Electric field, a particular form in which the electromagnetic field manifests itself (alongside the magnetic field), and which determines the force exerted by the field on an electric charge, a force that does not depend on the velocity of the charge.
The idea of the electric field was introduced by M. Faraday in the 1830s. According to Faraday, every charge at rest creates an electric field in the space around it. The field of one charge acts on another charge and the other way round; this is how charges interact (the concept of short-range action). The main quantitative characteristic of the electric field is the electric field strength E, which at a given point in space is determined by the ratio of the force F acting on a charge placed at that point to the magnitude of the charge q: E=F/q.
The electric field in a medium is characterised, alongside the field strength, by the electric displacement vector D. The distribution of the electric field in space can be pictured with the lines of force of the electric field strength. The lines of force of the potential electric field produced by electric charges begin on positive charges and end on negative ones (or go off to infinity). The lines of force of the vortex electric field produced by a changing magnetic field are closed.
The idea of the electric field was introduced by M. Faraday in the 1830s. According to Faraday, every charge at rest creates an electric field in the space around it. The field of one charge acts on another charge and the other way round; this is how charges interact (the concept of short-range action). The main quantitative characteristic of the electric field is the electric field strength E, which at a given point in space is determined by the ratio of the force F acting on a charge placed at that point to the magnitude of the charge q: E=F/q.
The electric field in a medium is characterised, alongside the field strength, by the electric displacement vector D. The distribution of the electric field in space can be pictured with the lines of force of the electric field strength. The lines of force of the potential electric field produced by electric charges begin on positive charges and end on negative ones (or go off to infinity). The lines of force of the vortex electric field produced by a changing magnetic field are closed.