Lecture 2 Electric Fields Chp.

23
• Cartoon - Analogous to gravitational field
• Opening Demo - Bending of water stream with charged rod
• Warm-up problem
• Physlet
• Topics
– Electric field = Force per unit Charge
– Electric Field Lines and Electric Flux
– Electric field from more than 1 charge
– Electric Dipoles
– Motion of point charges in an electric field
– Examples of finding electric fields from continuous charges
• List of Demos
– Van de Graaff Generator, workings,lightning rod, electroscope, electric wind
– Smoke remover or electrostatic precipitator
– Kelvin water drop generator
– Transparent CRT with visible electron gun
– Field lines using felt,oil, and 10 KV supply.

Summer July 2004 1

 The Electric Field
• Definition of the electric field. Whenever charges are present and if I bring up another charge, it will feel
a net Coulomb force from all the others. It is convenient to say that there is field there equal to the force
per unit positive charge. E=F/q0. The direction of the electric field is along r and points in the direction a
positive test charge would move. This idea was proposed by Michael Faraday in the 1830’s. The idea
of the field replaces the charges as defining the situation. Consider two point charges:

q1 q0

Summer July 2004 2

 r

q1 + q0

The Coulomb force is F= kq1q0/r2

The force per unit charge is E = F/q0

and then the electric field at r is E = kq1/r2 due to the point charge q1 .

The units are Newton/Coulomb. The electric field has direction and is a vector.
How do we find the direction.? The direction is the direction a unit positive test
charge would move.

r E
If q1 were positive
q1

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Point negative charge
q1
r

E= kq1/r2 q1

Summer July 2004 4

 Electric Field Lines
Like charges (++) Opposite charges (+ -)

This is called an electric dipole.

Summer July 2004 5

Electric Field Lines: a graphic concept used
to draw pictures as an aid to develop
intuition about its behavior.
The text shows a few examples. Here are the drawing rules.

• E-field lines begin on + charges and end on - charges. (or infinity).

• They enter or leave charge symmetrically.
• The number of lines entering or leaving a charge is proportional to
the charge
• The density of lines indicates the strength of E at that point.
• At large distances from a system of charges, the lines become
isotropic and radial as from a single point charge equal to the net
charge of the system.
• No two field lines can cross.

Show a physlet 9.1.4, 9.1.7

Show field lines using felt,oil, and 10 KV supply

Summer July 2004 6

 Typical Electric Fields (SI Units)
• 1 cm away from 1 nC of negative charge
– E = kq /r2 = 1010 *10-9/ 10-4 =105 N /C
r .E
– q
N.m2/C2 C / m2 = N/C

• Fair weather atmospheric electricity = 100 N/C downward

100 km high in the ionosphere +++++ •E

---------
Earth
• Field due to a proton at the location of the electron in the H
atom. The radius of the electron orbit is 0.5*10-10 m.
– E = kq /r2 = 1010 *1.6*10-19/ (0.5 *10-10 )2 = 4*1011 N /C

Hydrogen atom - 1N / C = Volt/meter

r
+
Summer July 2004 7
Example of field lines for a
uniform distribution of positive
charge on one side of a very large
nonconducting sheet.
This is called a uniform electric field.

How would the electric field change

if both sides were charged?

How would things change if the sheet

were conducting?

Summer July 2004 8

 Methods of evaluating electric fields
• Direct evaluation from Coulombs Law or brute force method
If we know where the charges are, we can find E from E = ∑ kqi/ri2.
This is a vector equation and can be complex and messy to
evaluate and we may have to resort to a computer. The principle
of superposition guarantees the result.

• Instead of summing the charge we can imagine a continuous

distribution and integrate it. This distribution may be over a volume,
a surface or just a line.

– E = ∫dE = ∫ kdqi/r2 r where r is a unit vector directed from charge

dq to the field point.

– dq = dV , or dq = dA, or dq =  dl

Summer July 2004 9

Example of finding electric field from two charges
We have q =+10 nC at the origin, q = +15 nC at x=4 m.
1 2
What is E at y=3 m and x=0? point P

P
3

4 x
q1=10 nc q2 =15 nc

Use principle of superposition

Find x and y components of electric field due to both charges
and add them up

Summer July 2004 10

Example continued
Recall E =kq/r2 y
and k=8.99 x 109 N.m2/C2 E 
Field due to q1 5
3
E = 1010 N.m2/C2 10 X10-9 C/(3m)2 = 11 N/C 
in the y direction. x
4
q1=10 nc q2 =15 nc
Ey= 11 N/C
Ex= 0

Field due to q2
E = 1010 N.m2/C2 15 X10-9 C/(5m)2 = 6 N/C
Now add all components

at some angle 
Resolve into x and y components Ey= 11 + 3.6 = 14.6 N/C
Ex= -4.8 N/C
Ey=E sin C
Magnitude
Ex=E cos C E = E x2 + E y2
Summer July 2004 11
 E
Example continued

Ey= 11 + 3.6 = 14.6 N/C


Ex= -4.8 N/C
3

4 x
q1=10 nc q2 =15 nc

Using unit vector notation we can

Magnitude of electric field also write the electric field vector as:
E = E x2 + E y2 r ∧ ∧

2 2
E = −4.8 i + 14.6 j
E = (14.6) + (−4.8) = 15.4N /C

atan Ey/Ex= atan (14.6/-4.8)= 72.8 deg

€
Summer July 2004 12
Example of two identical Example of two opposite
charges on the x axis. What charges on the x axis. What
is the filed on the y axis? is the filed on the y axis?
y E y
y

x

3
 3
 
4 4 4 4 x
x
q2 =15 nc q2 =15 nc q2 = -15 nc q2 =15 nc

E = 1010 N.m2/C2 15 X10-9 C/(5m)2 = 6 N/C

Ey=2*E sin 3/5 = 7.2 N/C y

x Ex=2*E cos 4/5 = - 9.6 N/C

Summer July 2004 13

 4 equal charges symmetrically spaced along a line. What is the field at
point P? (y and x = 0)


r1  r4
r2  r3


x
q1 q2 q3 q4

4 ∞
E y = k ∑ qi cosθ i / ri2 E y = k ∑ Δqi cosθ i /ri 2

i=1 i=1
Summer July 2004 14
 Find electric field due to a line of uniform + charge of length L
with linear charge density equal to 

y dE = k dq /r2 L /2
dE
dEy
Ex = ∫ dE x =0
dEy= dE cos  −L / 2
dEx r
y 
-x +x dq = dx
-L/2 0 x L/2
dq €

dEy= k dx cos r2 Ey= k q cos r2 for a point charge
L /2
E y = kλ ∫−L / 2cosθ dx /r 2
dx/r = d/y
2 x= y tan dx = y sec2 d
r =y sec rysec2 

θ0 L /2
E y = kλ / y ∫−θ cosθ dθ Ey =
2kλ
sinθ 0 sinθ 0 =
0
y y 2 + L2 / 4
Summer July 2004 15
What is the electric field from an infinitely long wire
with linear charge density of +100 nC/m at a point 10
away from it. What do the lines of flux look like?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

2kλ
. y =10 cm
Ey = sinθ 0 Ey
y

2 *1010 Nm 2 *100 *10−9 C /m

Ey = sin90 = 2 *10 4 N /C
0.1m

Typical field for the electrostatic smoke cleaner

Summer July 2004 16

 Electric field gradient

• When a dipole is an electric field that varies with position, then

the magnitude of the electric force will be different for the two
charges. The dipole can be permanent like NaCl or water or
induced as seen in the hanging pith ball. Induced dipoles are
always attracted to the region of higher field. Explains why wood
is attracted to the teflon rod and how a smoke remover or
microwave oven works.

• Show smoke remover demo.

Summer July 2004 17

 Electrostatic smoke precipitator model

• Negatively charged central wire has electric field that varies as

1/r (strong electric field gradient). Field induces a dipole moment
on the smoke particles. The positive end gets attracted more to
the wire
• In the meantime a corona discharge is created. This just means
that induced dipole moments in the air molecules cause them to
be attracted towards the wire where they receive an electron
and get repelled producing a cloud of ions around the wire.
• When the smoke particle hits the wire it receives an electron
and then is repelled to the side of the can where it sticks.
However, it only has to enter the cloud of ions before it is
repelled.
• It would also work if the polarity of the wire is reversed

Summer July 2004 18

Electric Dipoles: A pair of equal and opposite charges q
separated by a displacement d is called an electric dipole. It
has an electric dipole moment p=qd.

IEI ~ 2kqd/r3 when r is large compared to d

p=qd = the electric dipole moment
•P

r
+ +q IEI ~2kp/r3 Note inverse cube law
d p
- -q
IEI = kq/r2 Note inverse square law
for a single charge.
Summer July 2004 19
Water (H2O) is a molecule that has a permanent dipole moment.
GIven p = 6.2 x 10 - 30 C m And q = -10 e and q = +10e

What is d?
d = p / 10e = 6.2 x 10 -30 C m / 10*1.6 x 10 -19 C = 3.9 x 10 -12 m

Very small distance but still is responsible

for the conductivity of water.

When a dipole is an electric field, the dipole

moment wants to rotate to line up with
the electric field. It experiences a torque.

Leads to how microwave ovens heat up food

Summer July 2004 20

H2O in a Uniform Electric Field

There exist a torque on the water molecule

To rotate it so that p lines up with E.

x
Torque about the com = 
F x sin F(d-x)sin Fdsin 
qEdsin pEsin p x E
p x E

Potential Energy = U = -W = -pEcosp

Is a minimum when p aligns with E

Summer July 2004 21

 Motion of point charges in electric fields
• When a point charge such as an electron is placed in an electric
field E, it is accelerated according to Newton’s Law:

a = F/m = qE/m for uniform electric fields

a = F/m = mg/m = g for uniform gravitational fields

If the field is uniform, we now have a projectile motion problem-

constant acceleration in one direction. So we have parabolic
motion just as in hitting a baseball, etc except the magnitudes
of velocities and accelerations are different.
Replace g by qE/m in all equations;
For example, In y =1/2at2 we get y =1/2(qE/m)t2

Summer July 2004 22

 Example: An electron is projected perpendicularly to a
downward electric field of E= 2000 N/C with a horizontal
velocity v=106 m/s. How much is the electron deflected
after traveling 1 cm.

V •e
d
E E
Since velocity in x direction does not change, t=d/v =10-2/106 = 10-6 sec,
so the distance the electron falls upward is
y =1/2at2 = 0.5*eE/m*t2 = 0.5*1.6*10-19*2*103/10 - 30*(10-8)2 = 0.016m

•Demo Transparent CRT with electron gun

Summer July 2004 23

 Back to computing Electric Fields

• Electric field due to a line of uniform charge

• Electric field due to an arc of a circle of uniform charge.

• Electric field due to a ring of uniform charge

• Electric field of a uniform charged disk

• Next we will go on to another simpler method to calculate

electric fields that works for highly symmetric situations using
Gauss’s Law.

Summer July 2004 24

 Field due to arc of charge
L /2
Ey = ∫ dE y =0
−L / 2

dEx= k dq cos r2

dEx= k ds cos r2 s=r 
L /2 θ0 ds=r d
E x = kλ ∫ rdθ cosθ /r 2
= kλ /r ∫ dθ cosθ
−L / 2 −θ 0

2kλ
Ex = sinθ 0
r
What is the field at the center
of a circle of charge?
Ans. 0
Summer July 2004 25
 Find the electric field on the axis of a uniformly charged ring with
linear charge density Q/2R

Ez = ∫ dE cosθ dq λ ds
dE = k 2 = k 2
r r
kλ cosθ 2π 2π
Ez =
r2
∫ ds ∫ ds = ∫ Rdθ = R ∫ dθ = 2πR
€ 0 0
€
kλ cosθ s = Rθ
Ez = 2
2πR
r
€ €
r2 =z2+R2
dq = ds kQz
Ez = 2 € cos z/r
€ (z + R 2 ) 3 / 2
=0 at z=0
=0 at z=infinity
Summer July 2004 =max at z=0.7R26
€
 Warm-up set 2

1. [153709] Can there be an electric field at a point where there is no charge?

Can a charge experience a force due to its own field? Please write a one or two sentence answer
for each question.

2. [153707] An insulator is a material that...

three are correct
is not penetrated by electric fields
none of these
cannot carry an electric charge
cannot feel an electrical force

3. [153708] Which of the following is true of a perfect conductor ?

There can be no electric charge on the surface.
There cannot be an electric field inside.
There cannot be any excess electric charge inside.
There cannot be any electric charges inside.
Two of the choices are correct

Summer July 2004 27

 Kelvin Water Drop Generator
Am. J. Phys. 68,1084(2000)

Summer July 2004 28