Force on charged particle to enter electric field perpendicularly

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the force required for a charged particle to enter an electric field perpendicularly, specifically within a charged capacitor. It is established that if a charged particle is already within the electric field, no external force is necessary to maintain a constant velocity perpendicular to the field. However, entering the field perpendicularly necessitates overcoming edge effects, which can require a significant external force due to the attraction to the capacitor plates. The concept of orbiting the field is clarified, indicating that a particle moving perpendicularly would experience circular motion around the field lines.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of electric fields and forces
  • Knowledge of charged particles and their behavior in electric fields
  • Familiarity with capacitor design and edge effects
  • Basic principles of electromagnetism
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the principles of electric field lines and their effects on charged particles
  • Study the concept of edge effects in capacitors and their implications
  • Explore the dynamics of charged particles in electric fields using simulations
  • Learn about the mathematical modeling of forces acting on charged particles in electric fields
USEFUL FOR

Physicists, electrical engineers, students studying electromagnetism, and anyone interested in the behavior of charged particles in electric fields.

vishnukorde
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how much force, if at all. is required to make a particle enter an electric field perpendicularly...
eg, to let a charged particle enter a charged capacitor perpendicularly, is external force required??
 
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I don't think a charged particle CAN enter a field perpendicularly. If it is always perpendicular to the field then it would orbit the field.

If it was already in the field within the capacitor then it shouldn't take any force to move it, at a constant velocity, perpendicular to the field.
 
what does this mean,"if it is always perpendicular to the field then it would orbit the field."...why?
 
vishnukorde said:
what does this mean,"if it is always perpendicular to the field then it would orbit the field."...why?

If your perpendicular to the field exiting the charged object then you are going around it considering it is a point object which all electric objects are from an outside the field point of view.
 
vishnukorde said:
how much force, if at all. is required to make a particle enter an electric field perpendicularly...eg, to let a charged particle enter a charged capacitor perpendicularly, is external force required??

In a real capacitor, edge effects cannot be ignored and so a reasonably large force would be required to enter the region perpendicularly, since the charged particle would be attracted to the appropriate plate.
 
Thread 'Colors in a plasma globe'

Thread 'Colors in a plasma globe'

I have a common plasma globe with blue streamers and orange pads at both ends. The orange light is emitted by neon and the blue light is presumably emitted by argon and xenon. Why are the streamers blue while the pads at both ends are orange? A plasma globe's electric field is strong near the central electrode, decreasing with distance, so I would not expect the orange color at both ends.
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