Vision International School Of

Excellence
Academic Year 2023-2024

Project Report
Name: Parth Jichkar
Class: XII
Subject: Physics
Roll No:

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 Certificate

This is to clarify that PARTH

JICHKAR has successfully
completed his Physics project
titled Gold Leaf Microscope
under the supervision and
guidance of VIKASH SINGH SIR
in the partial fulfilment of the
physics practical assessment
conducted during the academic
year 2023-2024.

Examiner Teacher

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 Acknowledgement

I would like to express my immense gratitude to my

physics teacher for the help and guidance he/she
provided for completing this project.

I also thank my parents who gave their ideas and

inputs in making this project. Most of all I thank our
school management, for providing us the facilities
and opportunity to do this project.

Lastly, I would like to thanks my classmates who

have done this project along with me. Their support
made this project fruitful. CLE

- Parth Jichkar

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 Topic:
- Gold Leaf Microscope

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 Index:

Content Page No.

Certificate 2
Acknowledgement 3
Aim 6
Introduction 7
Principle 8
Theory 9-12
Observation 13
Conclusion 14
Precaution 15
Bibliography 16

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 Aim:

- The aim of this lab is to qualitatively study

conducting and insulating materials,
electric charges, and charge transfer.

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 Introduction:
• An electroscope is a scientific device that is
used to detect the presence of an electric
charge on a body. In the year 1600, British
physician William Gilbert invented the first
electroscope with a pivoted needle
called versorium.
• An electroscope is a scientific instrument
used to detect the presence and magnitude
of an electric charge on a body. An electric
current can be defined as the flow of
charged particles like electrons and ions
which move through an electrical conductor.
It is measured as the total rate of flow of an
electric charge through the surface of a
conducting material. Many instruments are
used to detect and measure it like Ammeter,
Galvanometer, Electroscope, etc.

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 Principle:
An electroscope consists of a metal detector knob
on its top which is attached to a pair of metallic
leaves that are dangling from the bottom of the
rod used to connect. The diagram below shows
the structure of a typical electroscope.

When there is no charge present the metal leaves

of the electroscope hang loosely downward.

An electroscope reacts to the presence of a charge

by the movement of electrons either into it or
away from it. In both cases, the leaves get
separated. However, an electroscope cannot
determine the nature of the charge whether the
charge is positive or negative, it can only detect
its presence in a body.

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 Theory:
• There are two kinds of charges in nature: positive
charge carried by protons and negative charge
carried by electrons. An object that has an excess of
either is said to be charged. Like charges repel each
other, and unlike charges attract.

• Charge transfer is the exchange of charges between

objects. In this experiment, only electrons are
exchanged while protons remain stationary. These
electrons may move around within materials or
move between materials, but they can never be
created or destroyed. This is known as the law of
conservation of charge. The law of conservation of
electric charge states that the net amount of
electric charge produced in any process is zero.

• A conductor is a material in which some loosely

bound electrons can move freely (free electrons)
while protons are tightly bound within the nucleus.
An insulator is a material in which both electrons
and protons are tightly bound.

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A conductor is a material in which some loosely bound electrons
can move freely (free electrons) while protons are tightly bound
within the nucleus. An insulator is a material in which both
electrons and protons are tightly bound. Conductors and
insulators have the following properties:
- Conductors:
• Conductors are objects that allow the free flow of electrons
throughout the object.
• Charges are easily transferred between conductors.
• Charge can collect at one end of an object in the presence of other
charged objects.
- Insulators:
• An insulator is a material in which electrons are tightly bound to
the nucleus.
• Transferring charge between insulators requires a force, e.g.
friction, and direct contact.
• Insulators brought near other charged objects experience
polarization, a shifting of electrons to one side of an atom.

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Working And Construction of Gold
Leaf Microscope:
• Construction - The tiny gold leaf electroscope is used to find
charges. It has two narrow leaves of gold foil hanging from
the bottom and a brass rod with a brass disc at the top. The
rod is held in position as it moves through an insulator.
Through the rod, charges can easily travel from the disc to
the leaves. On the bottom part of the container’s interior, a
thin piece of aluminium foil is attached. Usually, a copper
wire is connected to the aluminium foil to ground it. As a
result, the leaves are shielded from exterior electrical
disturbances.

• Working - A gold-leaf electroscope is used to detect and

determine the polarity of an electric charge in a body. It
works based on electromagnetic interaction and charge
resistance. Two thin gold leaves and an electrical
conductor substance is strung nearby and nearly in contact
with each other in this electroscope. Because the leaves are
so thin, they lack firmness and dangle limply. When these
leaves gain charge, they split up. The angle formed between
them is dependent on the amount of electricity on them. If
the instrument is insulated and the capacitance is fixed, the
angle can be accurate to static voltage. It’s worth noting that
this electroscope displays potential rather than charge and
that the voltage is calculated by measuring the divergence
angle.

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 Applications of Gold Leaf
Microscope:
o Charge detection: The object under test is contacted
with a metal cap. If the leaves split, the body is
charged; if the leaves have no effect, the body is
uncharged.

o To determine the type of charge: Firstly, charge the

electroscope with a known body like a positively
charged body and then remove the body. The body is
then brought into touch with the metal cap. If the
leaves diverge farther, the body has the same charge
and if the leaves become closer together, the body has
the opposite negative charge.

o Identify an object as a conductor or an insulator: Take

two electroscopes. Activate one of the electroscopes
such that its leaves diverge. Attach the two
electroscopes to the test object. If the leaves of the
other electroscopes diverge, the object is a conductor;
if there is no impact on the electroscopes, the object is
an insulator.

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 Observation:

• On charging the curtain rod by touching the ball

end with an electrified body, charge is transferred
to the curtain rod and the attached aluminum foil.
Both the halves of the foil get similar charge and
therefore repeal each other. The divergence in
the leaves depends on the of charge on them.

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 Conclusion:
- A tool that can identify the existence and polarity of
electric charges on a body is called a gold leaf electroscope.
It is made up of a metal shaft with two thin gold leaves
attached at the bottom and a metal disc at the top. The rod
is held in position by an insulator that it passes through.
Through the rod, the charges can travel from the disc to
the foliage. The rod and the leaves are covered with a glass
container, and the bottom of the jar is grounded by a piece
of metal foil.

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 Precautions:

1. Electroscope should be handed carefully.

2. The charged body should be handled with the

help of some insulated object.

3. The bottle should be purely vacuum.

4. The leaf should not touch each other.

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 Bibliography:

• NCERT
• Google Search engine
• Wikipedia.com

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