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The direction of the electric field vector is defined as?
Direction of the electric field vector is the direction of the force experienced by a charged particle in an external electric field.
Electric field is a vector or scalar?
Both. The electric field is a Quaternion field, a scalar e and a vector E, E = [e,E]Maxwell's Equation. 0=XE= [d/dr, Del][e,E] = [de/dr -Del.E, dE/dr + Del e] = [db/dt - Del.E, dB/dt + Del e]
What is the definition of the term dielectric?
'Dielectric' is often used in a general sense to refer to a material (such as ceramic, mica, plastic or paper) which is a poor conductor of electricity. This term is used in the classical description of a capacitor -- two electric conductors separated by a dielectric. By applying electric charge to one conductor an electric field is created. The dielectric allows the electric field to pass through it and affect the other conductors; however the dielectric prevents electrons from flowing between the conductors, so the electric field remains (and the charge remains stored on the conductor). [Side note for beginners: An electric field creates a force (measured in Volts) upon an electron or charged particle which tends to make it move. The conductor allows electrons to move easily within it. The dielectric resists the movement of electrons in it.] More generally, we speak of a 'Dielectric Field' as a mathematic description of how electric charge influences the properties of the space around it. The Dielectric field interacts with space and with any material in the space to create an 'Electric Field'. In simple terms, the electric field at any point is the product of the dielectric field at that point and the 'Dielectric Constant' of the material at that point. In more general terms, the 'electric field vector' at a point is the tensor product of the 'dielectric field vector' and the 'dielectric tensor' of the material at that point. The dielectric field is not a measurable entity, but rather a mathematical tool that allows us accurately to model the electric field, which is measurable. The article on Dielectrics at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dielectric provides more description, especially on the dielectric field model.
How is the strength of an electric field indicated with electric field lines?
Given a positive charge the electric field lines are drawn starting from the charge and pointing radially outward, ending in principle at infinity, according to the electric field strength being proportional to the inverse square of distance. From the definition of electric field we know that the modulous of the electric field is greater for smaller distances from the field generating charge. Since the electric field lines point radially outward we consider the density of lines an indication of the strength of the electirc field. If we immagine to trace a circle around the electric field generating charge, of radius slightly greater than the radius of the object which holds the charge and therefore generates the electric field, such circle will be crossed by a number 'n' of lines. The density of lines crossing the cirle will then be the circumference of the circle divided by the number 'n' of lines. For a larger circle we will have a greater circumference, but same number of lines 'n', and therefore a smaller density of lines crossing it, which idicates a lower intesity of electric field for a greater distance from the charge.
Where do electric field lines point?
The electric field lines are directed away from a positive charge and towards a negative charge so that at any point , the tangent to a field line gives the direction of electric field at that point.
