Topic 7 - Electric an Magnetic Fields Flashcards
Magnetic Fields
A region surrounding a magnet or current carrying wire which acts upon any other magnet or current carrying wire placed within the field
Electric Field
A region of space in which a (small, positively) charged particle feels a force
Electric Field Strength
force per unit charge, E = F/Q
what do field lines show
Strength and direction
closer together lines shows a stronger field
Uniform fields
Same strength at any point in the field
- evenly spaced lines, arrows from + to -
Radial fields
strength decreases as distance from the point charge increases
- all equal angles, arrows from + to -
field line drawing rules
lines can never cross
Electric neutral/ null point
where there are no fields lines: the forces from the field is balanced.
electric field strength of a uniform field
E = v/d
charging
electrons are transferred from one material to another
inducing a charge in an object without touching the object
- A negatively charged strip is bought close to 2 touching metal spheres.
- Electrons from sphere A are repelled to sphere B.
- The spheres are separated with the strip nearby
- the strip is removed and the charged spreads out so it is distributed evenly
- B is now negatively charged and A is positively charged
coulomb meter
measures charge
force between two charges
- directly proportional to each of the charges Q1 and Q2
- inversely proportional to the square of their separation
Coulombs law
F = kQ1Q2 / r^2
F can be repulsive or attractive
electric potential
the potential energy that each coulomb of positive charge would have if placed at that point in the field.
potential difference
the energy transferred when one coulomb of charge passes from one point to another point
W = VQ
Equipotentials
positions within a field with zero potential difference between them.
They are perpendicular to field lines
Equipotentials between parallel plates
even spaced perpendicular to field lines
Equipotentials for a point charge
concentric circles, closer together near the point charge
charge moving along equipotential
no work is done because the potential energy does not change
Capacitor
an electrical component that stores and releases charge (and therefore energy)
Capacitor uses
Defibrillators & Camera Flashes
charging up a capacitor
- when the switch is closed, electrons flow from the negative terminal of the battery onto the first plate of the capacitor, this becomes negatively charged
- electrons are repelled from the second plate around the circuit
- there is a force of attraction between the plates
- this charging process continues until the pd. across the capacitor is equal to the pd. of the supply
discharging a capacitor
- disconnect the battery
- Initially there is a large current due to the large potential difference across the plates. The current drops as pd drops
- current flows opposite way round the circuit when discharging
- the charge drops quickly at first then more slowly