General Physics 2 Lesson 3

Electric Field Inside a Conductor.

Faraday demonstrated that the electric field is zero inside a closed

conducting surface and that an excess charge placed on a solid conductor resides
entirely on its surface. He constructed a room covered with metal foil inside. This
room, with conducting frame that protected Faraday from the static charge, is
now known as a Faraday cage. Any closed conducting surface can function as a
Faraday cage, shielding whatever is inside it from any damaging effects of electric
fields. Delicate pieces of electrical equipment are usually enclosed in metal cases.
Delicate computer chips as well as other electronic components are placed in

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conducting plastic or aluminium packaging.

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Electric Flux

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Electric flux can be quantitatively described using the concept of electric
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flux. The word flux came from the Latin word fluxus, meaning “flow”. Electric Flux
( ∅ ) is a measure of the number of field lines passing through as surface.
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Mathematically, electric flux is the dot product of the electric field and are vector.
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The direction of the area vector is the same as that of a vector perpendicular to
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the area.
∅=E · A=EA cosθ
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∅=EAcosθ Equation 3.1

Where θ is the angle between the electric field and the area vector. Note that
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electric flux is scalar and has the unit of N·m2/C

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Example 1: A flat surface of area 1.25m2 is rotated through a uniform horizontal

electric field of 5N/C. What is the electric flux if the surface is
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a. Parallel
b. Perpendicular to the electric field

Given: A = 1.25m2

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 E = 5N/C horizontal

Solution:

a. If the surface is parallel to the flux, the area vector is perpendicular to the
electric field. The angle between the area vector and the electric field is 90o.
Using equation 3.1, you have:
Given: E = 5 N/C
A = 1.25m2
∅ = (5N/C)(1.25m2) cos 90o
∅=0

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b. If the surface is perpendicular to the flux, the area vector is parallel to the

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electric field. The angle between the area vector and the electric field is 0o.

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Using eq. 3.1

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∅=¿ (5N/C)(1.25m) cos 0o
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= 6.25N·m2/C
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Gauss’s Law
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Carl Friedrich Gauss, a German scientist, formulated a law, which

relates electric field, electric flus and electric charge. This is known as Gauss’s law
which states that the total electric flux through a surface is the total electric
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charge qtotal inside the surface divided by ∈ o. The constant ∈ o is called the
permittivity of free space and has an approximate value of 8.8542 x 10—
12 2
C /N·m2. In symbols,
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qtotal
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∅ total = EA cos θ = ∈0
Equation 3.2

Or in integral form ∅ = ∫ E · dA Equation 3.3

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The surface mentioned in Gauss’s law is called Gaussian surface. Since a line
of force starts from a positive charge to a negative charge, the lines going out of

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 the surface is considered positive, while the lines going into the surface is
negative.

Example 2: Calculate the total electric flux ∅ for each of the closed surfaces
a,b,c and d as shown. Note that q1 = +3C, q2 = +1C, q3 = —5C, and q4 = —9C.

Solution:

Surface a encloses all the four given charges. Therefore;

+3 C +1C−5 C−9 C
2
∅ a = 8.8542 x 10−12 C = —1.1294 x 1012N·m2/C2
N .m2

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Surface b encloses q2 only. Therefore,

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+1 C

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∅ = 8.8542 x 1 0−12 C2 . = + 1.1294 x 1012N·m2/C2

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b
2

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Surface c encloses q1 and q2 only. Therefore:
+3 C+1 C
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= 8.8542 x 1 0−12 C2 = +4.5176 x 1011N·m2/C2

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∅ c
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2
N .m

Surface d encloses all the four given charges. Therefore;

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+3 C +1C−5 C−9 C
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2
∅ a = 8.8542 x 10−12
C = —1.1294 x 1012N·m2/C2
2
N .m
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Charge Distribution and Gauss’s Law

Gauss law can be used to compute the electric field due to a system of
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point charges as well as for a continuous charge distribution. In practice, the

charge distribution must be uniform and symmetrical. The charge distribution may
be expressed in terms of linear charge density, surface charge density or volume
charge density of a body.

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 q
Linear charge density — χ is charge per unit length χ = L

q
Surface charge density – σ is charge per surface area σ = A

q
Volume charge density – ρ is charge per unit volume ρ=
V

The magnitude of the electric field in Gauss Law is

qtotal
E1 =
∈o A

Where qtotal = total electric charge

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∈0 = permittivity of the free surface

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A = area of the closed surface (4 π r 2 )

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The succeeding examples illustrate this application of Gauss’s law.
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Sample Problem 1.
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If a solid insulating sphere of radius 50.0 cm carries a total charge of 150nC

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uniformly distributed throughout its volume, what is its;

a. Volume charge density?

b. What is the magnitude of the electric field at 10.0cm?
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c. What is the magnitude 65.0 cm from center of the sphere?

Given: r = 50cm = 0.5m or R

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q = 150nC = 150 x 10—9C

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Solution:
q
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a. Volume charge density ρ=

V
4
To get the volume required, use V = 3 π R3 since R = 0.5m

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 −9
150 x 1 0 C
q
Thus, ρ= =¿ 4 = 2.87 x 10—7C/m3
V π R3
3
b. Using Eq.3.4 with θ = 0, the magnitude of the electric field at r = 10.0 cm
= 0.10m from the center of the sphere is.
4 3
qtotal ρV ρ[ π r ] ρr
E= = = 3 = 3∈
∈o A ∈o A
∈O 4 π r 2 o

2.87 x 10 — 7 C /m3
E=
C2 = 1080N/C
3(8.8542 x 1 0−12 · m2)
N

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c. At distance r = 65.0cm = 0.65m, the total enclosed charge

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qtotal = 150 x 10—9C. Using Eq. 3.4 with θ=0 (since the angle between E and

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A is always zero in the Gaussian sphere),

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qtotal
E=
∈o A rs e
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4 π ( 0.65 ¿ 2 ]
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C2
(8.8542 x 1 0−12 · m2) ¿ = 3191N/C
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N
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150 x 1 0−9 C
E= ¿
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Sample Problem 2: Suppose the sphere in no.1 is conducting. Find the

a. Charge density of the sphere and the magnitude of the electric field at the
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following distances:
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b. 10 cm
c. 65 cm
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Solution:

0.50 m ¿2
q 4π¿
a. Charge density σ = A
= = 4.77 x 10—8C/m2
150 x 1 0−9 C
¿

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 b. For a conductor, the charges reside at its surface area. Thus, for r = 10cm =
0.10m, qtotal = 0. Therefore, E = 0.
c. For r = 65cm = 0.65m, qtotal = 150 x 10—9C. Using Eq. 3.4
qtotal
E=
∈o A
m
0.65 ¿
4 π ( ¿¿ 2 ]
2
−12 C 2 = 3191 N/C
(8.8542 x 1 0 · m )¿
N
150 x 1 0−9 C
E= ¿

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What have you learned?

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What letter corresponds to the correct answer?

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1. Like charges repel and unlike charges attract. The force of attraction is given
by______________
a. Newton’s Law
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b. Faraday’s cage
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c. Gauss’s Law
d. Coulomb’s Law
2. Electric lines of force_____________
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a. Start from positive charges and end on neutral charges

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b. Start from neutral charges and end on negative charges

c. Start from negative charges and end on positive charges
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d. Start from positive charges and end on negative charges

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3. The statement “When static conditions are reached, the charge on a

conductor resides on its surface” results directly from Gauss’s law and that
the electric field inside the conductor is _______________
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a. Zero
b. Very large
c. parallel to the surface
d. perpendicular to the surface

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 4. In an electrically neutral atoms, the number of protons equals the number
of_______
a. electrons
b. neutrons
c. nucleons
d. both a and b
5. Charges are brought about by the transfer of electrons. An object becomes
positively charged if it_______________
a. Gains electrons
b. Loses electrons
c. Attract electrons

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d. Gains and loses electrons

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6. For collection of point charges, the superposition principle holds. The

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superposition principle states that each charge will exert a force on another

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charge as if no other charges are present. The total force that a particular
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charge experiences due to a collection of charges is the _____________
a. Resistance to the flow of charges
b. Vector sum of all individual forces.
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c. Electric field intensity

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d. Magnitude and direction of the electric force

7. It the direction of the force is upward, the electron is ______________
a. Positively charged
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b. Negatively charged
c. No charge at all
d. Both a and b
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8. If the charge happens to be negative, the direction of the force on the

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negative charge is __________

a. Opposite the direction of the field
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b. The same direction of the field

c. Perpendicular to the direction of the field
d. Parallel to the direction of the field
9. Mathematically, electric flux is the dot of the electric field and area vector.
The direction of the area vector is the same as that of a vector __________

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 a. Perpendicular to the area
b. Parallel to the area
c. Opposite to the area.
d. Both a and b
10. If you are inside a car and the car is struck by lightning , it is best to stay
inside the car because the electric field inside the car is___________
1. Zero
2. Huge for a short time
3. Huge for a very long time
4. Small enough to be safe for the occupant inside

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