one coulomb.
When a body is charged to a different electric potential as compared to the other
charged body, the two bodies are said to a potential difference. Both the bodies are under
stress and strain and try to attain minimum potential.
The electrical potential difference is defined as the amount of work done to carrying
a unit charge from one point to another in an electric field. In other words, the potential
difference is defined as the difference in the electric potential of the two charged bodies.
When a body is charged to a different electric potential as compared to the other
charged body, the two bodies are said to a potential difference. Both the bodies are under
stress and strain and try to attain minimum potential.
Electric Potential in a Uniform Field
You can produce a uniform electric field by placing two large, flat conducting
plates parallel to each other. One plate is positively charged, and the other is negatively
charged. This difference equals the product of electric field intensity and the distance
between the parallel plates.
 Example:
a. Two charged parallel plates are 1.5 cm apart. The magnitude of the electric field between
them is 1800 N/C. What is the potential difference between the plates? How much work
is required to move a proton from the negative plate to the positive plate?

b. In a Millikan Oil drop experiment, a particular oil drop weighs 2.4 x 10-14 N. The parallel
plates are separated by a distance of 1.2 cm. When the potential difference between the
plate is 450 V, the drop is suspended. What is the net charge of the oil drop? If the upper
plate is positive, How many excess electrons are on the oil drop?