Coulomb force

(proper noun)

the electrostatic force between two charges, as described by Coulomb's law

Related Terms

Examples of Coulomb force in the following topics:

  • Nerve Conduction and Electrocardiograms

    • Diffusion of K+ and Cl− thus creates the layers of positive and negative charge on the outside and inside of the membrane, and the Coulomb force prevents the ions from diffusing across in their entirety .
    • The result is two layers of charge right on the membrane, with diffusion being balanced by the Coulomb force.
    • The membrane thus temporarily becomes permeable to Na+, which then rushes in, driven both by diffusion and the Coulomb force.
    • This is an example of active transport, wherein cell energy is used to move ions across membranes against diffusion gradients and the Coulomb force.
    • Diffusion moves the K+ and Cl− ions in the direction shown, until the Coulomb force halts further transfer.

  • Spherical Distribution of Charge

    • The mathematical formula for the electrostatic force is called Coulomb's law after the French physicist Charles Coulomb (1736–1806), who performed experiments and first proposed a formula to calculate it.
    • Modern experiments have verified Coulomb's law to great precision.
    • Coulomb's law holds even within the atoms, correctly describing the force between the positively charged nucleus and each of the negatively charged electrons.
    • An electric field is a vector field which associates to each point of the space the Coulomb force that will experience a test unity charge.
    • Describe shape of a Coulomb force from a spherical distribution of charge

  • Magnitude of the Magnetic Force

    • Magnetic fields exert forces on moving charges, and so they exert forces on other magnets, all of which have moving charges.
    • The magnetic force is as important as the electrostatic or Coulomb force.
    • Yet the magnetic force is more complex, in both the number of factors that affects it and in its direction, than the relatively simple Coulomb force.
    • Magnetic fields exert forces on moving charges.
    • This force is one of the most basic known.

  • Superposition of Forces

    • The superposition principle (superposition property) states that for all linear forces the total force is a vector sum of individual forces.
    • For Coulomb's law, the stimuli are forces.
    • Therefore, the principle suggests that total force is a vector sum of individual forces.
    • The scalar form of Coulomb's Law relates the magnitude and sign of the electrostatic force F, acting simultaneously on two point charges q1 and q2:
    • The principle of linear superposition allows the extension of Coulomb's law to include any number of point charges—in order to derive the force on any one point charge by a vector addition of these individual forces acting alone on that point charge.

  • Dispersion Force

    • These intermolecular forces are also sometimes called "induced dipole-induced dipole" or "momentary dipole" forces.
    • London dispersion forces are part of the van der Waals forces, or weak intermolecular attractions.
    • Van der Waals forces help explain how nitrogen can be liquefied.
    • London dispersion forces allow otherwise non-polar molecules to have attractive forces.
    • There are two kinds of attractive forces shown in this model: Coulomb forces (the attraction between ions) and Van der Waals forces (an additional attractive force between all atoms).

  • Solving Problems with Vectors and Coulomb's Law

    • Coulomb's Law, which calculates the electric force between charged particles, can be written in vector notation as $F(E) = \frac{kq_1q_2}{r^2}$ r+.
    • Coulomb's Law using vectors can be written as:
    • The total force on the field charge q is due to applications of the force described in the vector notation of Coulomb's Law from each of the source charges.
    • Coulomb's Law applied to more than one point source charges providing forces on a field charge.
    • Explain when the vector notation of Coulomb's Law can be used

  • Nuclear Fusion

    • The origin of the energy released in fusion of light elements is due to an interplay of two opposing forces: the nuclear force that draws together protons and neutrons, and the Coulomb force that causes protons to repel each other.
    • This force, called the strong nuclear force, overcomes electric repulsion in a very close range.
    • The effect of nuclear force is not observed outside the nucleus, hence the force has a strong dependence on distance; it a short-range force.
    • The nuclear force is stronger than the Coulomb force for atomic nuclei smaller than iron, so building up these nuclei from lighter nuclei by fusion releases the extra energy from the net attraction of these particles.
    • At nucleus radii distances, the attractive nuclear force is stronger than the repulsive electrostatic force.

  • Properties of Electric Charges

    • Its SI unit is known as the Coulomb (C), which represents 6.242×1018e, where e is the charge of a proton.
    • Electric charge is a property that produces forces that can attract or repel matter.
    • This is known as Coulomb's Law.
    • The formula for gravitational force has exactly the same form as Coulomb's Law, but relates the product of two masses (rather than the charges) and uses a different constant.
    • The forces (F1 and F2) sum to produce the total force, which is calculated by Coulomb's Law and is proportional to the product of the charges q1 and q2, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance (r21) between them.

  • Stress and Strain

    • A point charge creates an electric field that can be calculated using Coulomb's Law.
    • The effect is felt as a force and when charged particles are not in motion this force is known as the electrostatic force.
    • The electrostatic force is, much like gravity, a force that acts at a distance.
    • If the test charge were negative, the force felt on that charge would be
    • The above mathematical description of the electric field of a point charge is known as Coulomb's Law.

  • Electric Field from a Point Charge

    • A point charge creates an electric field that can be calculated using Coulomb's law.
    • The effect is felt as a force, and when charged particles are not in motion, this force is known as the electrostatic force.
    • The electrostatic force is, much like gravity, a force that acts at a distance.
    • If the test charge were negative, the force felt on that charge would be:
    • The above mathematical description of the electric field of a point charge is known as Coulomb's law.