Motion Of Charges In The Presence Of Electric And Magnetic Fields

Concepts to Remember:

Electric Field:

  • Electric field lines represent the direction of the electric field at a point.
  • The electric field is a vector quantity that describes the strength and direction of the electric force at a point.

###Magnetic Field:

  • Magnetic field lines represent the direction of the magnetic field at a point.
  • The magnetic field is a vector quantity that describes the strength and direction of the magnetic force at a point.

###Motion of a Charged Particle in an Electric Field:

  • A charged particle moving in an electric field experiences an electric force, which causes it to accelerate.
  • The acceleration of a charged particle in an electric field is proportional to the magnitude of the electric field and the charge of the particle.
  • The direction of the acceleration is in the direction of the electric field.

###Motion of a Charged Particle in a Magnetic Field:

  • A charged particle moving in a magnetic field experiences a magnetic force, which causes it to deviate from its original path.
  • The magnetic force on a charged particle is proportional to the magnitude of the magnetic field, the velocity of the particle, and the charge of the particle.
  • The direction of the magnetic force is perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field and the velocity of the particle.

###Lorentz Force:

  • The Lorentz force is the net force acting on a charged particle moving in an electric field and a magnetic field.
  • The Lorentz force is the vector sum of the electric force and the magnetic force.

###Applications:

  • Motion of charged particles in electric and magnetic fields is important in many areas of physics, including plasma physics, particle accelerators, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).