Applied Physics

GSC 113

1
 Course Title Applied Physics
Credit Hours 3+1

Course Prerequisites None

Text Book:
Halliday & Resnick, Jearl Walker,
“Fundamentals of Physics”, 9th edition.
Reference Book :
Young and Freedman, University Physics
2
Bogart T. F., Electronic Devices and Circuits,
Prentice Hall
 Lecture 01
Chapter 21

Electric Charge
Fundamentals of Physics, Halliday, Resnick, and Walker,
9th edition.
Questions!!!!

Question # 1:
What is matter?
Question # 2:
What is an electric charge?
Question #3:
What is Electric Force?
Questions!!!!

Question # 4:
What are Conductors & Insulators?
Question # 5:
Define Electromagnetism
Question # 6:
State Coulomb’s Law
What is Physics?

You are surrounded by devices that depend upon physics of

electromagnetism which is the combination of electric and magnetic
phenomena.
This physics is at the root of computers, television, radio,
telecommunications, household lighting.
This physics is also the basis of the natural world. Not only does it hold
together all the atoms and molecules in the world, it also produces
lightning, day light and rainbows.
 Charge?
 What is matter? (mass+space)
 Any thing that occupies space and has mass

 Characteristic property of a matter because of which it experiences

electrostatic force of repulsion or attraction

 There are two types of electric charges: positive and negative.
 Like charges repel each other
 Opposite charges attract each other

A vast amount of charge is hidden in everyday object.

[positive, negative, neutral]
Atomic Structure

 Atomic Structure

• Negative electron cloud

• Nucleus of positive protons, uncharged neutrons
Electric Force

 Electric Force: the force of attraction or repulsion

between charged objects
Electric Charge

(a) Two charged rods of the same sign repel each other.

(b) Two charged rods of opposite signs attract each other. Plus
signs indicate a positive net charge, and minus signs indicate a
negative net charge.
Conductors and Insulators

 Electric Force: the force of attraction or repulsion between charged

objects

 Neutral: an object with no charge

 -has an equal number of protons & electrons
Conductors and Insulators

 Negatively Charged Object: an object that has more electrons than protons

5+
8-
overall charge = 3-
Conductors and Insulators

 Positively Charged Object: an object that has fewer electrons than protons

5+
3-
overall charge =2+
 Static Electricity

 An imbalance of electric charge at rest on the surface of an object

Static Cling


 Static cling is a property of substances that make them cling to each other
because of opposite electrical charges. When the conditions are dry and
two different kinds of materials come in contact with each other,
sometimes there is an exchange of electrons between the two substances.
This exchange of electrons leaves one substance with a positive charge
and the other with a negative charge. Basic laws of science state that
unlike charges attract, thus the two substances will attract one another,
which is termed as static cling.”
Electric Discharge:
 The rapid transfer of electrons from one object to another
Grounding:
 Connecting an object to a large body, like Earth, that can remove an
electric charge from the object
Conductors and Insulators
 Conductor: a material that transmits electrical energy easily
 Metals are the best conductors
 Conductors and Insulators

 Insulator: a material that resists or blocks the flow of electrons through it

 Coulomb’s law: Force between pairs of
point charges
 q1 F12 F21 q2

or F12  q1 q2 F21

or F12  q1 q2 F21

Coulomb’s law -- the force between point charges:

 Lies along the line connecting the charges.
 Is proportional to the magnitude of each charge.
 Is inversely proportional to the distance squared.
 Note that Newton’s third law says |F12| = |F21|
 Coulomb’s law:

 Two charged particles repel each other if they have the

same sign of charge, either

 both positive or
 both negative or
 They attract each other if they have opposite signs of
charge.
Coulomb’s law:

 Electrostatic force
This force of repulsion or attraction due to the charge properties of objects is
called an electrostatic force

 q1 F12 F21 q2

r12
 If particle 1 has charge q1 and particle 2 has charge q2, then the force
on particle 1 is
Coulomb’s law:
 q1 F12 F21 q2

r12
 If particle 1 has charge q1 and particle 2 has charge q2, then the force
on particle 1 is

Where
 r is the distance between them, and k is a constant.
 (As with other unit vectors, r has a magnitude of exactly 1 and no dimension
or unit; its purpose is to point.)
 If the particles have the same signs of charge, the force on particle 1 is
in the direction of 𝑟;Ƹ if they have opposite signs, the force is opposite 𝑟.Ƹ
Coulomb’s law:

k | q1 | | q2 |
| F12 | 2
r12

Permittivity constant:
Coulomb’s law:

If we have n charged particles, they interact independently in pairs, and the

force on any one of them, let us say particle 1, is given by the vector sum

For example, F14 is the force acting on particle 1 due to the presence of
particle 4
Sample Problem!!!

 Figure shows two positively charged particles fixed in place on an x axis. The charges are
q1 = 1.6010 -19 C and q2 = 3.2010 -19 C, and the particle separation is R=0.0200 m.
 What are the magnitude and direction of the electrostatic force on particle 1 from
particle 2?
Reading Exercise 

 Rub a wool (not acrylic) cap on your hair (on a dry day). This
removes some of the electrons from your hair, giving each hair a
slight positive electrical charge. Like charges repulse one another,
so each hair repulses the other hairs. The result is a mad-scientist
hair-do.
Materials classified based on their ability
to move charge
• Conductors are materials in which a significant number of
electrons are free to move. Examples include metals.

• The charged particles in nonconductors (insulators) are not free

to move. Examples include rubber, plastic, glass.

• Semiconductors are materials that are intermediate between

conductors and insulators; examples include silicon and
germanium in computer chips.

• Superconductors are materials that are perfect conductors,

allowing charge to move without any hindrance.
Electric Charges in Solids:
• In macroscopic solids, nuclei often arrange themselves into a stiff
regular pattern called a “lattice”.

• Electrons move around this lattice. Depending on how they move the
solid can be classified by its “electrical properties” as an insulator or a
conductor.
 Charges in solids
 In a conductor, electrons move around freely,
forming a “sea” of electrons. This is why metals
conduct electricity.
 Charges can be “induced” (moved around) in
conductors.
Blue background = mobile electrons
Red circles = static positive charge (nuclei)

+ -

+ -