http://www.ck12.org Chapter 5. Energy
5.62 Electric Fields
- Describe the electric field around a charged particle.
- Explain how electric fields of two charged particles interact.
This image is of a plasma ball at a science museum. It shows electricity flowing out of a charged ball. The electricity
follows the lines of the electric field. What is an electric field? Read on to find out.
What Is an Electric Field?
Anelectric fieldis a space around a charged particle where the particle exerts electric force on other charged
particles. Because of their force fields, charged particles can exert force on each other without actually touching.
Electric fields are generally represented by arrows, as you can see in theFigure5.145. The arrows show the direction
of electric force around a positive particle and a negative particle. For an animated diagram, go to this URL: http://o
cw.mit.edu/ans7870/8/8.02T/f04/visualizations/electrostatics/15-CreateField/CreateField_640.mpg
Interacting Electric Fields
When charged particles are close enough to exert force on each other, their electric fields interact. This is illustrated
in theFigure5.146. The lines of force bend together when particles with different charges attract each other. The
lines bend apart when particles with like charges repel each other. At the following URL, play “Electric Field of
Dreams” to experience interacting fields of two or more charged particles. http://www.cabrillo.edu/~jmccullough
/Physics/Electric_Forces_Fields.html