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From Lecture #1: Conductors versus Insulators
• Insulators: material in which electric charges are
“frozen” in place.
• Conductors: material in which electric charges can
move around “freely.
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Conductors
If an excess charge is placed on an isolated conductor, that
amount of charge will move entirely to the surface of the
conductor. None of the excess charge will be found within
the body of the conductor.
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Conductors
Isolator Conductor with a Cavity
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Conductors: Shielding from an Electrical Field
• Electric field lines for an
oppositely charged metal
cylinder and metal plate.
Note that:
1. Electric field lines are
perpendicular to the
conductors.
2. There are no electric field
lines inside the cylinder.
