Chapter 4 Phys 2180

Chapter 4: Electric Potential

Potential Difference and Electric Potential

When a test charge qo is placed in an electric field E created by some

source charge distribution, the electric force acting on the test charge is qo E.
The force qo E is conservative because the force between charges described
by Coulomb’s law is conservative. When the test charge is moved in the
field by some external agent, the work done by the field on the charge is
equal to the negative of the work done by the external agent causing the
displacement ds.

For an infinitesimal displacement ds of a charge, the work done by the

electric field on the charge is F. ds = qoE. ds. As this amount of work is done
by the field, the potential energy of the charge–field system is changed by an
amount dU = qoE. ds. For a finite displacement of the charge from point A to
point B, the change in potential energy of the system U = UB - UA is

The integration is performed along the path that qo follows as it moves from
A to B. Because the force qo E is conservative, this line integral does not
depend on the path taken from A to B.

The potential energy per unit charge U/qo is independent of the value of qo
and has a value at every point in an electric field. This quantity U/qo is

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called the electric potential (or simply the potential) V. Thus, the electric
potential at any point in an electric field is

The potential difference V= VB - VA between two points A and B in an

electric field is defined as the change in potential energy of the system when
a test charge is moved between the points divided by the test charge qo:

Potential difference should not be confused with difference in

potential energy. The potential difference between A and B depends only on
the source charge distribution (consider points A and B without the presence
of the test charge), while the difference in potential energy exists only if a
test charge is moved between the points. Electric potential is a scalar
characteristic of an electric field, independent of any charges that may
be placed in the field.

If an external agent moves a test charge from A to B without changing

the kinetic energy of the test charge, the agent performs work which changes
the potential energy of the system: W = U.

The work done by an external agent in moving a charge q through an electric

field at constant velocity is

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 Chapter 4 Phys 2180

The SI unit of both electric potential and potential difference is joules per
coulomb, which is defined as a volt (V):

That is, 1 J of work must be done to move a 1-C charge through a potential
difference of 1 V.

Potential Differences in a Uniform Electric Field

Consider a uniform electric field directed along the negative y axis, as

shown in Figure 1-a. Let us calculate the potential difference between two
points A and B separated by a distance |s| = d, where s is parallel to the field
lines.

Because E is constant, we can remove it from the integral sign; this gives

The negative sign indicates that the electric potential at point B is lower than
at point A; that is, VB < VA. Electric field lines always point in the direction
of decreasing electric potential, as shown in Figure 1-a.

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Figure (1)

Now suppose that a test charge qo moves from A to B. The change in the
potential energy of the charge–field system is given by

From this result, we see that :

(1) if qo is positive, then U is negative. We conclude that a system

consisting of a positive charge and an electric field loses electric
potential energy when the charge moves in the direction of the field.
This means that an electric field does work on a positive charge when
the charge moves in the direction of the electric field.
(2) If qo is negative, then U is positive and the situation is reversed: A
system consisting of a negative charge and an electric field gains
electric potential energy when the charge moves in the direction of the
field.

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Figure (2)

Now consider the more general case of a charged particle that moves
between A and B in a uniform electric field such that the vector s is not
parallel to the field lines, as shown in Figure 2. In this case the potential
difference is given by

where again we are able to remove E from the integral because it is constant.
The change in potential energy of the charge–field system is

Finally, we conclude that all points in a plane perpendicular to a uniform

electric field are at the same electric potential. We can see this in Figure 2,
where the potential difference VB - VA is equal to the potential difference VC
- VA.

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Therefore, VB = VC. The name equipotential surface is given to any

surface consisting of a continuous distribution of points having the same
electric potential.

Example 1 (The Electric Field Between Two Parallel Plates of Opposite

Charge)

A battery produces a specified potential difference V between conductors

attached to the battery terminals. A 12-V battery is connected between two
parallel plates, as shown in Figure 3. The separation between the plates is d
= 0.30 cm, and we assume the electric field between the plates to be
uniform. Find the magnitude of the electric field between the plates.

Figure (3)

Solution:

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 Chapter 4 Phys 2180

Example 2 (Motion of a Proton in a Uniform Electric Field)

A proton is released from rest in a uniform electric field that has a

magnitude of 8.0 x 104 V/m (Figure 4). The proton undergoes a
displacement of 0.50 m in the direction of E.
(A) Find the change in electric potential between points A and B.
(B) Find the change in potential energy of the proton–field system for this
displacement.

Figure (4)

(A) The change in electric potential between points A and B

(B) the change in potential energy of the proton–field system for

this displacement

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 Chapter 4 Phys 2180

Electric Potential and Potential Energy Due to Point Charges

To find the electric potential at a point located a distance r from the charge,
we begin with the general expression for potential difference:

Figure (5)

where A and B are the two arbitrary points shown in Figure 5. At any point
in space, the electric field due to the point charge is
q 
E = Ke r
r2
where rˆ is a unit vector directed from the charge toward the point. The
quantity E . ds can be expressed as

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 Chapter 4 Phys 2180

Because the magnitude rˆ of is 1, the dot product rˆ. ds = ds cos  (, where 

is the angle between rˆ and ds. Furthermore, ds cos  is the projection of ds
onto r; thus,
ds cos  = dr

the expression for the potential difference becomes

This equation shows us that the integral of E. ds is independent of the path

between points A and B. Multiplying by a charge qo that moves between
points A and B, we see that the integral of qo E. ds is also independent of
path.

It is customary to choose the reference of electric potential for a point

charge to be V = 0 at rA →  . With this reference choice, the electric
potential created by a point charge at any distance r from the charge is

We obtain the electric potential resulting from two or more point

charges by applying the superposition principle. That is, the total electric
potential at some point P due to several point charges is the sum of the
potentials due to the individual charges. For a group of point charges, we can
write the total electric potential at P in the form
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Example 3 (The Electric Potential Due to Two Point Charges)

Figure (6)

A charge q1= 2.00 µC is located at the origin, and a charge q2 = - 6.00 µC is

located at (0, 3.00) m, as shown in Figure 6-a.

(A) Find the total electric potential due to these charges at the point P,
whose coordinates are (4.00, 0) m.

(B) Find the change in potential energy of the system of two charges plus
a charge q3 = 3.00 µC as the latter charge moves from infinity to point
P (Figure6-b).

Solution:
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 Chapter 4 Phys 2180

(A)

(B)

When the charge q3 is at infinity, let us define Ui= 0 for the system, and
when the charge is at P, Uf= q3 VP; therefore,

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