Why Does Feynman Use a Single Electron Charge in Dipole Calculations?

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SUMMARY

Feynman utilizes a single electron charge (qe) in dipole moment calculations for individual atoms, as outlined in Volume 2 of his Lectures on Physics. He defines the dipole moment as p = qex, where p represents the dipole moment, q is the charge of a single electron, and x is the displacement of the electron's center of charge. This approach simplifies calculations by focusing on the behavior of a single electron rather than the total charge of the atom, which is represented by Z. Feynman's consistent use of qe in various contexts, including for the Helium atom, emphasizes the relevance of single electron behavior in dipole interactions.

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Seidhee
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Hello,

I am reading the volume 2 of the Feynman's Lectures on Physics, and something is bothering me when he calculates the dipole moment of a single atom induced by an extern field :

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=uaQfAQAAQBAJ&pg=SA11-PA2&lpg=SA11-PA2&dq=feynman+dipole+single+atom&source=bl&ots=6nmZCqHDMk&sig=cd6wOGCKh9E9227ZX-a8KKhTqlM&hl=fr&sa=X&ei=NuI8VbHdI8v9UOSvgOAD&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=feynman%20dipole%20single%20atom&f=false

Indeed, he states that : " p = qex "

But why ? I would use in general : " p = Zqex " where Z is the number of electrons in the atom.

x is the displacement of the center of charges of the electrons, and thus x is also the displacement of each electron.

Could you explain his reasoning ? It is not the first time he uses a single electron charge instead of Z in his calculations, and I do not understand.

Thanks.
PS : First, I thought that was because the square of the natural pulsation ω0 depended on Z, which means that ω²0(Z) = Zω²0 (Z=1), which would simplify the Z replacing ω²0(Z) by Zω²0 (Z=1) ; but Feynman seems to use ω0 = ω0(Z) and not ω0 (Z=1) everywhere, so it does not matter.
 
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And qe is obviously equal to the charge of an electron and note equal to Z*(charge), because he uses then e² = q²e/4piε0.

Moreover, when he the does his calculations for the Helium atom, he keeps using qe = charge of one electron and does not use a new value for Z..
 

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