The electric field is defined as the electric force experienced by a charge divided by the magnitude of that charge. This definition parallels the gravitational field, which is the force experienced by a mass divided by the mass itself. To measure an electric field, one must release a charged particle and observe its acceleration, ensuring that no other forces, such as gravity, are influencing the motion. This method allows for the determination of the electric field's presence and strength based on the particle's behavior.
PREREQUISITESStudents of physics, educators teaching electromagnetism, and anyone interested in understanding the fundamental concepts of electric fields and their measurements.
I see. I understand now. Thank you very much for you help!Geofleur said:Let's look, briefly, at the related concept of the gravitational field. The way you know that there is a gravitational field is if you drop something and it falls (this is assuming that you are not in an accelerating frame of reference). We can define the gravitational field as the force that a mass would "feel", divided by the mass itself.
Similarly, the way you would know if there is an electric field is to release a charged particle and see if it starts accelerating. Of course, you would need to know that it isn't accelerating due to some other force, like gravity. Let's assume that you know how gravity would affect the charged particle, and the particle accelerates in a way different from that. Then you could attribute the different acceleration to an electric field. The electric field is defined as the electric force that a charge would "feel", divided by the charge itself.
The measurement consists of releasing the mass or charge and seeing what force it experiences.