What is the difference between electric field and electric field lines?
At points where the field lines are closely spaced, the electric field is considered to be stronger, while the points where the field lines are far apart are the points where the electric field is comparatively weaker.
Are electric field lines real or imaginary?
Electric Field Lines as an Invisible Reality. It has been emphasized in Lesson 4 that the concept of an electric field arose as scientists attempted to explain the action-at-a-distance that occurs between charged objects. The concept of the electric field was first introduced by 19th century physicist Michael Faraday.
Why do field lines go along straight lines?
This is because the effect of the nearer charge completely dwarfs that of the other charge. A field line that goes along a straight line between the two of rhem is easy: It’s just a straight line. But what about other field lines?
Why do electric field lines not pass through a conductor?
Electric field lines can not pass through a conductor; that’s why the electric field inside a conductor is always zero. In a charge-free region, electric field lines are continuous curves. Electric field lines tend to contract in length due to the force of attraction between two oppositely charged objects.
Why are electric field lines straight?
There should not be any angle between electric field lines,because if there is any angle between them, then they will intersect at some point which is not possible because at that point there will be more than one direction of electric field,since it is an vector it can only have one specific direction.
Are electric field lines curved?
An electric field line is, in general, a curve drawn in such a way that the tangent to it at each point is in the direction of the net field at that point. An arrow on the curve is obviously necessary to specify the direction of electric field from the two possible directions indicated by a tangent to the curve.
Can electric field lines can be either straight or curved?
Electric field lines can be either straight or curved. Electric field lines can form closed loops. Electric field lines begin on positive charges and end on negative charges.
When electric field lines are straight and when they are curved?
Note that as you move away from the two point charges an equal distance apart, the lines look like those at the ends of your parallel plate capacitor (curved lines). Towards the center between the charges, the field lines start to look straight and evenly spaced (parallel lines).
Can electric field lines be straight in non uniform field?
They can be straight or curved. A line of force is a locus of all the points through which a free unit positive charge (test charge) will move when kept in the field.
What shape is an electric field?
0:002:22Electric Field Lines Shape - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipIf our charge is placed in a body which has got different type of shapes. Like the charge can be inMoreIf our charge is placed in a body which has got different type of shapes. Like the charge can be in a point point size body the charge can be in a line the charge can be in a sheet.
Can magnetic field lines be straight?
There can't be such straight field lines between magnetic poles as the magnetic field can always form closed loops. However the tangential vectors through each loops point in the same direction which is illustrated in the figure. Remember that the magnetic field is a pseudo-vector.
Which among the following is false about electric field lines?
Which among the following is false about electric field lines? Explanation: Electric lines of force are always diverging from positive charge and they converge at a negative charge. Besides, they repel each other because of repulsion between two similar charges.
How do you describe electric field lines?
An electric field line is an imaginary line or curve drawn through a region of empty space so that its tangent at any point is in the direction of the electric field vector at that point. The relative closeness of the lines at some place gives an idea about the intensity of electric field at that point.
What are the properties of electric field lines?
Properties of an Electric FieldField lines never intersect each other.They are perpendicular to the surface charge.The field is strong when the lines are close together, and it is weak when the field lines move apart from each other.The number of field lines is directly proportional to the magnitude of the charge.More items...
What does the direction of electric field lines show?
These pattern of lines, sometimes referred to as electric field lines, point in the direction that a positive test charge would accelerate if placed upon the line. As such, the lines are directed away from positively charged source charges and toward negatively charged source charges.
Why do the electric field lines not form closed loops?
The field lines starts (or diverges) from the positive charge and terminate (or converges) on negative charge. If the electric field lines form closed loop , these line must originate and terminate on the same charge which is not possible because electric field lines always moves from positive to negative.
What is an electric field line?
Electric Field Lines can be defined as a curve representing the direction of the electric field when a tangent is drawn at its point. These are use...
What is an electric field?
An electric field is a region around a charge where similar charges can feel its influence. It is a vector quantity, and it is equal to the force p...
Can two electric field lines intersect?
No, two electric field lines do not intersect. If the electric field lines intersect, then this would mean that we can draw two tangents at their p...
Why aren't there any electric field lines inside a conductor?
There are no electric field lines within a conductor because the electric field inside a conductor is zero.
Write a few properties of electric field lines.
Electric field lines start from a positive charge and end at a negative charge. Field lines do not form closed curves. The number of electric field...
What is an electric field line?
Electric field lines are an excellent way of visualising electric fields. They were first introduced by Michael Faraday himself. A field line is dr...
What are the properties of electric field lines?
The field lines never intersect each other. The field lines are perpendicular to the surface of the charge. The magnitude of charge and the number...
What are the rules for drawing electric field lines?
Following are the rules for drawing electric field lines: The field line begins at the charge and ends either at the charge or at infinity. When t...
What is an electric charge?
Electric Charge is the property of subatomic particles that causes it to experience a force when placed in an electric and magnetic field.
State Coulomb’s law.
The magnitude of the electrostatic force of attraction or repulsion between two point charges is directly proportional to the product of the magnit...
What is an electric field line?
An electric field line is an imaginary line or curve drawn through a region of empty space so that its tangent at any point is in the direction of the electric field vector at that point. The relative closeness of the lines at some place gives an idea about the intensity of electric field at that point.
What is a field line?
Field line is a locus that is defined by a vector field and a starting location within the field. For the electric fields, we have electric field lines. As we have seen in Electrostatics, electric charges create an electric field in the space sorrounding them.
What does tangent to a line at any point mean?
The tangent to a line at any point gives the direction of the electric field at the point. Also, this is the path on which a positive test charge will tend to move if free to do so. Why don't electric field lines intersect.
Who created the electric field?
The concept of electric field lines was introduced by Michael Faraday, which helped him to easily visualize the electric field using intuition rather than mathematical analysis.
Do electric field lines intersect?
Electric field lines never intersect. In an uniform electric field, the field lines are straight, parallel and uniformly spaced. The electric field lines can never form closed loops, as line can never start and end on the same charge. These field lines always flow from higher potential to lower potential. If the electric field in ...
Do electric field lines always start or stop in midspace?
Electric field lines always begin on a positive charge and end on a negative charge, so they do not form closed curves. They do not start or stop in midspace. The number of electric field lines leaving a positive charge or entering a negative charge is proportional to the magnitude of the charge. Electric field lines never intersect.
What is an electric field line?
What is Electric Field Line? Electric field lines are an excellent way of visualizing electric fields. They were first introduced by Michael Faraday himself. A field line is drawn tangential to the net at a point. Thus at any point, the tangent to the electric field line matches the direction of the electric field at that point.
Which point is the electric field stronger?
In other words, if you see more electric field lines in the vicinity of point A as compared to point B, then the electric field is stronger at point A.
What does the relative density of field lines around a point correspond to?
Secondly, the relative density of field lines around a point corresponds to the relative strength (magnitude) of the electric field at that point. In other words, if you see more electric field lines in the vicinity ...
When do field lines begin and end?
The field line begins at the charge and ends either at the charge or at infinity. When the field is stronger, the field lines are closer to each other. The number of field lines depends on the charge. The field lines should never crossover.
Do electric field lines always point away from each other?
In fact, electric fields originate at a positive charge and terminate at a negative charge. Also, field lines never cross each other.
Can electric field lines intersect?
Thus, electric field lines can never intersect one another. As said before field lines are a great way to visualize electric fields. You can almost feel the attraction between unlike charges and the repulsion between like charges as though they are trying to push each other away.
How many lines are there in an electric field?
An electric field line pattern could include an infinite number of lines.
What do electric field lines reveal?
Electric field lines reveal information about the direction (and the strength) of an electric field within a region of space. If the lines cross each other at a given location, then there must be two distinctly different values of electric field with their own individual direction at that given location.
How do objects with greater charge create stronger electric fields?
Objects with greater charge create stronger electric fields. By surrounding a highly charged object with more lines, one can communicate the strength of an electric field in the space surrounding a charged object by the line density. This convention is depicted in the diagram below.
What direction does an electric field go?
The direction of the electric field is always directed in the direction that a positive test charge would be pushed or pulled if placed in the space surrounding the source charge. Since electric field is a vector quantity, it can be represented by a vector arrow.
How is the magnitude of an electric field related to the quantity of charge on the source charge?
The magnitude or strength of an electric field in the space surrounding a source charge is related directly to the quantity of charge on the source charge and inversely to the distance from the source charge .
What is the pattern of lines in a test?
These pattern of lines, sometimes referred to as electric field lines, point in the direction that a positive test charge would accelerate if placed upon the line. As such, the lines are directed away from positively charged source charges and toward negatively charged source charges.
Why are there conventions for drawing electric field lines?
The conventions are simply established in order that electric field line patterns communicate the greatest amount of information about the nature of the electric field surrounding a charged object.
Visualizing electric field
The electric field is an imaginary physical field that surrounds an electrically charged particle. In this field, the charged particles exert electromagnetic force on all the other charged particles, either attracting or repelling them.
What are electric field lines?
Electrical field lines, in an electrical field, are imaginary lines, the tangent to which at any point, give the direction of the electric field intensity.
How to draw the electric field lines?
The electric field lines should originate from the charge and diverge out to the infinity.
