Do negative charge and positive charge stay the same when electrons and protons are produced or separated?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking about the behavior of negative and positive charges during the processes of electron and proton production or separation. It seeks to understand if the charges remain unchanged in quantity despite the movement or creation of electrons and protons.
Answer
Charges remain the same due to conservation of charge. Electrons are negative, protons positive.
The charges remain the same; electrons have a negative charge and protons have a positive charge, regardless of their production or separation. This is consistent with the conservation of charge, which states that charge cannot be created or destroyed.
Answer for screen readers
The charges remain the same; electrons have a negative charge and protons have a positive charge, regardless of their production or separation. This is consistent with the conservation of charge, which states that charge cannot be created or destroyed.
More Information
The principle of conservation of charge is fundamental in physics. It ensures that any process involving charges will not create or destroy charge but may separate existing charges. Therefore, even when electrons and protons are produced or separated, their intrinsic charges do not change.
Tips
One common mistake is assuming that charge can change in quantity or switch its nature during interactions, which violates the conservation of charge.
Sources
- Static Electricity and Charge: Conservation of Charge | Physics - courses.lumenlearning.com
- Electric charge and Coulomb's law - Physics - physics.bu.edu
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