Electromagnetism

branch of physics that deals with the relationship between electricity and
magnetism.
one of the fundamental forces of nature along with strong nuclear force, weak
nuclear force, and gravitation.

Electricity - a phenomenon resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge.
Magnetism - phenomenon exhibited by magnets.

I.

Electrostatics - study of charges at rest.

- fundamental quantity of electricity.

Electric charge (q)

-carried by certain subatomic particles, such as electron.
-the SI unit of charge is coulomb (C) in honor of Charles Augustin de Coulomb

Properties of electric charge

1. There are two types of charge

Positive charge (+) happens when an atom has greater number of
proton than electron.
Negative charge (-) happens when an atom has greater number of
electron than proton.
2. Charge is conserved
- charge can be separated, but they can neither be created nor destroyed.
3. Charge is quantized
-charge comes in integer multiples with elementary charge, e = 1.6 x10

q=ne
Unit: Coulomb (C)
Where ,
q= amount of charge (C)

-19

n= number of particles
e = elementary charge (e= 1.6 x10

-19

C)

Sample problem:
A carbon nucleus has 12 protons. Calculate the amount of charge.
Given: n= 12
e = 1.6 x10

-19

Required: q
Solution:

q=ne

q=12 1.6 x10 -19 C)

q=1.92 x 1018 C

4. Like charges repel, unlike charges attract.

Electric Charge and Structure of Matter

Atom - basic unit of matter that consists of a dense, central nucleus
surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons.

At normal condition, the number of protons equals the number of electrons.

Therefore, the net charge of an atom is zero.
Mass of neutron = Mass of proton = 1.67x10- 27 Kg
Mass of electron = 9.1x10-31 Kg

Charging (Ionization of Charge)

-

Process that involves transfer of electron from one body to another.

The object that loses electrons is said to be positively charged while the
object that gained is negatively charged.

a. Charging by Friction (rubbing)

Example: rubbing a glass rod with a fur cloth, the loosely held particle of fur
cloth will likely to transfer to glass rod. Glass rod will become negatively
charge since it gains electron, while the fur cloth will become positively
charge due to electron losses.
b. Charging by Conduction
-neutrally charged object will gain a charge if it is in direct contact with a
charged object.

Classification of Matter Based on Electrical Conductivity

1. Conductors
- allows the flow of charges.
- some of the electrons are free electrons that can move freely from one
atom to another.

-has fewer than four valence electron (electron on the outermost shell of
an atom)
Example: Copper ( 1 valence electron)
2. Insulators
-resists the flow of charges.
-electron are bound to atoms and cannot move freely through another
atom.
-have more than four valence electrons.
Example: Phosporus (5 valence electrons)
3. Semiconductors
-normally an insulator but may become conductor at certain condition.
-exactly has four valence electron.
Example: Germanium (4 valence electrons)
c. Charging by Induction
-redistribution of electrical charge in an object caused by influence by nearby
charges.

Electric Force and Coulombs Law

The magnitude of the elctric force between two point charges is directly
proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square
of the distance between them.

Fe =k

|q1 q2|
r

Unit: Newton (N)

Where,
q1 = test charge; experiencing the effect of the other charge/s near it. (C)
q2= charge exerting the force on the test charge (C)
r= radial distance between two charges (m)
k= proportionality constant (k=9x109 N.m2/C2)

Sample Problem:
Two charges are located on the positive x-axis of a coordinate system 4 cm apart as
shown in the figure where q1 = 3x10-9 C and q2 = -5x10-9 C. Calculate the electric
force experienced by q2 due to q1.

Fe

q1

Given: q1 = 3x10-9 C
q2 = -5x10-9 C
r = 4cm = 0.04 m

4
cm

q2

k=9x109 N.m2/C2
Required: Fe
Solution:

Fe =k

Fe =9 x 109 N . m2 /C2

|q1 q2|
r

|( 3 x 109 C ) (5 x 109 C)|

(0.04 m)2

Fe = 8.4x10-5 N, to the right

Electric Field
-a region or space that surrounds an electric charge.
ElectricField Line
-shows the strength and direction of electric field.

Electric potential (Voltage)

-measure of the work required by an electric field to move electric charges.
-the SI unit of electric potential is Volt (V) in honor of Alessandro Volta.

II.

Electrodynamics
-study of any result resulting from the existence of moving charge

A. Current (I)
- amount of charge per second passing through a unit area of
conductor.
-the SI unit of current is Ampere (A) in honor of Andre Marie Ampere.

I=

q
t

Unit: Ampere (A) or Coulomb / Second (C/s)

Where,
q= amount of charge (C)
t= time (s)

B. Resistance (R)

-opposition to flow of charges.

-the SI unit of resistance is Ohm () in honor of George Ohm.

Factors Affecting the Resistance of a Conducting Wire

a. Resistivity
-measure how strongly a material opposes the flow of charge.
-high resistivity, high resistance; low resistivity, low resistance
b. Cross-Sectional Area
-greater area, low resistance; lesser area, high resistance
c. Length
-longer length, high resistance; shorter length, low resistance

Ohms Law
At constant temperature, the ratio between voltage and current is always constant
and equal to the resistance.

R=

V
I

V =IR
Sample Problem:
A 6 V battery is connected for 3 hours to a rheostat and a current of 147 mA is
noted. A.) What is the resistance of the rheostat? B.) What charge is taken from the
battery?
Given:
V= 6V

t= 3 hours = 10800 s
I= 147mA = 1x10-3 A

Required:
a.) R
b.) q
Solution:
a.)

R=

V
I

R=

6V
1 x 103 A

R= 40.8
b.)

q=It

q=( 1 x 103 A ) 10800 s)

q= 1.59x103 C