The difference between electric field and electrical charge

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SUMMARY

The discussion clarifies the distinction between electric fields and electrical charges. Electric charge is a scalar quantity that serves as the source of an electric field, which is a vector quantity. According to Gauss's law, the relationship is defined by the equation ∇ · E = ρ, where E represents the electric field and ρ denotes charge density. While electric charges exert forces on each other through the electric field they create, electric fields themselves do not exert forces on one another.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of basic physics concepts, specifically electric charge and electric fields.
  • Familiarity with vector and scalar quantities.
  • Knowledge of Gauss's law in electromagnetism.
  • Basic principles of classical physics, excluding advanced topics like general relativity or quantum electrodynamics.
NEXT STEPS
  • Study Gauss's law in detail to understand its implications in electromagnetism.
  • Explore the mathematical representation of electric fields and their interactions with charged particles.
  • Investigate the properties of scalar and vector fields in physics.
  • Examine the role of electric fields in various physical phenomena, such as capacitors and electric circuits.
USEFUL FOR

Students of physics, educators teaching electromagnetism, and anyone seeking to deepen their understanding of electric fields and charges in classical physics.

franjo
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what is difference between electric field and electrical charge?
 
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Hi fran,
What a funny question. Care to elaborate ? Did you google the terms and are you unhappy with the findings ?
 
BvU said:
Hi fran,
What a funny question. Care to elaborate ? Did you google the terms and are you unhappy with the findings ?
what is difference between electric field and electrical charge? I read about electrical charges and the electric field so I do not know what the difference is between them because they both are doing the same thing they act with repulsive or attractive force on other charges.
 
franjo said:
what is difference between electric field and electrical charge?
For one, the charge is a scalar and the field is a vector. The charge is the source of the field by Gauss law: ##\nabla \cdot E = \rho ##. Also, charge is conserved.
 
Electric fields can be created by charges And If there's another charged particle, that moves within this electric field it feels a force respect to the field.

franjo said:
I read about electrical charges and the electric field so I do not know what the difference is between them because they both are doing the same thing they act with repulsive or attractive force on other charges.

Electric fields cannot exert force on each other. Charged particle exert forces each other due to the electric field that they have created.
 
The electric field has the same relationship to electric charge as the gravitational field has to mass.

(in classical physics, that is... please let's not bring general relativity into this... or quantum electrodynamics)
 
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