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James Holman

2015Mar phy-112-ol009
Written Assignment 1

1.In your own words, explain the difference between a conductor, an insulator, and
a semiconductor. Give an example of each to illustrate your comparison.
A conductor is usually a metal that heat can be transferred and electricity can flow
through. An insulator is a material that is a poor conductor of electricity. A
semiconductor is made of a material that is between a conductor and insulator. At
different times it can act as a conductor or insulator when needed. The resistance
can change in the semiconductor when condition around it changes. An example of
a conductor is metal wire because electric current can flow through easily.
Insulators can be rubber because its very hard for electricity to flow through, thats
why metal wire is put inside a rubber insulator to keep the electric current
contained. Transistors are semiconductors because they control the flow of currents
in circuits. It regulates the flow by being an insulator when less energy is needed
and a conductor when the energy demand is high.
2.Explain the difference between charging by induction and charging by contact.
Include details of how the charging occurs.
Charging by contact is when the material are connected together to produce a
charge. An example would be charging up your laptop. The connection has to
physically be connected to the power outlet then connected to the computer for the
charge to work by contact.
Charging by conduction happens when a charged object is near a conducting
surface and the electrons move to conducting surface without physical contact. An
example would be the Sun giving energy to Earth but they dont physically touch
each other.
3.If two equal charges are separated by a certain distance, the force of repulsion is
F. Given F1, if each charge in F1 is doubled and the distance is cut in half, what is
the new value of the force of repulsion, F2? Express your answer in terms of F1.
F = k(q*Q)/d^2
F(1) = k(q*Q)/d^2
F(2) = k(2q*2Q) / (1/2*d)^2 = 4k(q*Q) / ((1/4) * d^2) = 16k(q*Q) / d^2
F(2) / F(1) = 16
The new force is 16 times larger
4.The electrical force on a 2-coulomb charge is 60 Newtons (N). What is the
magnitude of the electric field at the place where the charge is located?
60N/2C 30 N/C

5.What is an electric field? How do you determine the magnitude and direction of
the field at a given point?
Its a force field that fills the space around every electric charge or group of
charges.
First, determine the sign of the charge to get direction. Second, determine the
magnitude of the charge using Coulomb's Law.
6.Two point charges are separated by 6 cm. The attractive force between them is 20
N. Find the force between them when they are separated by 12 cm. (Why can you
solve this problem without knowing the magnitudes of the charges?)
F1/F2 = (k*q1*q2/r1^2) / (k*q1*q2/r2^2)
F1/F2 = (r2/r1)^2
F2 = 20*(6/12)^2 = 20/4 = 5N
7.Explain the difference between electrical potential and electrical potential energy.
Electrical potential is electrical potential energy per unit of charge at a location in
an electric field.
Electric potential energy is energy a charge has due to its location in an electric
field.
8.What is the voltage at the location of a 0.0001-coulomb charge that has an
electric potential energy of 0.5 joules?
5000 V
PE = 9*10^9 Qq/r = 0.5 J
9*10^9 Q/r = 0.5 /q = 0.5/0.0001 = 5000 --------- (1)
*10^9 Q/r = 5000 Volt
9.A droplet of ink in an industrial ink-jet printer carries a charge of 1.6 x 1011
coulombs and is deflected onto paper by a force of 3.2 x 104 Newtons. Find the
strength of the electric field to produce this force.
E = F/q so E = 3.2 x 10^-4 / 1.6 x 10^ -11 = 2 x 10^7 N/C
10.Cite the three major differences between gravitational and electrical forces.
Gravitational forces are always attractive, electrical forces can be attractive or
repulsive, depending on the type(s) of charges involved.
Gravitational forces act on mass, electrical forces act on charge.
Electrostatic forces are much greater than gravitational forces .
Electric charge is invariant while relativistic mass isn't.

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