Physics II

Introduction
Electricity and Magnetism
Properties of electric charges
Insulators and conductors
Coulombs law

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Introduction
Knowledge of electricity dates back to Greek antiquity
(700 BC).
Began with the realization that amber (fossil) when
rubbed with wool, attracts small objects.
This phenomenon is not restricted to amber/wool but may
occur whenever two non-conducting substances are
rubbed together.

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1. Properties of Electric Charges - Discovery

Observation of Static Electricity

A comb passed though hair attracts small pieces of paper.

An inflated balloon rubbed with wool.

Electrically charged

Rub shoes against carpet/car seat to charge your body.

Remove this charge by touching another person/a piece of
metal.

Two kinds of charges

Named by Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) as positive and

negative.

Like charges repel one another and unlike charges

attract one another.

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1. Properties of Electric Charges

Nature of Electrical Charge
Origin of charge is at the atomic level.

Nucleus : robust, positive.

Electrons : mobile, negative.

Usual state of the atom is neutral.

Charge has natural tendency to be transferred between
unlike materials.
Electric charge is however always conserved in the
process.

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Charge is not created.

Usually, negative charge is transferred from one object to the
other.

1. Properties of Electric Charges

Quantization
Robert Millikan found, in 1909, that charged objects may only have
an integer multiple of a fundamental unit of charge.

Charge is quantized.
An object may have a charge e, or 2e, or 3e, etc but not say
1.5e.
Proton has a charge +1e.
Electron has a charge 1e.
Some particles such a neutron have no (zero) charge.
A neutral atom has as many positive and negative charges.

Units

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In SI, electrical charge is measured in coulomb ( C).

The value of |e| = 1.602 x 10-19 C.

2. Insulators and Conductors Material

classification
Materials/substances may be classified according to their capacity to
carry or conduct electric charge
Conductors are material in which electric charges move freely.
Insulator are materials in which electrical charge do not move freely.

Glass, Rubber are good insulators.

Copper, aluminum, and silver are good conductors.

Semiconductors are a third class of materials with electrical

properties somewhere between those of insulators and conductors.

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Silicon and germanium are semiconductors used widely in the

fabrication of electronic devices.

Mini-quiz:
Identify substances or materials that can be classified as

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Conductors ?
Insulators?

2. Insulators and Conductors Charging by

Conduction.
Consider negatively charge rubber rod brought into contact
with a neutral conducting but insulated sphere.
Some electrons located on the rubber move to the sphere.
Remove the rubber rod.
Excess electrons left on the sphere. It is negatively charged.
This process is referred as charging by conduction.

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2. Insulators and Conductors Earth/Ground.

When a conductor is connected to Earth with a
conducting wire or pipe, it is said to be grounded.
Earth provides a quasi infinite reservoir of electrons: can
accept or supply an unlimited number of electrons.

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2. Insulators and Conductors Charging by

Induction.
Consider a negatively charged rubber rod brought near a neutral
conducting sphere insulated from the ground.
Repulsive force between electrons causes redistribution of charges on
the sphere.
Electrons move away from the rod leaving an excess of positive
charges near the rod.
Connect a wire between sphere and Earth on the far side of the
sphere.
Repulsion between electrons cause electrons to move from sphere to
Earth.
Disconnect the wire.
The sphere now has a positive net charge.
This process is referred as charging by induction.
Charging by induction requires no contact with the object inducing the
charge.
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2. Insulators and Conductors Charging by

Induction.
Consider a negatively charged rubber rod
brought near a neutral conducting sphere
insulated from the ground.
Repulsive force between electrons causes
redistribution of charges on the sphere.
Electrons move away from the rod leaving an
excess of positive charges near the rod.
Connect a wire between sphere and Earth on
the far side of the sphere.
Repulsion between electrons cause electrons
to move from sphere to Earth.
Disconnect the wire.
The sphere now has a positive net charge.
This process is referred as charging by
induction.
Charging by induction requires no contact
with the object inducing the charge.
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Q: How does this

mechanism work is
we bring is a
positively charged
glass rod instead?
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2. Insulators and Conductors Polarization.

Polarization is realignment of charge within individual
molecules.
Produces induced charge on the surface of insulators.
how e.g. rubber or glass can be used to supply
electrons.

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Mini-quiz
A positively charged object hanging from a string is brought near a non
conducting object (ball). The ball is seen to be attracted to the object.
1.Explain why it is not possible to determine whether the object is
negatively charged or neutral.
2.What additional experiment is needed to reveal the electrical charge
state of the object?

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+
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Explain why it is not possible to determine whether

the object is negatively charged or neutral.
Two possibilities:

Attraction between objects of unlike charges.

Attraction between a charged object and a neutral object subject

to polarization.
++
++

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---

+
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What additional experiment is needed to reveal the

electrical charge state of the object?
Two Experiments:

Bring known neutral ball near the object and observe whether there is
an attraction.

Bring a known negatively charge object near the first one. If there is an
attraction, the object is neutral, and the attraction is achieved by
polarization.
+- +++
- ++
-+-

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3. Coulombs Law - Observation

Charles Coulomb discovered in 1785 the fundamental law of
electrical force between two stationary charged particles.
An electric force has the following properties:

Inversely proportional to the square of the separation, r, between the

particles, and is along a line joining them.
Proportional to the product of the magnitudes of the charges |q1| and
|q2| on the two particles.
Attractive if the charges are of opposite sign and repulsive if the charges
have the same sign.

q1

q2
r

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3. Coulombs Law Mathematical

Formulation
q1 q2
F = ke
2
r
ke known as the Coulomb constant.
Value of ke depends on the choice of units.
SI units

Force: the Newton (N)

Charge: the coulomb ( C).
Current: the ampere (A =1 C/s).
Distance: the meter (m).

Experimentally measurement: ke = 8.9875109 Nm2/C2.

Reasonable approximate value: ke = 8.99109 Nm2/C2.

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Charge and Mass of the Electron, Proton

and Neutron.

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Particle

Charge ( C)

Mass (kg)

Electron

-1.60 10-19

9.11 10-31

Proton

+1.60 10-19

1.67 10-27

Neutron

1.67 10-27

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Example
1e = -1.60 10-19 c
Takes 1/e=6.6 1018 protons to create a total charge of 1C
Number of free electrons in 1 cm3 copper ~ 1023
Charge obtained in typical electrostatic experiments with
rubber or glass 10-6 C = 1 c
A very small fraction of the total available charge

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3. Coulombs Law Remarks

The electrostatic force is often called Coulomb force.
It is a force:

a magnitude
a direction.

r
F 21

+
q1

+
q2

F 21
+
q1

F 21

F 21

q2

Second example of action at a distance.

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Mini-Quiz
Name the first action at a distance force you have
encountered in physics so far.

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Example: Electrical Force

Question:
The electron and proton of a hydrogen atom are separated (on the
average) by a distance of about 5.3x10-11 m. Find the magnitude of the
electric force that each particle exerts on the other.

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Question:
The electron and proton of a hydrogen atom are separated (on the average) by
a distance of about 5.3x10-11 m. Find the magnitude of the electric force that
each particle exerts on the other.
Observations:
We are interested in finding the magnitude of the force between two
particles of known charge, and a given distance of each other.
The magnitude is given by Coulombs law.

F = ke

q1 q2
r

q1 =-1.60x10-19 C
q2 =1.60x10-19 C
r = 5.3x10+11 m

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Question:
The electron and proton of a hydrogen atom are separated (on the average) by
a distance of about 5.3x10-11 m. Find the magnitude of the electric force that
each particle exerts on the other.

Observations:
We are interested in finding the magnitude of the force between two
particles of known charge, and a given distance of each other.
The magnitude is given by Coulombs law.
q1 =-1.60x10-19 C
q2 =1.60x10-19 C
r = 5.3x10-11 m

Solution:
Fe = ke

r2

= 8.99 10

9 Nm 2
C2

(1.6 10
( 5.3 10

19
11

)
m)

2
2

= 8.2 10 8 N

Attractive force with a magnitude of 8.2x10-8 N.

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Superposition Principle
From observations: one finds that whenever multiple
charges are present, the net force on a given charge is
the vector sum of all forces exerted by other charges.
Electric force obeys a superposition principle.

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Example: Using the Superposition Principle

Consider three point charges at the corners of a triangle, as shown
below. Find the resultant force on q3 if
q1 = 6.00 x 10-9 C
q2 = -2.00 x 10-9 C
q3 = 5.00 x 10-9 C
y
q2

F31
-

3.00 m

q1 +
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4.00 m

F32
+
q3

37.0o

x
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Consider three point charges at the corners of a triangle, as shown

below. Find the resultant force on q3.
y
q2

F31
-

3.00 m

q1 +

4.00 m

F32
+
q3

37.0o

Observations:
The superposition principle tells us that the net force on q3 is the vector sum
of the forces F32 and F31.
The magnitude of the forces F32 and F31 can calculated using Coulombs
law.

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Consider three point charges at the corners of a triangle, as shown

below. Find the resultant force on q3.
y
q2
3.00 m

F32

4.00 m

F32 = ke

q3 q2

F31 = ke

q3 q1

37.0o

+
q3

5.00 m

q1 +
Solution:

F31

( 5.00 10 C )( 2.00 10 C ) = 5.62 10

9

= 8.99 10

9 Nm 2
C2

( 4.00m )

( 5.00 10 C )( 6.00 10 C ) = 1.08 10

9

= 8.99 10

9 Nm 2
C2

( 5.00m )

Fx = F32 + F31 cos 37.0o = 3.01109 N

Fy = F31 sin 37.0o = 6.50 109 N
F = Fx2 + Fy2 = 7.16 109 N

= 65.2o
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