Potential Difference in a Uniform Field

By: dachtani3

Electric potential is a scalar quantity that is used to describe the change in electric potential energy per unit charge. This page will elaborate on the change in electric potential in a uniform field.

The Main Idea

The main idea for electric potential is that it is the amount of electric potential energy change per unit charge in an area. You can calculate this amount for both uniform and non-uniform electric fields. The unit for electric potential is a volt, or Joule/ coulomb.

A Mathematical Model

Electric potential = [math]\displaystyle{ {{d\V} = \frac{{d\U}_electric{q}}} }[/math] where V is electric potential, U is electric potential energy, and q is unit charge.

A Computational Model

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Examples

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Connectedness

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History

Alessandro Volta, and Italian physicist, contributed many ideas and inventions to the field of electricity. He invented the first electric battery, the first electromotive series, and most notably, the idea of electric potential and its unit, the volt.

Volta was born in 1745, and he spent most of his childhood experimenting with electricity in his friend's physics lab. When he was 18, he started communicating with physicists, Jean-Antonie Nollet and Giambatista Beccaria, who encouraged him to continue with his experiments.

In 1775, Volta began teaching physics. He soon was able to isolate methane gas, which he discovered could produce electric sparks. In 1776, Volta put the two ideas together to conclude that he could send electric signals across Italy with the sparking machine.

In 1778, Volta discovered electric potential, or voltage. He realized that the electric potential in a capacitor is directly proportional to the electric charge in that capacitor.

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See also

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Further reading

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External links

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This a a good video that walks through examples on potential difference in a uniform field: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF3VAjcjvOA

This video on electric potential energy gives a good background on solving problems before learning specifically about electric potential: https://www.khanacademy.org/science/physics/electric-charge-electric-force-and-voltage/electric-potential-voltage/v/electric-potential-energy

References

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-http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-electric-potential-definition-formula-quiz.html -http://www.famousscientists.org/alessandro-volta/ -Matter & Interactions: Electric and Magnetic Interactions textbook