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Coulomb's Law

Coulomb's Law

Experiments with electric charges have shown that if two objects each have an electric charge, they exert an electric force on each other. The magnitude of the force is linearly proportional to the net charge on each object and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. The direction of the force vector is along the imaginary line joining the two objects and is dictated by the signs of the charges involved.
Newton's third law applies to the Coulomb force — the force on...

Electrostatic Boundary Conditions in Dielectrics

Electrostatic Boundary Conditions in Dielectrics

When an electric field passes from one homogeneous medium to another, crossing the boundary between the two mediums imparts a discontinuity in the electric field. This results in electrostatic boundary conditions that depend on the type of mediums the field propagates through.
Consider a case where both the mediums across a boundary are two different dielectric materials. Recall that the electric field and electric displacement are proportional and related through the material's permittivity.

Electromotive Force

Electromotive Force

Electricity is generated by either electrons or ions flowing through a solution or a conducting medium. This flow of electrons or specifically electrical charge is defined as an electric current. When electrons move through a wire, they generate an electric current. It can be recalled that in a redox reaction, electrons are lost and gained. In the spontaneous redox reaction of zinc with copper, when zinc is immersed in a copper ion solution, a transfer of electrons from one substance to...

Electromotive Force

Electromotive Force

Electromotive force (emf) is the force that causes current to flow from a higher to a lower potential. The term "electromotive force" is used for historical reasons, even though emf is not a force at all.
Any circuit with a constant current must contain an emf-producing source. Examples of emf sources include batteries, electric generators, solar cells, thermocouples, and fuel cells. All these sources transform energy of some kind (mechanical, chemical, thermal, and so on) into electric...

Coulomb's Law and The Principle of Superposition

Coulomb's Law and The Principle of Superposition

Coulomb's Law describes the force experienced by two point charges under each other's presence. But what if there are more than two charges? For example, if there is a third charge, does it experience a force that is a simple combination of the individual forces due to the first two charges? Can it be described mathematically?
The Principle of Superposition answers the question. Yes, Coulomb's Law applies to each pair of charges, and the net force on each charge is the vector sum of the...

Carrier Generation and Recombination

Carrier Generation and Recombination

Carrier generation is the process by which electron-hole pairs (EHPs) are created within the semiconductor. In direct-bandgap semiconductors, such as gallium arsenide (GaAs), this occurs efficiently when energy absorption prompts valence electrons to leap into the conduction band, leaving behind holes.
This process is given by the generation rate G and is efficient due to the conservation of momentum between the valence band maximum and conduction band minimum.
Indirect generation involves an...

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Recombination Dynamics in Thin-film Photovoltaic Materials via Time-resolved Microwave Conductivity

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Electron force balance in steady collisionless-driven reconnection.

Bin Li¹, Ritoku Horiuchi

¹The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Toki 509-5292, Japan.

Physical Review Letters

|December 31, 2008

Summary

This study explores steady, collisionless magnetic reconnection in open systems using particle simulations. A novel force balance involving Lorentz and electrostatic forces was discovered, differing from previous models.

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Electrochemical Etching and Characterization of Sharp Field Emission Points for Electron Impact Ionization

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Published on: July 12, 2016

Area of Science:

Plasma Physics
Astrophysics
Space Physics

Background:

Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process in plasma physics, crucial for phenomena like solar flares and geomagnetic storms.
Previous models, such as the Harris equilibrium, often simplify the complex physics of reconnection, particularly in open systems.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate steady, collisionless-driven magnetic reconnection in an open system.
To identify the force balance governing the electron current sheet in such a system.
To analyze the role of electrostatic fields and instabilities in the reconnection process.

Main Methods:

Full-particle simulations were employed to model the collisionless magnetic reconnection.
Analysis focused on the electron current sheet dynamics and force balance in the inflow region.
Three-dimensional simulations were used to examine the impact of instabilities.

Main Results:

A long, thin electron current sheet forms in the steady state, extending towards the outflow.
A new force balance, distinct from the Harris equilibrium, is established between Lorentz and electrostatic forces in the inflow direction.
The Hall term and driving inflow generate a strong electrostatic field, with normalized charge density proportional to the square of the electron Alfvén velocity.

Conclusions:

The study reveals a novel force balance mechanism in collisionless magnetic reconnection within open systems.
Electrostatic fields play a critical role, driven by the Hall effect and inflow, influencing the reconnection dynamics.
Three-dimensional effects enhance this new force balance through instability growth, highlighting the importance of dimensionality in reconnection studies.