Physics Project

PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT
2022-23
TOPIC: To estimate the charge induced on

each one of the two identical Styrofoam
balls (or pith balls) suspended in a vertical
plane by making use of Coulomb’s law.
Submitted To: Submitted By:

Chetna Vishnu Priya
(HOD) Class 12
Sri Chaitanya Techno School
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I take this opportunity to express any gratitude towards
all those people who helped me in various ways in
successful completion of the project. I also thank our
HOD, Mr. R Venkateswarulu whose cooperation made
this project work possible, I am also thankful to our lab
assistant Mr. Dasari Harsha as with our is help this
project would not be a success.
 Overview
* Abstract
* Objective
* Theory
* Material Required
* Procedure
* Observation
* Result
* Reference
ABSTRACT
When it is only of interest to know the magnitude of the
electrostatic force (and not its direction), it may be easiest
to consider a scalar version of the law. The scalar form of
the Coulomb’s Law relates the magnitude and sign of the
electrostatic force F acting simultaneously on two point
charges q1 and q2 as follows:
where r is
the separation
distance ke is
Coulomb’s constant.
If the product q1q2 is positive, the force between the
two charges is repulsive if the product is negative, the
force between them is attractive.
OBJECTIVE
To estimate the charge induced on each one of the two identical
Styrofoam balls (or pith balls) suspended in a vertical plane by

making use of Coulomb’s law :-
THEORY
The fundamental concept in electrostatics is electrical
charge. We are all familiar with the fact that rubbing two
materials together - for example, a rubber comb on cat fur -
produces a “static” charge. This process is called charging
by friction.
The charged particles which make up the universe come
in three kinds: positive, negative, and neutral. Neutral
particles do not interact with electrical forces. Charged
particles exert electrical and magnetic forces on one
another, but if the charges are stationary, the mutual force
is very simple in form and is given by Coulomb’s
Law:
The law states that the magnitude of the electrostatic force
of attraction or repulsion between two points charges is
directly proportional to the product of the magnitudes of
charges and inversely proportional to the square of the
distance between them
Coulomb studied the repulsive force between bodies

having electrical charges of the same sign
charges q1 and q2(measured in coulombs), r is the

separation between the charges (measured in meters), and
k is a constant of nature (equal to 9x109 Nm2/C2 in SI
units).
The magnitude of the electrostatic force F between two

point charges q1 and q2 is directly proportional to the
product of the magnitudes of charges and inversely
proportional to the square of the distance between them.
Like charges repel each other, and opposite charges
mutually attract.
The study of the Coulomb forces among arrangements of
stationary charged particles is called electrostatics.
Coulomb’s Law describes three properties of the electrical
force:
1)The force is inversely proportional to the square of the
distance between the charges and is directed along the
straight line that connects their centres.
2)The force is proportional to the product of the
magnitude of the charges.
3)Two particles of the same charge exert a repulsive
force on each other, and two particles of opposite
charge exert an attractive force on each other.
Most of the common objects we deal with in the
macroscopic (human-sized) world are electrically neutral.
They are composed of atoms that consist of negatively
charged electrons moving in quantum motion around a
positively charged nucleus.
The total negative charge of the electrons is normally
exactly equal to the total positive charge of the nuclei, so
the atoms (and therefore the entire object) have no net
electrical charge. When we charge a material by friction, we
are transferring some of the electrons from one material to
another.
Materials such as metals are conductors. Each metal atom

contributes one or two electrons that can move relatively
freely through the material. A conductor will carry an
electrical current. Other materials such as glass are
insulators. Their electrons are bound tightly and cannot
move. Charge sticks on an insulator but does not move
freely through it.
A neutral particle is not affected by electrical forces.
Nevertheless, a charged object will attract a neutral
macroscopic object by the process of electrical polarisation.
For example, if a negatively charged rod is brought close to
an isolated, neutral insulator, the electrons in the atoms of
the insulator will be pushed slightly away from the negative
rod, and the positive nuclei will be attracted slightly toward
the negative rod. We say that the rod has induced
polarisation in the insulator, but its net charge is still zero.
The polarisation of charge in the insulator is small, but

now it’s positive charge is a bit closer to the negative rod,
and its negative charge is a bit farther away. Thus, the
positive charge is attracted to the rod more strongly than
the negative charge is repelled, and there is an overall net
attraction. If the negative rod is brought near an isolated,
neutral conductor, the conductor will also be polarised.
In the conductor, electrons are free to move through the
material, and some of them are repelled over to the
opposite surface of the conductor, leaving the surface near
the negative rod with a net positive charge. The conductor
has been polarised, and will now be attracted to the
charged rod. Now if we connect a conducting wire or any
other conducting material from the polarised conductor to
the ground, we provide a “path” through which the
electrons can move. Electrons will actually move along
this path
to the ground. If the wire or path is subsequently
disconnected, the conductor as a whole is left with a net
positive charge. The conductor has been charged without
actually being touched with the charged rod, and its
charge is opposite that of the rod. This procedure is called
charging by induction.
MATERIALS REQUIRED:
•Small size identical balls (pitch or soft plastic)
•Physical balance or electrical balance
•Half meter scale
•Cotton thread
•Small stand
•Glass rod
• Silk cloth
PROCEDURE:
1. Measure the mass (m) of each of the two

identical pith balls using a physical balance.
2. Hang the two balls from a rigid support using light
silk or cotton threads of same length ‘l’.
3. Rub the glass rod silk cloth to induce charge on it.
Now touch the glass rod with both the pith balls
together so that equal charge is induced on both the
balls.
4. When left freely, the two balls will repel each other.
Measure the distance between the balls when are at rest.
Note down the distance.
5. To change the charge on ball, take third uncharged
ball touch it to any one of the two balls and take the
third ball away, and repeat step 4.
6. Take other uncharged suspended with other
uncharged 4th ball and take the 4th ball away and
repeat step 4.
OBSERVATIONS
Mass of the pith balls
m= 200 gm. Radius of
the ball a = 0.2 cm.
Length of thread l = 100 cm.
RESULT:
Let the force between two stationary charges be F
The weight of the ball w = mg

The restoring force on each
ball = mg sinθ From the
diagram in the right in triangle
ABC Sinθ = x/2l
Let the charge on each ball be q1, q2 and q3
then at equilibrium mg sinθ = (kq×q )/x2
Charge on the pith ball =√((mgr3)/2kl)
REFERENCES
 iCBSE.com
 Wikipedia
 Chemmicalland.com
 Books.google.co.in

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PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

TOPIC: To estimate the charge induced on

Submitted To: Submitted By:

Styrofoam balls (or pith balls) suspended in a vertical plane by

Coulomb studied the repulsive force between bodies

charges q1 and q2(measured in coulombs), r is the

The magnitude of the electrostatic force F between two

Materials such as metals are conductors. Each metal atom

The polarisation of charge in the insulator is small, but

1. Measure the mass (m) of each of the two

The weight of the ball w = mg

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