Chapter 1 ELECTROSTATICS
• Introduction
• Experimental facts
• Coulomb’s Law
• Units
• Principle of Superposition
• Force Field
• Concept of Electric Field
• Representation of an E field
• Summary
• Appendix 1: Newton’s Law of Gravitation
INTRODUCTION
The existence of electric charge both as static charge
and electric current, caused by moving electric charges,
are manifest in many ways. Lightning is one dramatic
example of the build up of static electric charge in
clouds, while Aurora Borealis, the deflection of elec-
tron beam in you computer display, and the flow of
electric current and power in conductors all are exam-
ples of moving charges.
The study of electricity is best achieved by con-
sidering first electrostatics, that is, electric fields and
forces for static charges. This then will lead to a dis-
cussion of electric current flow, or dynamic electric-
ity. The next stage will be the discussion of mag-
netism produced by electric currents. Finally electric-
ity and magnetism will be unified into one common
subject called electromagnetism. The laws of electro-
magnetism can be condensed into four basic laws of
nature, the Maxwell equations. These lead to the pre-
diction of electromagnetic waves, such as light or radio
waves. Electromagnetism, as epitomised by Maxwell’s
equations, led to the discovery of Einstein’s theory of
relativity, the understanding of optics, as well as the
binding of atoms, molecules, and matter.
As with all of physics, the laws of electrostatics
must be based on experimental facts, which are dis-
cussed next.
Figure 1 Repulsive force between two positive charges.
EXPERIMENTAL FACTS:
Experimental studies of electrostatics by physicists led
to the following facts.
1)Objects can carry a property called charge, q, that
is manifest by the electrostatic forces between charges.
2)There are two flavours of charge. Benjamin Franklin
called them positive and negative, that is, he defined
the sign of the charge. For example, charge is gener-
ated by rubbing rubber on fur leaving a charge Franklin
defined as negative on rubber and positive on the fur.
Similarly, rubbing silk on glass leaves the silk nega-
tively charged and glass positively charged according
to Franklin.
3)Like charges repel, unlike charges attract, just
like the attraction in the animal kingdom. The pith
balls demonstrate this fact.
4)Charge is quantized, that is, all electrons and
protons have charge that is identical in magnitude
but that the charge on the proton is positive and the
charge on the electron is negative, using the sign con-
vention chosen by Benjamin Franklin. The magnitude
of the charge on the proton and electron is  =1.602 ×
10−19 Coulombs, a unit that will be defined soon. The
normal atom comprises an equal number of protons
and electrons and is found to be electrically neutral
to 10−20 . This illustrates the exactly equal mag-
nitudes and opposite signs of the charges on the elec-
tron and proton. Since there are 6×1023 electrons per
gram-molecule of hydrogen, the effects of this quanti-
zation are only manifest in microscopic behavior, such
as the forces between atoms.
5)Charge is conserved. This is one of the impor-
tant conservation laws of nature. Although it is ob-
served that charges can be created or destroyed, the
net charge is always conserved. For example, when
an electron and positron annihilate into two gamma
rays, the equal and opposite charges cancel leaving a
neutrally charged vacuum.
6)The electrostatic force between point charges, q 1 and
q 2  is accurately proportional to 1 22 . where r is the
separation distance between the charges. The expo-
nent on the distance dependence has been measured
to be 2.000 to an accuracy of one part in 109 over a
1

Figure 2 Force vector diagram
range of distances from 10−10  to 104  .
7)The electrostatic force always lies on a line sep-
arating the two point charges. Note that two points
define a line. If the force did not point along this line
then we would have to assume asymmetry of space.
COULOMBS LAW
These experimental facts lead to Coulomb’s Law which
−−→
says that the force F10 exerted by q1 on q0 pointing
from q1 to q0 is:
−−→ 1 0
F10 =  2 rc 10 (1.1)
10
−→r10
where rc10 = 10 is the unit vector pointing from q1 to
q0 . and k is the Coulomb constant.
−−→
By Newton’s third law, the force F01 exerted on
−−→
q1 by q0 is equal but opposite to F10  Thus we have
that
−
→ 1 02 −−→
F 01 =  2 rc 01 = −F10 (1.2)
10
Note that the force is repulsive, that is positive, be-
tween like charges, whereas the force is attractive, that
is negative, for unlike charges.
UNITS
The SI unit of charge, q, is the Coulomb. The Coulomb
is defined in terms of the ampere which is a current of
1 Coulomb per second. In this system of units, since r
is in meters and the force in Newtons, we find that the
constant k = 8.9875×109 Nm2 /C2 . For esoteric rea-
sons, that will become obvious later, physicists write
this constant as  = 140 which defines 0 in terms
2
of this Coulomb’s constant k. That is; the permittivity
of free space 0 = 8854 × 10−12 2 2 .
You should have noticed the similarity of Coulomb’s
law of electrostatics and Newton’s Law of Gravitation
discussed in appendix 1. In electrostatics, charge plays
the role of mass. However, there are several impor-
tant differences. There are two flavours of charge and
only one flavour of mass. The gravitational force is at-
tractive whereas the electric force between same-sign
charges is repulsive. The constant k for electrostat-
ics is 1036 times larger than the gravitational constant
G. Note that the electrostatic force between two one-
Coulomb charges, separated by 1 meter, is 9 × 109  ,
i.e. about 106 tons. An appreciation of the strength
of the electrostatic force is illustrated by considering
two people sitting 1 meter apart. They do not feel the
minute gravitational attraction, that is why we only
perceive gravitational effects when very large masses,
like the earth, are involved. By contrast, the two peo-
ple would experience an electrostatic force between
them of 2 ×1021 tons if there was an imbalance of
only 1% in the number of electrons and protons in
each of them. It is because of the exact cancellation of
the proton and electron charges in atoms that we do
not explode with enormous energy due to electrostatic
forces. As already mentioned, it is the electrostatic
force that binds atoms, molecules, and solids and liq-
uids. Even the energy from a nuclear reactor comes
primarily from electrostatic forces. The uranium or
plutonium nuclei deform into dumb bell shapes and it
is the enormous electrostatic replusion between these
two pieces of charged nuclear matter that liberates
most of the energy manifest in nuclear fission reactors
or nuclear weapons.
In summary, for the SI system of units, Coulomb’s
Law is often written as
−−→ 1 1 0
F10 = c
2 r10 (1.3)
40 10
1
where charge q is in Coulombs, r in meters, and 40 =
89875 × 109 Nm2 /C2 .
PRINCIPLE OF SUPERPOSITION.
The discussion so far has focussed on forces between
two point charges. The Principle of Superposition is
an important experimental fact that is important for
calculation of electrostatic forces between ensembles of
many point charges as is the usual situation. Consider
three charges, 0  1  and 2 . The net electrostatic force
on 0  can be shown experimentally to be the vector
sum of the forces on 0 due to each of the other charges.
−→
That is, the net force F0 on 0 , is;
−
→ −−→ −−→
F0 = F10 + F20 (1.4)
 known, then it is possible to solve Newton’s Laws of
motion for a particle in this force field just like solving
for the motion of a space craft in the gravitational force
field of the earth.

CONCEPT OF ELECTRIC FIELD

It was stated that the electric force field has the fol-
lowing properties:
1) The vector force depends only on the position
and time.
2) The net force is the vector superposition of the
separate forces.
3) The force is proportional to the probe charge.
Figure 3 Force diagram for superposition of two charges Consider the case of  = 2, then
acting on q0
−
→ −
→ − →
F0 = F1 + F2
∙ ¸
This may seem obvious but it is not generally true. 1 1 1 2
= 0 c c
2 r10 + 4  2 r20
It is a statement that the force between any pair of 40 10 0 20
"−→ − →#
charges is unchanged if additional charges are intro- F1 F2
duced. That is, the electrostatic force depends only = 0 + (1.7)
0 0
on the location and strengths of each of the charges.
This is called a local field force. It is obeyed by As a consequence it is possible to factor out the probe
the electrostatic and gravitational forces but not the charge q0 by writing the above equation as;
nuclear force, for which the force between any two nu-
cleons is changed when additional nucleons are intro- −→ −→ −→
F0 F1 F2
duced. = + (1.8)
0 0 0
This leads us to the concept of electric field, analogous
to gravitational field.
FORCE FIELD The definition of the electric field, E, is that ;

The fact that the electric force on a probe charge q0

depends only on the location and the strengths of all →
−
the charges, leads to the concept of a force field. −
→ F
E≡ (1.9)
Using Coulomb’s law: 

−→ 1  0 That is, electric field is the force on a probe charge,

F0 = rc
0 (1.5) per unit positive probe charge. That is, it is the force,
40 20
in Newtons, that a probe charge of +1 Coulomb would
and the Principle of Superposition, allows the net force experience at that location.
on q0 due to q1 and q2 to be written as; The superposition of the force field due to two
charges, given above, can be written as:

" 
#
−
→ 1 X  0 1 X  −→ − → − →
F0 = c
2 r0 = 0 4
c (1.6)
2 r0
E = E1 + E2 (1.10)
40  0 0  0
−→ −
→
Where E1 and E2 are the electric fields due to charges
Note the charge q0 can be factored out of the bracket. −→
q1 and q2 respectively and E is the net vector field.
Thus we can see that the force on q0 depends only That is, the electric field also obeys the Principle of
on the the probe charge q0 and its location relative to Superposition. Note that the electric field has the fol-
a set of fixed other charges. The force on the probe lowing properties:
charge, q0  for a system of fixed other charges, can be 1) It is completely specified at every spatial loca-
calculated for any location of q0 . This introduces the tion
−−−−−−−−−−→
concept of a force field F0 (0    ) which can be 2) It is a vector field
evaluated anywhere in space, at time t, just like we 3) It is continuous and differentiable.
calculate the gravitational force on a given mass at a One can reverse the above definition and express
given time anywhere in space. Once the force field is the force field in terms of the electric field;
3
 −→ −→
F =  E (1.11)
Note that the electric field has the magnitude and
direction of the force experienced by a positive unit
charge, that is, it points away from positive charges
and towards negative charges. The SI unit of E field
is Newtons/Coulomb.
The importance of the electric field concept is that
one can separate the calculation of the electric field
and the net forces on any probe charge. This is like
separating the calculation of the gravitational field at
all points around the earth and the calculation of the
forces on some body in the earths gravitational field.
This factorization of electrical forces makes solving of
equations of motion much simpler than repeatedly cal-
culating the electrostatic force field at each position
of the charge. This factorization occurs because of
both the Principle of Superposition and the fact that
the probe charge factors out due to the simplicity of
Coulomb’s Law.
It is fortunate that we do not have to treat each
atomic charge individually, superposition can be used
to add the electric field from each individual atomic
charge to get some net electric field which we can use
without treating each of the 1024 individual atomic
charges individually. This is the same as summing the
gravitational field over all atoms in an object, that is,
superposition applies to the gravitational field which
is the gravitational force per unit mass..
One may question the abstract concept of electric
field that exists even when a probe charge is absent.
You would not step out of an airplane at 10,000’ with-
out a parachute since you believe that a gravitational
field exists around the earth. Similarly it is believed
that an electric field can exist even in the absence of a
probe charge. The electric field is real, for example, the
transmission of electromagnetic waves through outer
space shows us that the electric and magnetic fields
are real concepts even in the high vacuum of outer
space, that is why you see the light from distant stars.
If you do not believe in the reality of the electric field,
then go sailing on a lake with a metal masted boat
during a lightning storm, it will be just a matter of
time before you will be convinced.
It is useful to combine the following;
1) concept of electric field
2) superposition
3) Coulomb’s law
which leads to the following equation for the total
electric field, at the point p, due to an ensemble of n
point charges q :
 of the field lines in the direction of the electrostatic
−
→ 1 X 
E = c
2 r (1.12)
4  
where the unit vector c points from i to p. This can
be used to evaluate the electric field due to a distribu-
tion of point charges as will be discussed next lecture.
4
Figure 4 E field at a point P for n discrete point
charges.
Superposition of electric forces implies superposi-
tion of electric fields. That is, the total electric field
produced by n point charges, as given above, can be
written as

→ X −→
−
E0 = E0 (1.13)

−→
where E0 is the electic field due to a single charge 
Once the electric field is known, then at any position
it is possible to compute the electrostatic force on any
charge q. Knowing this force, and Newton’s laws of
motion, then it is possible to compute the resultant
motion of charged objects.
REPRESENTATION OF THE E FIELD
Vector fields, such as the electric field, magnetic field
and gravitational field have both a magnitude and di-
rection. This is in contrast to a scalar field like tem-
perature, gravitational potential, which only have a
magnitude. It is convenient to express a vector field in
terms of perpendicular components. For example, in
cartesian coordinates the components are;
− b
→
E = i + bj + k
b  (1.14)
Note that the electric field is only a function of posi-
−−−−−−→
tion, E(  ) and not the probe charge.
Of course the instantaneous location and strength
→
−
of all the other charges is required to calculate E as
will be discussed next lecture.
Faraday found it convenient to visualize the ab-
stract electric field in terms of lines of force. Occa-
sionally it is convenient to represent the electric field
by drawing field lines that indicate the direction of the
electric field. The convention is to draw the direction
force that a positive charge would experience at that
point. That is, the electric field lines radiate from a
positive charge and end at a negative charge. The
number of lines per unit area, also called areal density,
represents the magnitude of the electric field. This
 SUMMARY
The main points in this lecture are the following. The
force between two point charges is given by Coulomb’s
law:

Coulomb’s Law:

−−→ 1 1 0
F10 = c
2 r10
40 10
The Principle of Superposition states that the elec-
trostatic forces add vectorially

Principle of Superposition
Figure 5 Cartesian components of electric field
−
→ −−→ −−→
F0 = F10 + F20
Because the electrostatic force depends only on po-
sition and time, obeys superposition, and is propor-
tional to the probe charge, it is possible to factor out
the probe charge from the force which allows defining
→
−
the concept of the electric field E

Electric Field

→
−
−
→ F
E=

The combination of Coulomb’s Law, superposition
and the concept of electric field gives that the electric
Figure 6 The electric field distribution for an electric field at a point P due to a system of charges is given
dipole. by

System of point charges:


latter statement can be seen by considering a single −
→ 1 X 
positive point charge. The number of lines radiating E = c
2 r
4  
from the charge is constant. However, since the sur-
face area of a sphere equals 42 then the number of Superposition of electric forces implies superposition of
lines per unit area for any concentric sphere must fall electric fields. That is, the total electric field produced
off as 12 just like the radial dependence of the E field by n charges is given by;
due to a point charge. This concept will be discussed 
further next lecture. → X −→
−
E0 = E0
The distribution of electric field can be demon- 

strated by observing the polarization of floating grass
seeds in an electric field. The polarization cause the
individual grass seeds to act like little magnets in a
magnetic field and align themselves along the electric
field lines. Fig. 6 shows the electric field distribution
for an electric dipole, which has physically-separated
identical-magnitude positive and negative charges.
Once the electric field is known, then at any position
it is possible to compute the electrostatic force on any
charge q. Knowing this force and Newton’s laws of
motion, then it is possible to compute the resultant
motion of charged objects. Evaluating electric fields is
fundamental to electromagnetism. As will be discussed
later, even light is a manifestation of oscillating electric
and magnetic fields. The next two lectures will discuss
calculation of electric fields including development of
Gauss’ Law which supercedes Coulomb’s law.
5
 APPENDIX 1: Newton’s Law of In P113 you solved problems of motion of bodies
under gravitational attraction near the surface of the
Gravitation earth. It can be shown that the gravitational force due
to a sphere of mass , at or above the surface, is the
It is useful to compare Newton’s Law of Gravitation
same as if it is a point mass. Thus the gravitational
and Coulomb’s Law because they obey the same math-
field due to a spherical mass  equals
ematical relations and gravitation is more familiar to
you. Newton realized that astronomical observations −−
−−→ 
and Kepler’s Laws of planetary motion all could be  = − 2 b (1.19)

understood if he assumed that a gravitational force where b is the radial unit vector. Note that combin-
exists between any two objects, either earth-bound or ing the definition of the gravitational field and New-
heavenly bodies. Let 0 and 1 be two point masses ton’s Laws of motion, gives that the force on mass 0 ,
separated by a distance 10 , pointing from 1 to 0 . −−
−−→
In 1686 Newton postulated that the force exerted on 0
−−
−−→
0 by 1 , 10  is given by:
−−
−−→ −−−−→ ³  ´
−−
−−→ 1 0 0 = 0   = 0 − 2 b = 0 −
→
 (1.20)
10 = − 2 c 10 (1.15) 
10
−→
10
That is, the gravitational field   equals the gravi-
where c 10 = 10 is a unit vector pointing from 1 tational acceleration −
→
 at that location. At the earth’s
to 0 and G is the Universal Gravitational Constant surface, this acceleration is a constant called  That
G = 6 67x10 −11 2  2 . Note that force points to- is;
−−
−−→
wards 1 that is, 10 is negative which corresponds

to an attractive force. The gravitational force is minute  ≡ − 2 = 9812 (1.21)
between kg-sized bodies. For example, two 1 kg bod- 
ies 1 meter apart have a gravitational attraction of The negativce sign is because the force is attractive
66710−11  . and thus the acceleration is in the negative direction,
From Newton’s third law of motion, we have that −c10 , that is, towards the centre of the earth.
−−
−−→
the force on 1 due to 0 , 01 , is equal and oppo- Reading assignment: Giancoli, Chapter 21.1 to
−−
−−→ 21.8
site to 10  i.e.,
−−
−−→ −−
−−→
01 = −10 (1.16)
The Principle of Superposition also applies to the
gravitational force, that is, the gravitational forces act-
ing on a given body due to several other bodies add
vectorially like normal vectors. Thus one can calcu-
late the gravitational attraction between macroscopic
bodies by taking the vector sum over the gravitational
attraction between all atoms involved.
The concept of a gravitational field can be intro-
−−
−−→

duced because the ratio 0 0 is independent of the
probe mass m0 , because of the form of Newton’s Law
−−−−→
of Gravitation. That is, the gravitational field   ,
at some position, is the force in Newtons, that a 1 kg
mass would experience at that position.
−−
−−→ −−
−−→
10 = 0 10 (1.17)
From superposition we have that the gravitational
fields due to an assemble of masses is the vector sum
of the gravitational field due to each mass. That is,
−−
−−→ −−
−−→
 0 = Σ 0 (1.18)
The reality of the gravitational field is unlikely to be
challenged. You believe that there is a gravitational
field acting even if it is not manifest by observing a
body fall.
6