- #1
chococho
- 20
- 0
**sorry, the title should probably read determining a point at higher potential and potential energy
So I feel like this is a really simple example, but I have a test tomorrow and this potential and potential energy stuff is really starting to not make sense...
I know that a charge going in the direction of the electric field goes from a higher potential to lower potential and from lower to higher if it's going in the opposite direction.
The problem is that I don't know how potential energy is different from potential.
So a diagram I have has two points A and B and an electric field going from right to left. There is also a positive charge just sitting between A and B. And it says PE for B is bigger than PE for A. Is this just because B is at a higher potential?
I also have a diagram that is the same, but only with a negative charge between A and B instead of a positive charge. This one I'm not really sure about.. I assumed it would be the opposite for a negative charge, but it says Vb is bigger than Va, but Ua is bigger than Ub.
Can somebody help me with this please? The more I think about it the more confusing it gets...
So I feel like this is a really simple example, but I have a test tomorrow and this potential and potential energy stuff is really starting to not make sense...
I know that a charge going in the direction of the electric field goes from a higher potential to lower potential and from lower to higher if it's going in the opposite direction.
The problem is that I don't know how potential energy is different from potential.
So a diagram I have has two points A and B and an electric field going from right to left. There is also a positive charge just sitting between A and B. And it says PE for B is bigger than PE for A. Is this just because B is at a higher potential?
I also have a diagram that is the same, but only with a negative charge between A and B instead of a positive charge. This one I'm not really sure about.. I assumed it would be the opposite for a negative charge, but it says Vb is bigger than Va, but Ua is bigger than Ub.
Can somebody help me with this please? The more I think about it the more confusing it gets...