A region of space around a charged particle where an electric force is exerted on other charged particles.
Define electric lines of force.
Imaginary lines representing the direction of the electric field around charged objects.
What is the direction of an electric field?
Away from positive charges and towards negative charges.
Describe the properties of electric field lines.
They never cross, begin on positive charges, end on negative charges, and their density indicates field strength.
What is Coulomb's Law?
A law stating that electric force between charges is proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.
How can electric fields be visualized?
Using field lines that illustrate the direction and strength of the field.
What is electric field strength?
The force per unit charge experienced by a small test charge placed in the field.
What is a point charge?
A charged particle considered to have its entire charge concentrated at a single point.
How do electric fields interact with conductors?
Charge rearranges on the surface of a conductor until the electric field inside is zero.
What is the relationship between electric field and electric potential?
Electric field is the negative gradient of electric potential.
Define electric dipole.
A pair of equal and opposite charges separated by a distance, having a fixed orientation.
Discuss the superposition principle in electric fields.
The resultant field at any point is the vector sum of fields due to all charges present.
What is an equipotential surface?
A surface on which the electric potential is the same at every point.
How does an electric field influence charged particles?
By exerting a force that affects the motion of the particles.
What is Gauss's Law?
A law relating the distribution of electric charge to the resulting electric field, stating the net flux through a closed surface is proportional to the enclosed charge.