Electric field

An electric field is a vector field that shows the direction that a positively charged particle will move when placed in the field. More precisely, if a particle has an electric charge  and is in an electric field , the electric force the charge will feel is . Electric fields are produced around objects that have electrical charge, or by a magnetic field that changes with time. Electric field lines are used to represent the influence of electric field.  The idea of an electric field was first made by Michael Faraday.

Electric fields are caused by electric charges, described by Gauss's law,Purcell, p 25: "Gauss's Law: the flux of the electric field E through any closed surface...  equals 1/e times the total charge enclosed by the surface." or varying magnetic fields, described by Faraday's law of induction.Purcell, p 356: "Faraday's Law of Induction."  The equations of both fields are coupled and together form Maxwell's equations that describe both fields as a function of charges and currents.Purcell, Edward & Morin, David 2013. Electricity and magnetism. 3rd ed, Cambridge University Press. New York. ISBN 978-1-107-01402-2

Related pages
Polarization electric field and ambipolar electric field

 References 

Category:Electromagnetism