Physics A2 · Electric fields. The idea in plain words, the rules to remember, the mistake to avoid and a worked example, written and checked by Mega Lecture.
Two parallel metal plates with a potential difference between them have a uniform electric field in the space between them (away from the edges). The field strength is the same at every point and points from the positive plate to the negative plate.
A charged particle in this field feels a constant force, so it has a constant acceleration. If it starts at rest or moves along the field lines, it speeds up or slows down in a straight line. If it enters at right angles to the field, its velocity along the plates stays constant while it accelerates across the field, so its path is a parabola, like a projectile.
A neutral particle, such as a neutron, feels no force.
Students forget to change the plate separation from cm or mm to metres, which makes E wrong by a factor of 100 or 1000. Convert the separation first.
Answer: 5.3 × 1015 m s−2, towards the positive plate.
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