Electric Charge, Learn about Properties of Electric Charge, its Types and other information

Safalta Expert Published by: Noor Fatima Updated Thu, 06 Oct 2022 11:52 AM IST

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Here is important and relevant information regarding Electric Charge? Read the article to learn about Electric Charge, its properties and types. 

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Electric Charge: The Electric Charge is the fundamental property of any matter that causes it to undergo a force when exposed to an electric or magnetic field. The electric charge is related to an electric field, and the moving electric charge produces a magnetic field. A combination of electric and magnetic fields is referred to as the electromagnetic field.
The interaction of the charges produces an electromagnetic force, which is the basis of Physics. In this blog, we will discuss Electric Charges, Types of Electric charges, and the properties of Electric Charges. Electric Charge is the characteristic of subatomic elements that makes them undergo a force when positioned in an electric and magnetic field. These charges are of two kinds; Positive charge and Negative charge, commonly known as Protons and Electrons. 

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Table of Content
Electric Charge
Is Electric Charge a Vector Quantity?
Measuring Electric Charge
Overview of Electric Charge
Properties of Electric Charge 
Types of Electric Charge
Coloumb’s Law
Methods of Charging

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Electric Charge

Electric Charge is the characteristic of subatomic elements that makes them undergo a force when positioned in an electric and magnetic field. These charges are of two kinds; Positive charge and Negative charge, commonly known as Protons and Electrons. 

Instances of the types of charges are subatomic units or the elements of matter:
  • Protons are positively charged 
  • Electrons are negatively charged 
  • Neutrons have zero charge

Is Electric Charge a Vector Quantity?

Electric Charge is a scalar quantity. Besides having a degree and direction, a quantity to be referred to as a vector should also follow the laws of vector addition, like the parallelogram law of vector and triangle law of vector addition; this is the condition for a quantity to be called a vector.

When two currents come in contact at a place, in the case of an electric current, the resultant current of these will come out to be an algebraic sum. It will not be a vector sum. It holds magnitude and direction. Nevertheless, it still remains a scalar quantity. 
 

Measuring Electric Charge

Coulomb is the unit of Electric charge.

The definition of a Coloumb is represented mathematically as


In the equation, Q is the electric charge, I is the electric current, and t is the time.
 

Overview of Electric Charge

Definition Electric Charge is the characteristic of subatomic elements that makes them undergo a force when positioned in an electric and magnetic field.
Formula Q = I.t
SI Unit Coulomb
Symbol Q
Other Units Faraday, Ampere-Hour

Properties of Electric Charge 

 
There are some properties of Electric charge. These include the following-
  • Conservation of Electric charge 
  • Additivity of Electric charge 
  • Quantization of Electric charge 
Electric charge is preserved in a secluded system. It means that the net electric charge of the system is invariable. The algebraic sum of the basic charges in any isolated system does not alter or modify.
 

Types of Electric Charge

There are two kinds of Electric charge-

Positive Charge
When an item has a positive charge, it implies that it has more protons than electrons. When there is an identification number of positive and negative charges, the positive and negative charges would cancel each other, and the item would become out of charge, i.e., neutral.

Negative Charge
When an item is negatively charged, it implies it contains more electrons than protons.
 

Coloumb’s Law

We already know that like charges resist each other and unlike charges attract each other. But have you ever thought about how well-built are these forces? Coulomb’s Law facilitates a means to compute the potency of the force between two points. 

Coulomb’s Law states that-



Coulomb’s Law is represented as the following-


 

Methods of Charging

The process of providing the electric charge to any item or displacing the electric charge from an item is referred to as charging.
An item with no charge can be charged in three different ways. These are as follows-
  • Charging by conduction
  • Charging by friction 
  • Charging by induction

Charging by Conduction 
The method of supplying charge to an uncharged item by bringing it in contact with a charged item is referred to as Charging by conduction. The charged conductor has an uneven number of positively charged protons and negatively charged Electrons. Therefore, when an object with no charge is brought in contact with the same, it loses electrons to balance itself. 

Charging by Friction
When two items are rubbed with each other, the transfer of charge occurs. One of the items displaces electrons. On the other hand, the other item acquires electrons. The object that loses electrons turns positive, while the object that attains electrons, turns negative. Both of the items get charged because of friction. This approach of charging is frequently referred to as electrification by friction.

Charging by Induction 
The process of supplying charge to an uncharged item by bringing it in contact with a charged conductor despite any physical contact is referred to as Charging by induction.
Candidates can refer to the information given in the blog to learn about Electric Charge, its properties, and its types. 

What are the types of Electric Charges?

There are two types of Electric Charges-
  • Positive Charge (Protons)
  • Negative Charge (Electrons) 

Define one Coloumb.

One Coloumb is the quantity of charge transferred in one second.

What is the unit of Electric charge?

Coloumb is the unit of Electric charge. 

Is Electric charge a vector quantity?

No, Electric charge is a scalar.

How is an uncharged item charged?

An uncharged item can be charged in three different ways-
  • Conduction by Friction 
  • Conduction by Induction 
  • Conduction by Conduction