An electric field is a field generated by an electrical charge. The electric field is a Vector greatness which can be used to measure the force exerted on each test load placed within that field.
Any electrical charge placed within this field will be subject to a force, which may be either attraction or repulsion. The direction of the force will depend on the sign of the charges (positive or negative).
The intensity of the force will be greater the closer the test load is to the generating load in the field and less intense the further away from the generating load.
Electric Field Formula
You can calculate the electric field using the following formula:
Where,
- AND corresponds to the strength of the electric field and its unit is N/C
- K0 is the electrostatic constant in vacuum, whose value is 8.99,109 N.m2/Ç2
- |Q| is the modulus of the charge that generated the electric field, that is, the charge signal is not considered
- d is the distance in meters between the observed point and the generating load
The electric field of a charge
The idea of field in Physics is related to the force interaction given a certain distance. For example, the Earth's gravity can be felt by some body that is close to it by creating a gravitational field.
Likewise, a fixed electric charge Q, positive or negative, creates an electric field and influences the space around it. If a test charge q is added to this field, it will feel a force.
Initially, the point charge q is at a certain distance, at position P1, and an electric force F acts on it. When moving this charge to other positions (P2, P3, P4 and P5), an electrical force will also be acting on the charge. This is because an electric field has been created around the charge Q.
Note that the electric field formed does not depend on the test load. The interaction between the charges comes from the electric field around the electric charge Q, which causes a force to arise around it.
electric field vector
Electric field vector is a quantity associated with the electric field. As a vector, this quantity has magnitude, direction and meaning.
Electric field strength
The modulus of the electric field vector represents its intensity. The electrical force that is exerted on the test charge is related to the electric field as follows:
Where,
- AND represents the strength of the electric field in Newton by Coulomb (N/C)
- F is electrical force measured in Newton (N)
- |q| corresponds to the modulus of the test load in Coulomb (C)
know more about polarization.
Direction and direction of the electric field vector
The electric field created by a positive charge points away from the charge. The field generated by the negative charge, however, points into the charge.
Load attraction and repulsion
Although the electric force and the electric field have the same direction, the direction is conditioned to the sign of the test charge.
When the generating load Q and the test load q have the same sign, there is a repulsion between the loads and the generated field is a repulse.
If the charges Q and q have opposite signs, there is an attraction between the charges and the generated field is an approximation.
Electric field force lines
The electric field is formed by lines of force that are oriented according to the direction of the electric field vector.
When the charge that generates the electric field is positive, the lines of force are centrifuges, that is, they depart from the center outwards. And when the generating load is negative, the power lines are centripetal, that is, from the outside to the inside.
Lines of force of equal loads, but with opposite signs
The lines of force at each point are tangent to the electric field vector. The closer the field lines are to the generating load, the greater the strength of the electric field.
See also the meaning of electricity, magnetism and energy.
