Electrostatics Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from the electrostatics lecture.

Matter

Anything that occupies space and has mass.

Atom

Building block of matter.

Proton

Positive subatomic particle.

Electron

Negative subatomic particle.

Neutron

Neutral subatomic particle.

Nucleus

The location of protons and neutrons.

Positively Charged Object

An object that possesses more protons than electrons.

Negatively Charged Object

An object that possesses more electrons than protons.

Uncharged Object

An object with Equal numbers of protons and electrons.

Coulomb (C)

The unit of electric charge.

-1.6 x 10-19 C

The charge of an electron.

+1.6 x 10-19 C

The charge of a proton.

Mantra for Static Electricity

Opposites attract; and likes repel.

Repulsive Forces

Forces that act between like-charged objects, pushing them away from each other.

Attractive Forces

Forces that act between opposite charged objects, pulling them towards each other.

Additional Mantra for Static Electricity

Any charged object and a neutral object will attract each other.

Field

A region that is a function of location.

Electrostatic Force

The electrostatic force on charge 1 from charge 2.

Electrical Conductor

A material in which charges can move freely.

Electrical Insulator

A material in which charges cannot move freely.

Induction

A process of charging a conductor by bringing it near another charged object and grounding the conductor.

Electric Field

A region where an electric force on a test charge can be detected.

Fundamental unit of charge (e)

The magnitude of the charge of a single electron or proton.