Electrostatics
Electricity and magnetism play a profound role in almost all aspects of life. From the moment you wake up, to the moment you go to sleep (and even while you’re sleeping), applications of electricity and magnetism provide tools, light, warmth, transportation, communication, and even entertainment. Despite its widespread use, however, there is much about these phenomena that is not well understood.
Objectives
- Calculate the charge on an object.
- Describe the differences between conductors and insulators.
- Explain the difference between conduction and induction.
- Explain how an electroscope works.
- Solve problems using the law of conservation of charge.
- Use Coulomb’s Law to solve problems related to electrical force.
- Recognize that objects that are charged exert forces, both attractive and repulsive.
- Compare and contrast Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation with Coulomb’s Law.
- Define, measure, and calculate the strength of an electric field.
- Solve problems related to charge, electric field, and forces.
- Define and calculate electric potential energy.
- Define and calculate potential difference.
- Solve basic problems involving charged parallel plates.
- Calculate the charge stored on a parallel plate capacitor.
Topics of Study
Video Tutorials
- Electric Charge
- Conduction and Induction
- Coulomb's Law
- Electric Fields
- Electric Potential Difference
- Parallel Plates and Equipotential Lines
- Capacitors
