Electric Charge and Coulomb's Law

Study Notes

Electric charge is a fundamental property of matter that can be positive or negative.
Like charges repel each other, while opposite charges attract each other.
The unit of electric charge is the coulomb (C).

Coulomb's Law states that the electric force between two point charges is proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
The force is attractive if the charges are opposite and repulsive if the charges are like.
The law is expressed mathematically as: F = k * (Q1 * Q2) / r^2, where F is the force, k is Coulomb's constant, Q1 and Q2 are the charges, and r is the distance between them.

The electric field is a vector field that surrounds charged particles and exerts a force on other charged particles.
The electric field is defined as the force per unit charge at a given point in space.
The electric field can be represented by the symbol E and is measured in units of newtons per coulomb (N/C).

Electric potential, also known as voltage, is the potential energy per unit charge at a given point in space.
Electric potential is a scalar quantity and is measured in units of volts (V).
The electric potential difference between two points is the work done in moving a unit charge from one point to the other.

An electric dipole consists of two equal and opposite charges separated by a small distance.
The electric field of a dipole is zero at the midpoint between the charges.
Electric dipoles are commonly found in molecules, such as water, and are important in understanding the behavior of molecules in electric fields.

Electric flux is a measure of the number of electric field lines passing through a given area.
Electric flux is a scalar quantity and is measured in units of newtons per coulomb (N/C) times meters squared (m^2).
Gauss's Law relates the distribution of electric charge to the resulting electric field.

Electric charge is a fundamental property of matter that can be positive or negative
Like charges repel each other, while opposite charges attract each other
The unit of electric charge is the coulomb (C)

The electric force between two point charges is proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them
The force is attractive if the charges are opposite and repulsive if the charges are like
Mathematically expressed as: F = k × (Q1 × Q2) / r^2, where F is the force, k is Coulomb's constant, Q1 and Q2 are the charges, and r is the distance between them

Electric field is a vector field that surrounds charged particles and exerts a force on other charged particles
Defined as the force per unit charge at a given point in space
Represented by the symbol E and measured in units of newtons per coulomb (N/C)

Electric potential, also known as voltage, is the potential energy per unit charge at a given point in space
A scalar quantity measured in units of volts (V)
Electric potential difference between two points is the work done in moving a unit charge from one point to the other

Consists of two equal and opposite charges separated by a small distance
Electric field of a dipole is zero at the midpoint between the charges
Commonly found in molecules, such as water, and important in understanding molecular behavior in electric fields

A measure of the number of electric field lines passing through a given area
A scalar quantity measured in units of newtons per coulomb (N/C) times meters squared (m^2)
Gauss's Law relates the distribution of electric charge to the resulting electric field