Skip to content
Marlbridge

AP® Physics 2: Algebra-Based · Unit 10 · Topic 10.3

Electric Fields: Topic Checklist (Physics 2 10.3)

Specific “I can…” statements for electric fields, each linked to the guide section and practice question that shows whether you can really do it.

Work through the list without notes. If you cannot do a statement, follow its link, then come back. Guide = study guide; Practice = practice questions.

Understanding

  • I can explain how a charged object sets up an electric field and why the field exists whether or not a charge is there to feel it. (Guide: “What an electric field is”)
  • I can define the field as force per unit test charge and say why a test charge must be small. (Guide: “What an electric field is”; Practice Q1)
  • I can state which way the field points near positive and negative charges, and which way a positive or negative charge is pushed. (Guide: “Direction of the field and of the force”; Practice Q1, Q5)
  • I can explain why the field inside a conductor in equilibrium is zero, why its excess charge is on the surface, and why the field at the surface is perpendicular to it. (Guide: “Charged conductors and insulators”; Practice Q3)

Calculation and skills

  • I can use E = F_E/q to find a field from a measured force, and the force on a new charge from a known field. (Practice Q1, Q5)
  • I can calculate the field of a point charge and predict how it changes when the distance changes. (Guide: “Field of a point charge”; Practice Q2)
  • I can add the fields of two to four charges using components and symmetry. (Guide: Worked examples 1 and 2; Practice Q6)
  • I can draw and read vector field maps and field-line diagrams, including what line spacing and line numbers show. (Guide: Figure 1; Practice Q4)
  • I can find the field outside a charged sphere by treating it as a point charge at its centre. (Guide: Worked example 3; Practice Q7)

Reasoning

  • I can find where the net field of two charges on a line is zero and explain why it is not between unlike charges. (Guide: Worked example 1)
  • I can explain why fields at an angle cannot be added as plain numbers. (Practice Q6d)
  • I can compare the field inside a charged conductor with the field inside a charged insulator. (Practice Q7)

All ticked? Move on to Topic 10.4, Electric Potential Energy, or return to the course roadmap.

AP® and Advanced Placement® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse, this website. Marlbridge is an independent tuition provider. It is not an authorized AP course provider, an AP school or an exam centre, and these resources are not official College Board materials. Reading them or doing simulations does not meet the laboratory requirement of an AP science course.