Electric Potential

 Electric Field and the Movement of Charge

 Electric Potential
 Electric Potential Difference
In the previous section of Lesson 1, it was reasoned that the movement of a positive
test charge within an electric field is accompanied by changes in potential energy. A
gravitational analogy was relied upon to explain the reasoning behind the relationship
between location and potential energy. Moving a positive test charge against the
direction of an electric field is like moving a mass upward within Earth's gravitational
field. Both movements would be like going against nature and would require work by an
external force. This work would in turn increase the potential energy of the object. On
the other hand, the movement of a positive test charge in the direction of an electric
field would be like a mass falling downward within Earth's gravitational field. Both
movements would be like going with nature and would occur without the need of work
by an external force. This motion would result in the loss of potential energy. Potential
energy is the stored energy of position of an object and it is related to the location of
the object within a field. In this section of Lesson 1, we will introduce the concept
of electric potential and relate this concept to the potential energy of a positive test
charge at various locations within an electric field.
 

The Gravitational Analogy Revisited

A gravitational field exists about the Earth that exerts gravitational influences upon all
masses located in the space surrounding it. Moving an object upward against the
gravitational field increases its gravitational potential energy. An object moving
downward within the gravitational field would lose gravitational potential energy.
When gravitational potential energy was introduced in Unit 5 of The Physics Classroom,
it was defined as the energy stored in an object
due to its vertical position above the Earth. The
amount of gravitational potential energy stored in
an object depended upon the amount of mass
the object possessed and the amount of height
to which it was raised. Gravitational potential
energy depended upon object mass and object
height. An object with twice the mass would have
twice the potential energy and an object with
twice the height would have twice the potential
energy. It is common to refer to high positions as high potential energy locations. A
glance at the diagram at the right reveals the fallacy of such a statement. Observe that
the 1 kg mass held at a height of 2 meters has the same potential energy as a 2 kg
mass held at a height of 1 meter. Potential energy depends upon more than just
location; it also depends upon mass. In this sense, gravitational potential energy
depends upon at least two types of quantities:
1) Mass - a property of the object experiencing the gravitational field, and
2) Height - the location within the gravitational field

So it is improper to refer to high positions within Earth's gravitational field as high

potential energy positions. But is there a quantity that could be used to rate such
heights as having great potential of providing large quantities of potential energy to
masses that are located there? Yes! While not discussed during the unit on gravitational
potential energy, it would have been possible to introduce a quantity known
as gravitational potential - the potential
energy per kilogram. Gravitational potential
would be a quantity that could be used to
rate various locations about the surface of
the Earth in terms of how much potential
energy each kilogram of mass would
possess when placed there. The quantity of
gravitational potential is defined as the
PE/mass. Since both the numerator and the
denominator of PE/mass are proportional to
the object's mass, the expression becomes
mass independent. Gravitational potential is a location-dependent quantity that is
independent of the mass of the object experiencing the field. Gravitational potential
describes the effects of a gravitational field upon objects that are placed at various
locations within it.
If gravitational potential is a means of rating various locations within a gravitational
field in terms of the amount of potential energy per unit of mass, then the concept of
electric potential must have a similar meaning. Consider the electric field created by a
positively charged Van de Graaff generator. The direction of the electric field is in the
direction that a positive test charge would be
pushed; in this case, the direction is outward away
from the Van de Graaff sphere. Work would be
required to move a positive test charge towards
the sphere against the electric field. The amount of
force involved in doing the work is dependent upon
the amount of charge being moved (according to
Coulomb's law of electric force). The greater the
charge on the test charge, the greater the
repulsive force and the more work that would have
to be done on it to move it the same distance. If
two objects of different charge - with one being twice the charge of the other - are
moved the same distance into the electric field, then the object with twice the charge
would require twice the force and thus twice the amount of work. This work would
change the potential energy by an amount that is equal to the amount of work done.
Thus, the electric potential energy is dependent upon the amount of charge on the
object experiencing the field and upon the location within the field. Just like
gravitational potential energy, electric potential energy is dependent upon at least two
types of quantities:
1) Electric charge - a property of the object experiencing the electrical field, and
2) Distance from source - the location within the electric field

While electric potential energy has a dependency

upon the charge of the object experiencing the
electric field, electric potential is purely location
dependent. Electric potential is the potential
energy per charge.

The concept of electric potential is used to

express the effect of an electric field of a source in
terms of the location within the electric field. A
test charge with twice the quantity of charge
would possess twice the potential energy at a
given location; yet its electric potential at that
location would be the same as any other test
charge. A positive test charge would be at a high
electric potential when held close to a positive source charge and at a lower electric
potential when held further away. In this sense, electric potential becomes simply a
property of the location within an electric field. Suppose that the electric potential at a
given location is 12 Joules per coulomb, then that is the electric potential of a 1
coulomb or a 2 coulomb charged object. Stating that the electric potential at a given
location is 12 Joules per coulomb, would mean that a 2 coulomb object would possess
24 Joules of potential energy at that location and a 0.5 coulomb object would
experience 6 Joules of potential energy at the location.

Electric Potential in Circuits

As we begin to discuss electric circuits, we will notice that a battery powered electric
circuit has locations of high and low potential. Charge moving
through the wires of the circuit will encounter changes in electric
potential as it traverses the circuit. Within the electrochemical cells
of the battery, there is an electric field established between the two
terminals, directed from the positive terminal towards the negative
terminal. As such, the movement of a positive test charge through
the cells from the negative terminal to the positive terminal would
require work, thus increasing the potential energy of every Coulomb of charge that
moves along this path. This corresponds to a movement of positive charge against the
electric field. It is for this reason that the positive terminal is described as the high
potential terminal. Similar reasoning would lead one to conclude that the movement of
positive charge through the wires from the positive terminal to the negative terminal
would occur naturally. Such a movement of a positive test charge would be in the
direction of the electric field and would not require work. The charge would lose
potential energy as moves through the external circuit  from the positive terminal to the
negative terminal. The negative terminal is described as the low potential terminal. This
assignment of high and low potential to the terminals of an electrochemical cell
presumes the traditional convention that electric fields are based on the direction of
movement of positive test charges.
In a certain sense, an electric circuit is nothing more than an energy conversion system.
In the electrochemical cells of a battery-powered electric circuit, the chemical energy is
used to do work on a positive test charge to move it from the low potential terminal to
the high potential terminal. Chemical energy is transformed into electric potential
energy within the internal circuit (i.e., the battery). Once at the high potential terminal,
a positive test charge will then move through the external circuit and do work upon the
light bulb or the motor or the heater coils, transforming its electric potential energy into
useful forms for which the circuit was designed. The positive test charge returns to the
negative terminal at a low energy and low potential, ready to repeat the cycle (or
should we say circuit) all over again.
 
 

 
Check Your Understanding
1. The quantity electric potential is defined as the amount of _____.
a. electric potential energy
b. force acting upon a charge
c. potential energy per charge
d. force per charge

See Answer

 
2. Complete the following statement:
When work is done on a positive test charge by an external force to move it from one
location to another, potential energy _________ (increases, decreases) and electric
potential _________ (increases, decreases).

  
See Answer

 
3. The following diagrams show an electric field (represented by arrows) and two points
- labeled A and B - located within the electric field. A positive test charge is shown at
point A. For each diagram, indicate whether work must be done upon the charge to
move it from point A to point B. Finally, indicate the point (A or B) with the greatest
electric potential energy and the greatest electric potential.
 
   

Work done on charge? Work done on charge?

Yes or  No Yes or  No
Electric PE is greatest Electric PE is greatest
at: A B at: A B
Electric potential is Electric potential is
greatest at: A B greatest at: A B
   

Work done on charge? Work done on charge?

Yes or  No Yes or  No
Electric PE is greatest Electric PE is greatest
at: A B at: A B
Electric potential is Electric potential is
greatest at: A B greatest at: A B
 
See Answer
 
Next Section: 
 Electric Potential Difference
Jump To Next Lesson: 
 What is an Electric Circuit?