Lab-5 (OL) Electric Potential and Electric Field

OBJECTIVE
1. To study the electric field and electric potential around different charges.
2. To study the relation between the electric field line and electric potential surface.

EQUIPMENT
PhET Simulation:
https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/charges-and-fields/latest/charges-and-fields_en.html

THEORY
There is an electric field surrounding a point charge, in which another charge would experience
an electric force. The magnitude of the electric field at a distance from a point charge is given
by:
|q|
E=k e (1)
r2
Where k ethe Coulomb Constant, q is the charge, and r is the distance from the charge. The
direction of the electric field points away from a positive charge, and towards a negative charge.

The electric potential due to a point charge is given by the equation:

In this Lab, we will use a PhET simulation to study the electric field and electric potential
surrounding single and multiple point charges.

PROCEDURE
Play with the simulation (Charges and Fields) and get oriented with all the different options. This
should help you understand the lab better. Note that you have positive and negative point
charges, an electric field sensor (yellow circle), a tape measure and a voltmeter, that also makes
the equipotential lines. For each case, take a screenshot and attach with your report. You may
also turn on ‘gridlines’ if desired. Each small square of the grid is 10 cm wide and high.

Activity 1: Electric Field Lines and Equipotential Lines for one Positive Point Charge
Turn off ‘Electric Field’ at the upper right corner of simulation window. Turn on ‘Grid’ and put one
positive charge at the center of a major grid mark. Use the voltmeter to draw three equipotential
lines with a distance of 0.5-m, 1.0-m, and 1.5-m from the charge. Use the electric field sensor
(yellow circle) find out the magnitude of electric field on the 1.5-m equipotential line at the
angles given in the table-1 and fill the table. Use the skill you learnt to calculate the magnitude
of the electric field at the same corresponding location and put to the table-1.

Table-1 [10%]
Angle 0° 30 ° −30 ° 90 ° −90 ° 180 ° 150 ° −150 °
Magnitude of field (field sensor)
Calculated Magnitude of field (eq-1)
 % error
Copy the above screenshot with the equipotential lines (the screenshot should not have any
electric field line or vectors) and draw (you may use software tools or hand-drawing) at least 8
electric field line based on the relation between the electric field line and equipotential surface
[10%].

Activity 2: Electric Field Lines and Equipotential Lines for a Negative Point Charge
Turn off ‘Electric Field’ at the upper right corner of simulation window. Turn on ‘Grid’ and put one
negative charge at the center of a major grid mark. Use the voltmeter to draw three
equipotential lines with a distance of 0.5-m, 1.0-m, and 1.5-m from the charge. Use the electric
field sensor (yellow circle) find out the magnitude of electric field on the 1.5-m equipotential line
at the angles given in the table-2 and fill the table. Use the skill you learnt to calculate the
magnitude of the electric field at the same corresponding location and put to the table-2.

Table-2 [10%]
Angle 0° 30 ° −30 ° 90 ° −90 ° 180 ° 150 ° −150 °
Magnitude of field (field sensor)
Calculated Magnitude of field (eq-1)
% error

Copy the above screenshot with the equipotential lines (the screenshot should not have any
electric field line or vectors) and draw (you may use software tools or hand-drawing) at least 8
electric field line based on the relation between the electric field line and equipotential surface
[10%].

Activity 3: Electric Field Lines and Equipotential Lines for one Positive Charge and one
Negative Point Charge (electric dipole)
Turn off ‘Electric Field’ at the upper right corner of simulation window. Turn on ‘Grid’. Put a
positive charge at the left side of an equal amount of negative charge, with a separation
distance of 2-meters. Use the voltmeter to draw three equipotential lines with a distance of 0.5-
m, 1.0-m, and 1.5-m from the left side of the positive charge; and another three equipotential
lines with a distance of 0.5-m, 1.0-m, and 1.5-m from the right side of the negative charge. Use
the voltmeter draw another equipotential line at the middle of the positive and negative charges
(find a location where the electric potential almost equal to zero).
Use the electric field sensor (yellow circle) find out the magnitude of electric field at the positions
given in the table-3 and fill the table. The reference frame is defined as: Origin at the middle
point of positive and negative charges; and the + axis to the right. Positive charge at (1.0-m, 0);
negative charge at (+1.0-m, 0).
Table-3 [25%]
Position (Middle of + &  charge is 0) −2.5 m −2.0 m −1.5 m 0 1.5 m 2.0 m 2.5 m
Calculated Electric Magnitude
Field (use lecture
Direction (To:
knowledge)
L/R)
Magnitude of field (field sensor)
% error of the Electric Field Magnitude
Copy the above screenshot with the equipotential lines (the screenshot should not have any
electric field line or vectors) and draw (you may use software tools or hand-drawing) at least 7
electric field line based on the relation between the electric field line and equipotential surface
(it should be symmetric) [20%].

Cover page (index#, name, lab# and title, experiment date) [5%]
Typewriting [10%]
Your electric field line map/drawing must use screenshots of the corresponding
equipotential lines on the simulation page. The screenshots should not have any electric
field line or vector.

Sample data of equipotential lines and electric field lines for Table 3