Inside a hollow charged conductor in electrostatic equilibrium, the electric field is
Correct answer: A. zero everywhere
- A. zero everywhere
- B. maximum at the centre
- C. equal to the field just outside
- D. directed towards the centre
Explanation
Charges on a conductor arrange themselves on the outer surface until the field inside cancels completely; any residual field would move the free electrons until it did. This is the basis of the Faraday cage, which is why a car is a relatively safe place in a lightning storm and why sensitive equipment is shielded in metal boxes. The field just outside the surface, by contrast, is not zero.
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About Electric Field
An electric field is the force experienced per unit positive test charge, with the field of a point charge given by E = kQ/r² and directed away from positive charges or toward negative charges. Questions involve field lines, superposition and force on a charge, while electric field must be distinguished from electric potential.
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