CHAPTER 2

Electric Potential and Electric

Energy
 INTRODUCTIONTO
ELECTRICPOTENTIAL
ANDELECTRIC ■
POTENTIALENERGY
 3
16.3 Electricpotential,
■ Electric potential of a point in an electric field is defined as the potential
energy per unit positive charge at that point in the electric field.

• OR is defined as the work done in bringing positive test

charge from infinity to that point in the electric field per
unit test charge.

where

• It is a scalar quantity.
• The unit of electric potential is Volt (V) OR J C 1 .
 4

P -dx
+ + F
+q

FIGURE 1 6

• Figure 1 6 shows a point charge +q (test charge) at a

distance x from another point charge +Q which is fixed.

• The force on the charge +q is,

 5

• The work done to bring the charge +q through a small

displacement is,

* (Fscos 180o)

• Electric potential at P, V = work done to bring a unit

positive charge +q from infinity to P.
 6

Where K = 9.0 x 1 09 NC-2 m2

For a positive charge +Q, the electric potential is positive.

The positive sign indicates that work is done onto the
system to bring the unit positive charge from infinity to P.

For a negative charge -Q, the electric potential is negative.

The negative sign indicates that work is done by the
system. The charge –Q attracts the unit positive charge
to the point P from infinity.
 7

• The electric potential energy of a charge at a point in

an electric field is defined as the work done to bring the charge
from infinity to the point.

• If is the electric potential at that point, then the electric

potential energy of a charge at that point is

* When calculating or , the values, either positive or negative must

be shown.
 ELECTRIC
POTENTIAL ■
DIFFERENCE
 Potential difference, ∆V 9

 Potential difference between two points in an electric field

is defined as the work done in bringing a positive test
charge from a point to another point in the electric
field per unit test charge.

E
A B
+ FIGURE 1 9

VAB

 If and are the electric potentials at A and B

respectively,
 10

• Then the electric potential difference between A and B,

• Where WBA is the work done to bring a charge from

B to A.
• The unit for potential difference VAB is the volt (V) or JC-1 .
 11

• The work done to bring a charge from one point to

another in the field does not depend on the path taken
(because the work done by conservative force).

• In figure below, the work done to bring a charge from B to

A along the paths 1 ,2 or 3 is the same.

1
E
2
+
3

FIGURE 20
 12

A B
+q FIGURE 21

• The electric force, F = qE causes it to accelerate.

If = velocity at A and its velocity at B, then

Gain in kinetic energy = work done by the electric field.

(u = 0)
■ When a charge moves through a potential difference
13

, the change in its electric potential is,

■ In figure, the charge moves in the direction of the electric

field, from the point A of higher potential to the point B of
lower potential. is negative. The electric
potential of the charge decreases and its kinetic energy
increases.
Example 2.3
Fi gure bel ow show s a rectangl e. T he si des have l engths of 4.0 cm and 20 cm, q1 = − 5.0 µ C and q2 = +2.0 µ C

W ith V = 0 at i nfi nity, cal culate:

(a) the el ectric potenti al s at corner A and corner B

(b) the w ork requi red to move a thi rd charge q3 = + 3.0 µ C from B to A al ong a diagonal of the rectangl e

(c) D oes thi s work i ncrease or decrease the electri c energy of the three– charge system?
c) A ccordi ng to el ectrostati cs princi ples, negati ve work done by an ex ternal agent corresponds to a decrease i n the el ectri c
potential energy of the system. I n other words, the system’s electri c potenti al energy decreases because the charge moves to
a posi ti on of low er electri c potential energy, releasi ng energy i n the process.
E x am pl e 2.4

C alcul ate the work done to bring a charge of +0.4 μ C from poi nt A of electri c potential – 0.85 x 1 05 V to poi nt B of el ectric
potenti al 1 .5 x 1 05 V .

Sol uti on

Δ V = V BA = V B – V A

= (1 .5 x 1 05 V ) – (- 0.85 x 1 05 V )

= 2.35 x 1 05 V
Example 2.6
Consider the charge system in the diagram.
a) Calculate the electric potential difference between point and
b) Calculate the work done in bringing a charge of -2.5 nC from point to
Sol uti on

Posi tive work done means work done on the system. T he

negati ve w ork done means work done by the system to move
the charge.
ElectricPotential
Energy, U ■
ElectricPotential
Energy, U ■
Example 2.7
The figure below shows three charges , and of 2 μC, 5 μC, and 1 0 μC respectively. The lines joining and and and are
perpendicular to each other.

Calculate the electrical potential energy of the system.

EQUIPOTENTIAL
LINESAND ■
SURFACE
 Table 2.1 The condition of equipotential lines and surface and their respective electric potential equations.

T he el ectric potenti al , al so can be created by a poi nt charge, at a di stance from the charge by usi ng
the formul a

is el ectri c potenti al, i s C oul omb’s constant, is point charge i n whi ch must i ncl ude the posi tive and
negati ve sign, then i s the di stance betw een a point and point charge.
 ■ Since electric potential is a scalar quantity, the total
potential at a point due to multiple point charges can be
SUPERPOSITION found by summing the individual potentials:
OFELECTRIC ■V =V +V +…+V
total 1 2 n

POTENTIAL ■ where each is the potential due to an individual charge

at the given point.
 ■ A capacitor is a practical example of how electric fields
and electric potential work together to store energy. It is
a device used to store electric charge and energy in an
electric field. It consists of two conductive plates
CAPACITORS separated by an insulating material (dielectric). The

AND capacitance, is the electrical property of a capacitor

which measures the ability of the capacitor to store
DIELECTRIC electrical charge on its two plates by the change in
potential difference. Thus, it is defined as the ratio of
the charge magnitude on the plates, to the potential
difference between the plates,
CAPACITOR ■
■ The relationship between and is shown in Figure 2.3. It shows that the charge of a capacitor is
directly proportional to voltage

So, C i s a constant. C i s i ndependent of and

 PARALLEL
CAPACITOR

■
CAPACITOR ■
CAPACITOR ■
•Energy Storage Location: When a charged capacitor is unplugged from a battery, the energy is stored within
the electric field between its plates.
•Energy Release: Once separated from the charging source, the capacitor can release this stored energy to
transfer charges across a circuit.
•Comparison to Batteries: Both capacitors and batteries are similar in their ability to release electrical energy
to power devices.
•Key Differences:
•Storage Method: Batteries store energy through electrochemical processes, whereas capacitors store
energy physically as separated charges.
•Speed of Discharge: Capacitors release energy much faster than batteries because they do not rely on
relatively slow chemical reactions.
•Practical Application: In battery-operated gadgets, capacitors are used to compensate for batteries when
a quick, high-current burst of energy is required that the battery alone cannot supply.
E x am pl e 2.1 1

A parall el pl ate capacitor has pl ates of area 25 cm2 wi th separati on di stance of 0.25 cm of air. T he capaci tor is connected to a
20 V battery.

a) D etermi ne the capaci tance of the capacitor,

b) C alcul ate the charge on each pl ate,

c) Fi nd the el ectric fi el d strength.

d) W hat happen to the capaci tance of the capaci tor i f the area of each pl ate decreases by half?

e) W hat happen to the capaci tance i f the di stance betw een plates is tw ice as the ori ginal distance?
 ■

CAPACITOR IN
SERIES AND
PARALLEL ■ PARALLEL
T hree capaci tor s are connected as shown i n the fi gure. A vol tage of 1 2.0 V i s
appl i ed across the ci rcui t. D etermi ne

(a) T he total capaci tance across X Y ,

(b) T he potenti al di ff erence across the 4 μ F capaci tor.

 ■
DIELECTRIC
■