| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| charge carrier | Particles, typically electrons, that carry electric charge and constitute electric current in a conductor. |
| charge density | The amount of electric charge per unit length, area, or volume of a charge distribution. |
| electric field | A vector field that represents the force per unit charge exerted on a test charge at any point in space due to a charge distribution. |
| electric potential | The electric potential energy per unit charge at a point in space, describing the work done per unit charge to move a test charge from a reference point to that location. |
| electrostatic equilibrium | A state in which excess charge carriers in a conductor have redistributed to the surface, resulting in no net charge in the interior and zero electric field within the conductor. |
| electrostatic shielding | The process of surrounding an area with a closed, conducting shell to create a region inside that is free from external electric fields. |
| equipotential surface | A surface on which all points have the same electric potential; a conductor in electrostatic equilibrium is an equipotential surface. |
| excess charge | The net charge that accumulates on or within a conductor or insulator beyond its neutral state. |
| ideal conductor | A material in which electrons are able to move freely. |
| polarization | The process by which a conductor's charge distribution shifts in response to an external electric field while maintaining equipotential conditions. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| charge | A fundamental property of matter that causes objects to experience forces in electric fields; can be positive or negative. |
| charge redistribution | The movement and rearrangement of electric charge between conductors when they are in contact. |
| conductor | A material that allows electric charge to move through it, with resistivity that typically increases with temperature. |
| electric potential | The electric potential energy per unit charge at a point in space, describing the work done per unit charge to move a test charge from a reference point to that location. |
| electrical contact | A physical connection between two or more conductors that allows charge to flow between them. |
| external electric field | An electric field created by sources outside the conductor being studied. |
| ground | An idealized reference point defined as having zero electric potential that can absorb or provide an infinite amount of charge without changing its potential. |
| induced charge | Electric charge that appears on a conductor due to the influence of an external electric field. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| capacitance | A measure that relates the magnitude of charge stored on each plate of a capacitor to the electric potential difference between the plates. |
| constant acceleration | Uniform acceleration experienced by a charged particle moving between oppositely charged parallel plates in a capacitor. |
| dielectric constant | A dimensionless quantity that relates the electric permittivity of a material to the permittivity of free space, represented by the symbol κ. |
| electric field | A vector field that represents the force per unit charge exerted on a test charge at any point in space due to a charge distribution. |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts. |
| electric potential energy | The energy stored in a capacitor due to the separation of charge, equal to the work done by an external force to separate the charges. |
| Gauss's law | A fundamental law of electromagnetism that relates the electric flux through a closed surface to the charge enclosed by that surface. |
| parallel-plate capacitor | A capacitor consisting of two parallel conducting plates separated by a distance, with a dielectric material that can be inserted between them. |
| permittivity of free space | The electric permittivity of a vacuum, represented by the symbol ε₀, a fundamental constant. |
| principle of superposition | The principle that the total electric field is the vector sum of fields produced by individual charges. |
| surface charge density | The amount of electric charge per unit area on the surface of a conductor, such as a capacitor plate. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| capacitance | A measure that relates the magnitude of charge stored on each plate of a capacitor to the electric potential difference between the plates. |
| dielectric | A material that becomes polarized in the presence of an external electric field, with charges that are not as free to move as in a conductor. |
| dielectric constant | A dimensionless quantity that relates the electric permittivity of a material to the permittivity of free space, represented by the symbol κ. |
| electric permittivity | A measure of how easily an electric field can be established in a material. |
| external electric field | An electric field created by sources outside the conductor being studied. |
| parallel-plate capacitor | A capacitor consisting of two parallel conducting plates separated by a distance, with a dielectric material that can be inserted between them. |
| permittivity of free space | The electric permittivity of a vacuum, represented by the symbol ε₀, a fundamental constant. |
| polarized | The state of a dielectric material when its electric charges are displaced or aligned in response to an external electric field. |