Physics is one of the most important sciences in the world. study of the nature of components and phenomena of the universe. Experts in this area are in charge of studying various properties of matter, such as energy, force, physical magnitudes, among others.
In the same way, within physics various laws have been discovered that help us understand these properties, among which are Newton’s laws, Coulomb’s law, and many more. Throughout this article we will talk a little about what is the Coulomb lawwhich is described in it, its importance and much more.
What is the concept of Coulumb’s Laws?
In physics, Coulomb’s Laws are understood as a set of principles, which describe what the interaction between electric charges is like. It was deduced by the physical Charles Augustin de Coulombthrough an experiment of repulsion and attraction of charges.
This law establishes that the electric force between two charges has a direct proportion to the product of the charges and inversely to the square of the distance between them.
In this way, what it says is that, the greater the magnitude of some charges and the closer they are to each other, the greater the electric force acting between them.. Likewise, electric forces act along the entire line joining these charges, and it is considered attractive if the charges are of opposite signs, or repulsive if they are of the same sign.
Coulomb’s laws apply to both stationary electric charges like those in motion. This occurs as long as the speeds of the charges are not close to the speed of light.
These laws are fundamental in the study of electrostatics and understanding of electrical phenomena, such as electric charge, static electricity, among others. For their part, they are also often applied in various situations, from the electrostatics of macroscopic objects to the interaction between molecules and atoms.
What is electric charge in Coulumb’s Law?
Within what are Coulomb’s laws, an electric charge is the physical property of a subatomic particle that tends to interact through electric forces. These loads can be both positive and negativeand charged particles of the same sign repel each other and opposite ones attract.
Said loads Coulombs (C) are used as the unit of measurement. and they are denoted with the letter Q. On the one hand, when an electric charge is positive, it means that it has an excess of protons, while when it is negative, it has an excess of protons.
In general, it is understood that Electrons have negative charges and protons have positive charges.However, other subatomic particles, such as quarks, also have electrical charges.
It should be noted that electric charge is considered a conservative property, which means that the total charge of an isolated system will remain constant. Likewise, an object with an electrical charge can transfer it through contact or induction, opening the way to phenomena such as static electricity and the flow of electrical current in electrical circuits.
What does Coulumb’s Law describe?
Coulomb’s law describes the physical magnitude of the electric force between two point charges at rest. For its part, this law establishes that, the electric force between two charges is directly proportional to what is the product of these charges.
In addition, it also defines that said force is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the two electric charges. In summary, Coulomb’s law describes that the greater the magnitude of the charges and the closer they are to each other, the greater the electrical force acting on each other.
What is Coulumb’s Law used for?
In physics and technology it is known that Coulomb’s law has various applications and their knowledge is essential in these areas. For its part, this law helps to understand and design devices and/or systems that make use of electrical charges.
Some of the most important applications of Coulomb’s law are the following:
- study of electrostatics: This law is often widely used when it comes to understanding the basic principles of electrostatics. These include the generation of electric fields, static electricity, and electric charge.
- Design of electrical circuits: Coulomb’s law has to be applied during the design of electrical circuits. This includes Ohm’s law and Kirchhoff’s law.
- Atomic and molecular physics: This law is used to describe the interaction between subatomic particles. This application also includes the interaction between ions and the electronic structure of atoms and molecules.
- loading and unloading technology: Both in charging and discharging batteries and in capacitors or other electrical devices, the use of Coulomb’s law is common.
- Earth sciences: This law, in addition to being employed in areas involving electrical devices, also tends to be widely applied in the earth sciences. It is generally used to understand the forces acting on tectonic plates and to predict the occurrence of an earthquake.
In this way, Coulomb’s law is considered extremely important and a more than fundamental tool for understanding electrical phenomena. This law can be applied in areas such as physics, technology and even in the earth sciences.
What is the formula for Coulumb’s Law?
The formula used to apply Coulomb’s Law is expressed, in mathematical terms, as follows: F = k * (Q1 * Q2) / r^2where:
- F is the force between two charges, and Its unit of measure is Newtons.expressed with the letter N.
- k is the Coulomb constant, which depends on the medium in which the charges are found. This is expressed in units of Newtons per square meter per Coulomb (or Coulomb) squared, as follows: N m^2 / C^2.
- Q1 and Q2 are the magnitudes of electric charges, whose unit of measurement is Coulombs (C).
- r is the distance between the charges, which is expressed in units of meters (m).
Note that the electric force between two charges tends to be attractive if these charges are of opposite signswhile if they are of the same sign, they will be repulsive.
Why is Coulumb’s Law important?
Coulomb’s law is considered a law that has great importance in the world, thanks to the fact that it is the basis for understanding the electrical interaction that occurs between charged particles. In previous points we described the most common uses of this law in various sciences, which cover much of its importance.
His discovery was the start of many other studieswith which situations that occur in different applications of physics, geology or other sciences were understood.
For its part, in the area of technology it is also usually used in the manufacture of electric motors and electronic devices, besides being a crucial part in the generation of electrical energy. Likewise, both in particle physics and in nuclear physics it is considered a very valuable tool when it comes to describing the interaction between the particles of an atomic nucleus.
Thanks to the fact that, with the use of Coulomb’s Law, the understanding of the interactions between atoms and moleculesIt is often widely used in Chemistry. Since, when using it, it is understood how the structure of chemical compounds and the nature of chemical reactions are.
In the same way, this law is also very useful in the area of Medicine. This thanks to It is often applied in electrocardiography, electroencephalography and other medical procedures.
Which is because such procedures use electricity to obtain a diagnosis and find the indicated treatment for certain diseases.
