electrostatic force

Examples of electrostatic force in the following topics:

• Spherical Distribution of Charge

  • The charge distribution around a molecule is spherical in nature, and creates a sort of electrostatic "cloud" around the molecule.
  • Through the work of scientists in the late 18th century, the main features of the electrostatic force—the existence of two types of charge, the observation that like charges repel, unlike charges attract, and the decrease of force with distance—were eventually refined, and expressed as a mathematical formula.
  • 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.
  • This distribution around a charged molecule is spherical in nature, and creates a sort of electrostatic "cloud" around the molecule.
  • It is more easily affected by electrostatic forces than molecules with uniform charge distributions.

• Stress and Strain

  • 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.
  • The thing to keep in mind is that the force above is acting on the test charge Q, in the positive radial direction as defined by the original charge q.
  • This means that because the charges are both positive and will repel one another, the force on the test charge points away from the original charge.
  • If the test charge were negative, the force felt on that charge would be

• Electric Field from a Point Charge

  • 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.
  • The thing to keep in mind is that the force above is acting on the test charge Q, in the positive radial direction as defined by the original charge q.
  • This means that because the charges are both positive and will repel one another, the force on the test charge points away from the original charge.
  • If the test charge were negative, the force felt on that charge would be:

• Superposition of Forces

  • The superposition principle (superposition property) states that for all linear forces the total force is a vector sum of individual 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:
  • For example, when a charge is moving in the presence of a magnetic field as well as an electric field, the charge will feel both electrostatic and magnetic forces.
  • Total force, affecting the motion of the charge, will be the vector sum of the two forces.

• Electric vs. Magnetic Forces

  • Force due to both electric and magnetic forces will influence the motion of charged particles.
  • The curl of the electric force is zero, i.e.:
  • One can see clearly that the curl of the electric force is zero .
  • Magnetic fields exert forces on moving charges.
  • This force is one of the most basic known.

• Solving Problems with Vectors and Coulomb's Law

  • To address the electrostatic forces among electrically charged particles, first consider two particles with electric charges q and Q , separated in empty space by a distance r.
  • In this way we can know both how strong the electric force is on a charge, but also what direction that force is directed in.
  • Electric Force on a Field Charge Due to Fixed Source Charges
  • The total force is therefore the sum of these individual forces .
  • In this video I continue with my series of tutorial videos on Electrostatics.

• 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.

• Friction: Static

  • When surface area is below the micrometer range, Van der Waals' forces, electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bonding can cause two materials to adhere to one another.
  • Like kinetic friction, the force of static friction is given by a coefficient multiplied by the normal force.
  • As with all frictional forces, the force of friction can never exceed the force applied.
  • Thus the force of static friction will vary between 0 and $_sF_n$ depending on the strength of the applied force.
  • Any force larger than that overcomes the force of static friction and causes sliding to occur.

• Induced Charge

  • Electrostatic induction is the redistribution of charges within an object that occurs as a reaction to the presence of a nearby charge.
  • Electrostatic induction is the redistribution of charge within an object, which occurs as a reaction to a nearby charge.
  • In the case of the latter, the force is comparatively weak.
  • Circa 1870, the positive end of an electrostatic generator is placed near an uncharged brass cylinder, causing the cylinder to polarize as its left end becomes positive and its right end becomes negative.

• Electric Fields and Conductors

  • It measures units of force exerted per unit of charge, and its SI units are N/C.
  • A charged conductor at electrostatic equilibrium will contain charges only on its outer surface and will have no net electric field within itself.
  • Provided a conductor is at electrostatic equilibrium, the electric field upon the surface will be aligned perpendicularly with respect to that surface.
  • But as the surface becomes more sharply curved, charge can be found more densely packed in areas, even if the conductor is at electrostatic equilibrium.
  • Repulsive forces towards the more sharply curved surface on the right aim more outward than along the surface of the conductor.