Electricity

Static Electricity
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9 Awesome Science Tricks Using Static Electricity! (youtube.com)
 Have you ever had
an electrostatic
shock from a
shopping trolley or
escalator or
noticed your hair
standing on end
when you rub
Electricity a
balloon on it????
Static Electricity
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 A stationary electrical charge
What is Static Electricity? that is built up on the surface
of a material.

Non moving electricity caused

by electrons building up with
no circuit to flow along.

Some materials become

charged when they are rubbed.
Their charge is sometimes
called electrostatic charge
or static electricity.
 Static Electricity Insulating materials, such as polythene and
perspex, can be charged by rubbing them
with a dry woollen cloth.

+ + - +
+ + - +
+ + - +
+ + - +
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static-electricity

Static electricity is all about charges which are + + - +

not free to move. + + - +
As a result they build up in one place, resulting in a spark or
shock when they do move. Like charges will try to repel each other.

Unlike charges will try to attract each other.

Like Charges Repel Opposite Charges attract

The closer the charges, the greater the force between them.
Where do charges come from?
• Everything is made of tiny particles called atoms.
• These have electric charges inside them.
• A simple model of the atom is shown on the following slide.

• There is a central nucleus made up of protons and neutrons.

• Orbiting the nucleus are much lighter electrons.

• Normally, atoms have equal numbers of electrons and

protons so the net (overall) charge on a material is zero.
What we mean with charges come from?
• When two materials are rubbed together, electrons may be
transferred from one to the other.
• One material ends up with more electrons than normal and
the other with less.
• So one has a net negative charge, while the other is left with
a net positive charge.
• Rubbing materials together does not make electric charge.
• It just separates charges that are already there.

• There are two different and opposite types of electric charge.

These are called positive (+) and negative (-) charge:
- Like charges repel, unlike charges attract
There are only a few golden laws of Static Electricity:

• Like Charges Repel (--) or (++)

• Unlike Charges attract (- +)

• A neutral object has equal numbers of positive and negative charges

- An object that has gained electrons has a negative charge.
- An object which has lost electrons has a positive charge.
- When a charged object is near another charged object, the two will either
attract or repel each other.

Remember !!!
How are objects charged?
• By Friction

Only
electrons
move,
never the
positive
charges!

• Electrons (-) only are able to travel

 Static Electricity – Charging by Friction

+ + Only electrons
+ move, never the
+ +
+ positive charges!
+
Electrons Polythene
move from the The rod becomes negatively
duster onto charged, and the duster
the rod. becomes positively
charged.
Charging by Friction - GCSE Physics - YouTube
 Static Electricity

-
- -
Only
electrons
- move, never
- - the positive
- charges!

Electrons
move from The rod becomes positively
the rod onto charged, and the duster
the duster. becomes negatively
charged.

Perspex
Charging by friction
It can only happen between insulators not with conductors.
Initially before charging both objects are neutral. They have equal number of positive and negative charge. So their net
(overall) charge is zero.

After rubbing cloth with rod, the rod becomes positive and the cloth negative.

The friction will cause a transfer of electrons from one material (rod) to another cloth). The cloth now has an excess of
electrons and an overall negative charge. The rod has deficit (less) electrons and an overall positive charge).

So due to conservation of charge, if the cloth is having -10 Coulombs and the rod is having +10 Coulomb it means the total
charge is zero.
 Conductors and insulators
• Conductors:
materials that allow electrons to flow through them easily.

Conductors CANNOT be easily charged by friction as the extra electrons gained can easily escape.
Conductors
Good Poor
Conducts very well NOT Conducts very
well
Metals Water
Especially Human body
Silver earth
Copper
aluminium
Graphite (on pencil)
 Conductors and insulators
• Insulators:
materials that do NOT allow electrons to flow through them easily.
Insulators can be easily charged by friction as the extra electrons gained CANNOT easily escape.
Insulators
Plastics glass
E.g: rubber
PVC dry air
polythene
perspex
 CONDUCTORS – allow electrons to pass through
Distinguish between them. Metals have ‘free’ electrons between the
electrical conductors and individual atoms, and this makes them excellent
insulators and give typical
examples conductors. The free electrons also make them
good conductors of thermal energy (heat).

Eg.Metals (copper,
Copper
gold) and carbon
(conductor)
INSULATORS – electrons are held tightly
to their atoms so are not free to move, and PVC
SEMI-CONDUCTORS – neither an
so do not conduct electricity (but (insulator)
insulator or a conductor. Poor
electrons can be transferred by rubbing –
conductors when cold, but much
static charging).
better conductors when warm.

Eg. Silicon and

Eg. Plastics, glass, dry air germanium
Page. 173. IGCSE BOOK.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aiGHtcINVE
What is grounding?

•An object is grounded when it is connected to the earth

through a connecting wire.

•If a charged conductor is

•grounded, it will become
•neutral.
 • When we touch a metal
How does grounding occur? ball of positive charge
electrons flow from the
earth to the metal ball
Less electrons
to neutralize the metal
ball.

• Metal ball becomes

neutral.
Similarly

if the metal ball is of negative more electrons

charge extra electrons flow from

the metal ball to the earth and the
ball becomes neutral
 Uses of Static Electricity

1. Electrostatic smoke precipitators. 2. Spray painting

_ _
As particles of +++
_
+
- smoke or dust rise
+
- up the chimney
+ - they are
+ - attracted to the 1. The spray nozzle is connected to a positive
+ - terminal.
+ - charged plates
2. Each spray drop is now +ve.
on either side.
3. The drops repel and spread out.
4. The car is connected to the earth (or –ve).
3. Photocopiers make use of static to attract 5. +ve drops attracted to the –ve car.
black toner to the paper.
 Electric Fields
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Representing Electric field

A electric field is created around electrically charged

objects.
There are two types of electrical charge:
• positive
• negative
the closer to an object you are the stronger the field,
further you go, the weaker the field.
You can draw field lines round an isolated charged
sphere :
 Electric field patterns
The lines in the diagrams are lines of force. These show how charged particles will move in the electric
field. Below are Radial field lines.
Positive charge Negative charge

Arrows point away Field lines move

from + charge towards the – charge

Electric field lines go from positive to negative.

They are always at right angles to the surface
They close together the lines , stronger the field.
Density of lines around a charge represent the
strength of the field.
 Electric field around Like charges
repulsion force acts between these charges

Repulsive Force Repulsive Force

Electric field between opposite charges
• There is attractive forces
between the opposite charges.
• The electric field of the negative
Attractive Attractive
force force interacts with electric field of
positive charge.
• This causes force to act on both
negative and positive charge.
• . The forces move negative and
positive particles together
 Electric field lines between charged plates

Electric field between the plates will be uniform in strength and direction. Except near the
edges.

The greater the potential difference between the plates, greater the electric field strength.

Smaller the distance between the plates greater the electric field strength.
When the electric field between opposite charge builds
up it leads to high potential difference.
Sparks are caused when there is a high
enough p.d between charged objects
and the earth.
a high p.d. causes strong electric field
between a charged object and earthed
object.
The strong electric field causes
electrons in the air to be removed(
known as ionisation).
Air is normally an insulator but when
ionised it is much more conductive so
current flows through it. this is the
spark.
Two oppositely charged particles show these
tracks. They are also losing kinetic energy
shown by the spiral pattern….
Electric field patterns

Field patterns for like charges

Field patterns Field patterns for Field patterns between
around a Point Uniform Electric opposite charges
charge field

The direction of the arrow shows the direction in which a positively charged particle will move. The spacing between the field
lines gives an indication of the strength of the force. If the lines are close together the force will be greater, eg close to a
charged particle in a radial field. If the lines are close together the force will be greater, eg close to a charged particle in a
radial field.
In a uniform field the field lines are parallel. This indicates that the force is equal at all points in the field
Static Electricity Exam Questions

Complete the past paper exam questions on static

electricity. The mark scheme is attached to the questions
to help you.