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Phet Lab 16

Decent Essays

Name ____________________________________ Equipotential

Go to http://phet.colorado.edu/simulations/sims.php?sim=Charges_and_Fields and click on Run Now. Complete Part 1 for chapter 18 and part 2 and 3 for chapter 19.
Part 1: What is an equipotential line and how is this simulation related to work and energy?
1) Turn on “Show Numbers”
2) Place a positive 1 nano-coulomb charge near the center of the screen.
3) In the lower left of the screen is a meter for indicating electric potential, in volts, created by the charge that you introduced. Record the voltage and turn on “Plot”.

3.8 V

4) This line is much like a line on a geologic topo map. Explain the similarity.

Just like in a geologic topo map, this …show more content…

The charge would be brought to a higher potential.

W = (V2 – V1) * Q

10) If the second positive charge were moved away from the first Positive charge, would this involve positive or negative work.

Since there is a loss of potential energy, no external force is required. Since the charge moves in the direction of the field, the field does the work

11) When energy was studied earlier in the year, a connection was found between kinetic energy, potential energy, positive work, and negative work. What is the connection?

The relationship between work and potential energy is that the work done by a force on an object to move it from point A to point B is opposite to the change in potential energy:

W = - (VB – VA) Q

This means that if the work done by the force is positive, the potential energy of the object is decreased. Let’s take the example of an apple that drops from the branch of a tree. In this case, Gravity does work to move the apple from the branch to the ground. Meanwhile, potential energy gets converted into kinetic energy when in motion and finally at the ground, the apple contains less potential energy. Basically, work is the change in potential energy.

A system consisting of a positive charge and an electric field loses electric potential energy when the charge moves in the direction of the field. Negative work means that the charge’s potential energy was converted into

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