Electric Potential Energy defintiion

In summary, Professor Lewin says that work done in a binary positive charge system is the same as the force of interaction between the charge and an observer, and that the polarity of the limits is arbitrary as long as you know what you are doing.
  • #1
the-ever-kid
53
0
I've Had this doubt from a long time back :

Being in high school my physics teach simply stated that
"potential energy in an attractive system is negative"

No explanations given.

To quench my thirst I went through books and things . I found one difinitive result :

a:

In this Video http://bit.ly/wl8-0204

  • Prof.Walter Lewin Says that work done in a binary positive charge system the work done is the work done by the observer to bring the charge from infinity to a desired distance,is the same as the force of interaction moving from that point to infinity.
  • [tex]\mathcal{W}_{\infty\rightarrow r}=\int_\infty^r\vec{F}_{obs}\cdot d\vec{r}=\int^\infty_r\vec{F}_{elec}\cdot d\vec{r}[/tex]
  • and because the second integral has known quantities, it relates to [tex]\frac{Qq_o}{4\pi\epsilon_o}\left[ \frac{-1}{r}\right]_r^\infty=\frac{Qq_o}{4\pi\epsilon_or}[/tex]
  • becase this quantity is charge dependent therefore for attractive bodies the energy will be negative and vice versa.

Now my Queston is:Is work defined as this
work done in a binary positive charge system the work done is the work done by the observer to bring the charge from infinity to a desired distance
taken to be true for all conservative forces and is this the definition (i presume it is) .

Secondly why did he flip the signs of the limits over was it because of the direction of forces.

Thirdly does the thermodynamic concept of work done "on" the system and work done "by" the system apply here too.( i know it does but how?)
 
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  • #2
This is going to be a rubbish post, as it doesn't answer any of your questions, but I suggest you research Gauge Symmetry.
 
  • #3
why did you post then ? BTW what is gauge symmetry
 
  • #4
Because this should help a bit.
 
  • #5
how?
 
  • #6
Again, look into Gauge Symmetry.
 
  • #7
it is work done in moving unit 'positive' charge, isn't it?
 
  • #8
this one is but walter lewin later says that the result is charge sensitive how come as he initially took a charge specific case
 
  • #9
read a liitle about gauge smmetry on wikipedia went over my head mindboggling stuff couldn't understand a thing!
 
  • #10
factfinder said:
it is work done in moving unit 'positive' charge, isn't it?

Doesnt matter as long as the polarity is same
 
  • #11
the-ever-kid said:
read a liitle about gauge smmetry on wikipedia went over my head mindboggling stuff couldn't understand a thing!

Yea, Wikipedia can be confusing for most math/science topics, probably not the ideal place to start.
 
  • #12
how is it related to the topic anyway?
 
  • #13
If I got the definition right, it's related to there not being any "absolute" potential energy, just differences in potential energy, which relates to the "definition" of potential energy here.
 
  • #14
The sign is arbitrary (a matter of convention) as long as you know what you are doing.
 

What is electric potential energy?

Electric potential energy is the potential energy that an electric charge possesses due to its position in an electric field. It is a form of potential energy that can be converted into other forms of energy, such as kinetic energy.

How is electric potential energy different from electric potential?

Electric potential energy is the energy an object has due to its position in an electric field, while electric potential is the amount of potential energy that a unit charge would have at a specific point in an electric field. In other words, electric potential is the ratio of electric potential energy to charge.

What are the units of electric potential energy?

The SI unit of electric potential energy is joules (J). Other commonly used units include electron-volts (eV) and kilowatt-hours (kWh).

What are some examples of electric potential energy?

Some examples of electric potential energy include a charged battery, a charged capacitor, and a lightning bolt.

What is the relationship between electric potential energy and electric potential difference?

Electric potential energy and electric potential difference are directly proportional. This means that as the electric potential difference increases, the electric potential energy also increases. Conversely, as the electric potential difference decreases, the electric potential energy also decreases.

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