PHYS 217 - 517 - Lab Report - Electric Potential and Electric Fields

Basic Physics Principles The first physics principle used in this lab involved equipotential surfaces. Equipotential surfaces have the same electric potential at any point along the surface of the object. Also, on an equipotential surface, the electric field is perpendicular to the surface. The second physics element used was the electric potential of each shape. Electric potential is the amount of work to move a charge from one point to another point in the electric field. The last principle used involved calculating the electric field around each surface. The electric field is the electric force given off by a particle and can act on other particles. Electrons have the electric force moving towards the particle while protons are the exact opposite with the force moving away from the particle. To calculate the electric field for this lab, the formulas below can be used: Procedures