Answer to Question #175805 in Physics for Joshua

Question

Give a brief description of each illustration about an electric charge on the given following.

Interaction of charges
1. charging by rubbing
2. charging by conduction
3. charging by induction
4. unlike charges attract
5. like charges repel

Answer 1

1) When insulating materials rub against each other, they may become electrically charged. Electrons, which are negatively charged, may be ‘rubbed off’ one material and on to the other. The material that gains electrons becomes negatively charged. The material that loses electrons is left with a positive charge.

2) Charging by conduction involves the contact of a charged object to a neutral object. Hence when an uncharged conductor is brought in contact with a charged conductor, charge is shared between the two conductors and hence the uncharged conductor gets charged.

3) Induction charging is a method used to charge an object without actually touching the object to any other charged object. An understanding of charging by induction requires an understanding of the nature of a conductor and an understanding of the polarization process.

4) Unlike charges attract because that is how atoms are. Atoms contain positive charges and negative charges. These atoms normally are neutral which means the postive charges balances the amount of negative charges.

This balanced nature of the atoms is the reason why atoms are existing. If these charges do not attract then the atom will disintegrate to smaller particles. That is the reason why hydrogen atoms exist.

Without the force of attraction the hydrogen atom will stop to be a hydrogen atom.

If electrons are removed from materials by rubbing positive ions are produced. If a material acquired excess electrons through rubbing then negative ions are produced.

The positive and the negative ions from rubbed materials also attract. Performing an experiment on this phenomenon is very interesting for most students. They just rub a pith ball to a woolen cloth and then make the pith ball attracted to the woolen cloth.

5)  Oppositely charged objects will exert an attractive influence upon each other. In contrast to the attractive force between two objects with opposite charges, two objects that are of like charge will repel each other. That is, a positively charged object will exert a repulsive force upon a second positively charged object. This repulsive force will push the two objects apart. Similarly, a negatively charged object will exert a repulsive force upon a second negatively charged object. Objects with like charge repel each other.