1 Answer
Electric field intensity is a vector quantity. This means it has both magnitude (how strong the field is) and direction (which way the field is pointing).
The electric field at any point in space is defined as the force that a positive test charge would experience at that point, divided by the magnitude of the test charge. Since force is a vector and the direction of the field depends on the position relative to the source charge, the electric field also has a direction.
In mathematical terms, the electric field E is often expressed as:
\[
\mathbf{E} = \frac{\mathbf{F}}{q}
\]
Where:
So, in short: Electric field intensity is a vector.
The electric field at any point in space is defined as the force that a positive test charge would experience at that point, divided by the magnitude of the test charge. Since force is a vector and the direction of the field depends on the position relative to the source charge, the electric field also has a direction.
In mathematical terms, the electric field E is often expressed as:
\[
\mathbf{E} = \frac{\mathbf{F}}{q}
\]
Where:
- E is the electric field,
- F is the force,
- q is the test charge.
So, in short: Electric field intensity is a vector.