In this lab, an experiment was conducted to verify the relationship between an electrical field and the equipotential map. Electrical fields are mapped out using equipotential lines. Electrical fields are defined as a force per unit charge. In our daily life, we are surrounded by electric fields. For these small fields that we cannot sense, we use a tool called voltmeter to measure different aspects of electricity. By the end of the experiment, maps of equipotential will be created, thus generate an electric field.
In this experiment, a negative probe of a voltmeter is connected to the negative terminal of the power supply. Data of voltage readings will be collected based on the x-y coordinates. An increment of 3cm for every x coordinate (x=0, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15) and voltage readings of .25, .30, .50, .75, and 1.00 will be measured. Below are two tables (because two different metal plates are used) of data that illustrate the voltage readings collected during the experiment.
The readings on the voltmeter measure the electric potential of two different charge distributions and this measurement can be used to find the electric field. Electric field lines starts on a positive charge and end on a negative charge. The number of electric field lines tells us the amount of
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It appears that the diagrams do agree with my understanding of the concept of equipotential and electric fields. For both of the maps, the electric field lines are closer in the middle, which means that the electric fields are stronger in the middle. Most of the voltages have similar electric potentials, which explains that no work is done. Since no work done is being done on these field lines and the equipotential lines should be perpendicular to the electric field lines. However, it appears to be slightly off from what should be expected, and this may be caused by some sources of