Physics

Lecture 8: Electricity

Lecturer: Qing Wang

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 Electric charge
➢ Every object contains a vast amount of electric charge.

➢ Electric charge is an intrinsic characteristic of the fundamental

particles making up those objects; that is, it is a property that
comes automatically with those particles wherever they exist.

Static cling 2
 Electric charge
• Two types of charge: positive charge and negative
charge
• With an equality or balance of charge, the object
is said to be electrically neutral (no net charge).
• If the two types of charge are not in balance,
then there is a net charge.
• The imbalance is always much smaller than the
total amounts of positive charge and negative
charge contained in the object.
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 Electric charge
• Charged objects interact by
exerting forces on one another.
• Charges with the same
electrical sign repel each other,
and charges with opposite
electrical signs attract each
other.

The SI unit of charge is the coulomb (C).

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 Coulomb's Law
• Electrostatic force
– Force of repulsion or attraction due to the charge properties of objects.
• Coulomb’s law
– Equation giving the force for charged particles.
• Let two charged particles (also called point charges) have
charge magnitudes q1 and q2 and be separated by a distance r.
– The electrostatic force of attraction or repulsion between them has
the magnitude
q1 q2 1 q1 q2
F =k = (Coulomb’s law) (1)
r2 4 0 r 2
– k is the electrostatic constant with the value 8.99 109 N  m2 / C 2 , and it is
usually written as 1 4  0.
–  0 is the permittivity constant with the value 8.85 10−12 C 2 / N  m2.

5
 Coulomb's Law
• Each particle exerts a force of the
magnitude (F) on the other particle; the
two forces form an action-reaction pair.

• If the particles repel each other, the

force on each particle points away from
the other particle (figures a and b).

• If the particles attract each other, the

force on each particle points toward the
other particle (figure c).

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 Coulomb's Law
• Electrostatic force obey the principle of superposition
– If we have n charged particles, they interact independently
in pairs, and the force on any one of them, let us say
particle 1, is given by the vector sum

– 𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝐹Ԧ12 + 𝐹Ԧ13 + 𝐹Ԧ14 + 𝐹Ԧ15 + ⋯+𝐹Ԧ1𝑛 (2)

– in which, for example, 𝐹Ԧ14 is the force acting on particle 1

due to the presence of particle 4.

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 Example 1
(a) Figure a shows two positively charged
particles fixed in place on an x axis. The
charges are q1 = 1.60 x10-19 C and q2 =
3.20 X 10 -19 C, and the particle separation
is R = 0.0200 m. What are the magnitude
and direction of the electrostatic force
𝐹Ԧ12 on particle 1 from particle 2? (a) Two charged particles of
charges q1 and q2 and fixed in
Key idea: Because both particles are place on an x axis.
positively charged, particle 1 is repelled (b) The free-body diagram for
by particle 2, with a force magnitude particle 1, showing the
given by Eq.(1). Thus, the direction of electrostatic on it from particle
2.
force 𝐹Ԧ12 on particle 1 is away from
particle 2, in the negative direction of
the x axis, as indicated in the free-body
diagram of Fig. b. 8
Two particles: Using Eq. (1) with separation R substituted for r, we can
write the magnitude 𝐹Ԧ12 of this force as

1 𝑞1 𝑞2
𝐹12 =
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑅2
−19 −19
9 2
1.60 × 10 𝐶 3.20 × 10 𝐶
= 8.99 × 10 𝑁 ∙ 𝑚 /𝐶 ×
0.0200𝑚 2
= 1.15 × 10−24 𝑁

Thus, force 𝐹Ԧ12 has the following magnitude and direction (relative to the
positive direction of the x axis): 1.15 x 10-24 N and 180°.

We can also write 𝐹Ԧ12 in unit-vector notation as

𝐹Ԧ12 = −(1.15 × 10−24 𝑁)𝑖Ƹ

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(b) Figure c is identical to Fig. a except that particle 3 now lies on the x
axis between particles 1 and 2. Pafticle 3 has charge q3 = -3.20 x 10-19
3
C and is at a distance 𝑅 from particle 1. What is the net electrostatic
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force 𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 on particle 1 due to particles 2 and 3?

Key idea: The presence of particle 3 does

not alter the electrostatic force on particle
1 from particle 2. Thus, force 𝐹Ԧ12 still acts
on particle 1. Similarly, the force 𝐹Ԧ13 that
acts on particle 1 due to particle 3 is not
affected by the presence of particle 2. (c) Particle 3 included.
(d) Free-body diagram for
Because particles 1 and 3 have charge of
particle 1.
opposite signs, particle 1 is attracted to
particle 3. Thus, force 𝐹Ԧ13 is directed
toward particle 3, as indicated in the free-
body diagram of Fig. d.
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Three particles: To find the magnitude of 𝐹Ԧ13 , we can rewrite Eq. (1) as
1 𝑞1 𝑞3
𝐹Ԧ13 = 4𝜋𝜀 3 2
= 8.99 × 109 𝑁 ∙ 𝑚2 /𝐶 ×
0 𝑅
4
1.60×10 −19𝐶 3.20×10 −19𝐶
3 2
= 2.05 × 10−24 N
0.0200𝑚 2
4

We can also write 𝐹Ԧ13 in unit-vector notation as

𝐹Ԧ13 = (2.05 × 10−24 𝑁)𝑖Ƹ

The net force 𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 on particle 1 is the vector sum of 𝐹Ԧ12 and 𝐹Ԧ13 , that
is, from Eq. (2), we can write the net force 𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 on particle 1 in unit-
vector notation as
𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 = 𝐹Ԧ12 + 𝐹Ԧ13 = − 1.15 × 10−24 𝑁 𝑖Ƹ + 2.05 × 10−24 𝑁 𝑖Ƹ = (9.00 × 10−25 𝑁)𝑖Ƹ

Thus, force 𝐹Ԧ1,𝑛𝑒𝑡 has the following magnitude and direction (relative to
the positive direction of the x axis): 9.00 × 10−25 N and 0°.

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 The Elementary Charge

• Electric charge is quantized:

– Charge has only discrete values rather than any
value.

– Any charge can be written as ne, where n is a

positive or negative integer and e is a constant of
nature called the elementary charge (≈ 1.602 ×
10−19 C).
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 The Elementary Charge
• Electric charge is conserved:
– If you rub a glass rod with silk, a positive
charge appears on the rod. Measurement
shows that a negative charge of equal
magnitude appears on the silk.
– This suggests that rubbing does not create
charge but only transfers it from one body to
another, upsetting the electrical neutrality of
each body during the process.
– The net charge of any isolated system cannot
change.
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 Electric Field
• The electric field is a vector field.
– It consists of a distribution of vector, one for each point
in the region around a charged object.
– In principle, we can define the electric field at some
point near the charged object by placing a positive
charge q0, called a test charge, at the point.
– We then measure the electrostatic force 𝐹Ԧ that acts on
the test charge. The electric field 𝐸 at point P due to the
𝐹Ԧ
charged object is defined as 𝐸 = 𝑞 (3)
0
– We represent the electric field at P with a vector whose
tail is at P.

The SI unit for the electric field is the newton per coulomb (N/C)

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 Electric Field Lines
• The distribution of electric field is described by
field lines (artificially drawn).
• Electric field lines determine the direction and
magnitude of electric field strength.
– At any point, the direction of a straight field line or the
direction of the tangent to a curved field line gives the
direction of 𝐸 at that point.
– The field lines are drawn so that the number of lines
per unit area, measured in a plane that is perpendicular
to the lines, is proportional to the magnitude of 𝐸.
Thus, 𝐸 is large where field lines are close together and
small where they are far apart.
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Electric Field Lines

Fig. 1 The electric field lines of a

sphere with uniform negative
charge.

Fig. 2 The electric

field lines of an
infinitely large,
non-conducting
sheet (or plane)
with a uniform
distribution of
positive charge on
one side. 16
 Electric Field Lines

Fig. 3 The electric field lines for Fig. 4 The electric field lines of
two equal positive point charges. two charges that are equal in
magnitude but opposite sign
(electric dipole).
Electric field lines extend away from positive charge (where they
originate) and toward negative charge (where they terminate). 17
 The electric field due to a point charge
If we put a positive test charge q0 at any point
with a distance r from the point charge, the magnitude
of the electrostatic force acting on
q0, from Coulomb’s law, is
1 𝑞 𝑞0
𝐹 = 4𝜋𝜀 2 q
0 𝑟

The magnitude of the electric field vector is

𝐹 1 𝑞
𝐸 = 𝑞 = 4𝜋𝜀 2
(4)
0 0 𝑟

The direction of 𝐸 is the same as that of the force on

the positive test charge: directly away from the point
charge if q is positive, and directly toward the point
charge if q is negative.
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The net electric field due to more than
one point charge
• We can find the net, or resultant, electric field due to more
than one point charge. If we place a positive test charge q0
near n point charges q1, q2, …, qn, then, from Eq. (2), the net
force 𝐹Ԧ0 from the n point charges acting on the test charge is
𝐹Ԧ0 = 𝐹Ԧ01 + 𝐹Ԧ02 + ⋯+𝐹Ԧ0𝑛

• The net electric field at the position of the test charge is

𝐹Ԧ0 𝐹Ԧ01 𝐹Ԧ02 𝐹Ԧ0𝑛

𝐸= = + + ⋯+ = 𝐸1 + 𝐸2 + ⋯ + 𝐸𝑛
𝑞0 𝑞0 𝑞0 𝑞0

Here Ei is the electric field that would be set up by point charge i acting alone.
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 Example 2
Figure (a) shows three particles with charges q1 = +2Q, q2 = -2Q, and
q3 = -4Q, each a distance d from the origin. What net electric field 𝐸
is produced at the origin?

Key idea: Charges q1, q2, and q3 produce electric

field vectors 𝐸1 , 𝐸2 , and 𝐸3 , respectively, at the
origin, and the net electric field is the vector sum
𝐸 = 𝐸1 + 𝐸2 + 𝐸3 . To find this sum, we first must
find the magnitudes and orientations of the
three field vectors.

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 +2Q -4Q
Magnitudes and directions: To find the
magnitude of 𝐸1 , which is due to q1, we
use Eq. (4), substituting d for r and 2Q
for q and obtaining
1 2𝑄
𝐸1 = 2
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑
-2Q
Similarly, we find the magnitudes of the fields 𝐸2 and 𝐸3 to be
1 2𝑄 1 4𝑄
𝐸2 = 2 and 𝐸3 =
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑 4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑 2

We next must find the orientations of the three

electric field vectors at the origin. Because q1 is a
positive charge, the field vector it produces points
directly away from it, and because q2 and q3 are
both negative, the field vectors they produce point
directly toward each of them. Thus, the three
electric fields produced at the origin by the three
charged particles are oriented as in Fig. (b). 21
Adding the fields: From Fig. (b), we see that 𝐸1 and 𝐸2 have
the same direction. Hence, their vector sum has that
direction and has the magnitude
1 2𝑄 1 2𝑄 1 4𝑄
𝐸1 + 𝐸2 = + =
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑2 4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑2 4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑2

which happens to equal the magnitude of field 𝐸3 .

We now combine two vectors, 𝐸3 and the vector sum 𝐸1 +

𝐸2 , that have the same magnitude and that are oriented
symmetrically about the x axis, as shown in Fig. (c).
From the symmetry of Fig. (c), we realize that the equal y
components of our two vectors cancel and the equal x
components add.
Thus, the net electric field 𝐸 at the origin is in the positive
direction of the x axis and has the magnitude

1 4𝑄 6.93𝑄
𝐸 = 2𝐸3𝑥 = 2𝐸3 𝑐𝑜𝑠30° = 2 0.866 =
4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑2 4𝜋𝜀0 𝑑2
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 Electric Potential Energy
• When an electrostatic force acts between two or more
charged particles within a system of particles, we can
assign an electric potential energy U to the system.
• If the system changes its configuration from an initial state
i to a different final state f, the electrostatic force does
work W on the particles.
• The resulting change ∆𝑈 in the potential energy of the
system is
∆𝑈 = 𝑈𝑓 − 𝑈𝑖 = −𝑊
• Electrostatic force is conservative force, the work done by
the electrostatic force is path independent.
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 Potential Energy of an Electric Dipole
• Potential energy of the dipole U at
any value θ is
𝑈 = −𝑝റ ∙ 𝐸 = −𝑝𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜃

p is the moment of the dipole.

E is a uniform external electric field.
θ is the angle between p and E.

When a dipole rotates from an initial orientation θi to a different

final orientation θf, the work done on the dipole by the electric
field is
𝑊 = −∆𝑈 = −(𝑈𝑓 − 𝑈𝑖 )
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 Electric Potential
• Electric potential (potential, V): the potential energy per unit charge at a
𝑈
point in an electric field. 𝑉= 𝑞

• Electric potential is a scalar, not a vector.

• The electric potential difference ∆𝑉 between any two points i and f in an
electric field is
The negative
𝑈𝑓 𝑈𝑖 ∆𝑈 𝑊 of the work
∆𝑉 = 𝑉𝑓 − 𝑉𝑖 = − = =− done by the
𝑞 𝑞 𝑞 𝑞
electricstatic
force to move
• Unit for potential and potential difference: 1 volt = 1 J/C a unit charge
from one point
to the other.
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Summary

Electric potential and electric potential energy

Electric potential is a property of an electric field,

regardless of whether a charged object has been
placed in that field; it is measured in joules per
coulombs, or volts.

Electric potential energy is an energy of a charged

object in an external electric field (or more precisely,
an energy of the system consisting of the object and
the external electric field); it is measured in joules.

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 Electric Current
An electric current is a stream of moving charges,
but not all moving charges constitute an electric
current.
It must be a net flow of charge through the
surface.

The electric current is the amount of charge

per unit time that passes through a plane
that pass completely through the conductor.
Under steady-state conditions, the
(5) current is the same for all planes
that pass completely through the
conductor.

The SI unit for current is a coulomb per second (C/s), called as an ampere (A)
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Current is a Scalar
Charge is conserved, the magnitudes
of the current in the original conductor
is equal to the sum of the magnitudes
of the current in the branches.

𝑖0 = 𝑖1 + 𝑖2

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Direction of current
• The direction of
conventional current is
always from a point of
higher potential toward a
point of lower potential—
that is, from the positive
toward the negative terminal.

• A current arrow is drawn in

the direction in which
positive charge carriers
would move, even if the
actual charge carriers are
negative and move in the
opposite direction.
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 r
Current Density J
• Because charge is conserved during the
transition, and thus the amount of current
cannot change. However, the current
density does change - it is greater in the
narrower conductor.
• The spacing of the streamlines suggests
The current makes a this increase in current density;
transition from the streamlines that are closer together imply
wider conductor at
the left to the greater current density.
narrower conductor at • Current density is to study the flow of
the right.
charge through a cross section of the
conductor at a particular point.

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 r
Current Density J
• The magnitude of J is equal to the current per
unit area through that area element.
𝑖
𝐽= (6)
𝐴
The SI unit for current density is the ampere per
square meter (A/m2)
• It is a vector which has the same direction
as the velocity of the moving charges if
they are positive and the opposite direction
if they are negative.
𝑑𝐴റ : the area vector
of the element,
perpendicular to
the element 31
 The resistance

• the characteristic of the conductor resistor

• We determine the resistance between any

two points of a conductor by applying a
potential difference V between those points
and measuring the current i that results:
R=V/i.

• SI Unit of Resistance: volt/ampere

(V/A)=ohm(Ω)
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The resistance of a conductor depends on the manner
in which the potential difference is applied to it

Conducting rod

Connectors

Streamlines that are closer together

imply greater current density
Ja < Jb

A given potential difference applied in two ∴Ra > Rb

different ways to the same conductor.

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Ohm's Law
Ohm's law is an assertion
that the current through a
device is always directly
proportional to the
potential difference
applied to the device.

I= V
R
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 Power in Electric Circuits
• The amount of charge dq that moves
from terminals a to b in time interval dt is
An unspecified
equal to i dt.
conducting • Its electric potential energy decreases in
device magnitude by the amount
battery
• The decrease in electric
potential energy
from a to b is accompanied by a transfer of
energy to some other form. If the device is
➢ a motor connected to a mechanical load, the
current
energy is transferred as work done on the load.
➢ a storage battery being charged, the energy is
transferred to chemical energy in the storage
battery.
➢ a resistor, the energy is transferred to internal
thermal energy.
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Power in Electric Circuits
electric potential energy

• The power P associated with that

transfer is the rate of transfer
dU/dt, which is

•The unit of power

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 the transfer of electric potential energy to
thermal energy

The rate of electrical energy dissipation due to a resistance is

Caution:
• P=iV applies to electrical energy transfers of all kinds;
•P=i2R and P=V2/R apply only to the transfer of electric potential
energy to thermal energy in a device with resistance. 37
 In conclusion
• Electricity
– Electric charge
• Charges with the same electrical sign repel each other, and
charges with opposite electrical signs attract each other.
q1 q2 1 q1 q2
– Coulomb's Law F =k =
r2 4 0 r 2
𝐹Ԧ
– Electric Field 𝐸 = 𝑞
0
𝑈
– Electric Potential Energy U and Electric Potential 𝑉 = 𝑞
– Electric Current
• Current Density
– Resistance and Ohm's Law I = VR
– Power dU/dt 38