Specific Expectations

Understanding Basic Concepts

By the end of this course, students will:

• EG1.01 define and describe the concepts and units related to electric, gravitational, and magnetic fields (e.g., electric and gravitational potential energy, electric field, gravitational field strength, magnetic field, electromagnetic induction);
• EG1.02 state Coulomb’s law and Newton’s law of universal gravitation, and analyse and compare them in qualitative terms;
• EG1.03 apply Coulomb’s law and Newton’s law of universal gravitation quantitatively in specific contexts;
• EG1.04 compare the properties of electric, gravitational, and magnetic fields by describing and illustrating the source and direction of the field in each case;
• EG1.05 apply quantitatively the concept of electric potential energy in a variety of contexts, and compare the characteristics of electric potential energy with those of gravitational potential energy;
• EG1.06 analyse in quantitative terms, and illustrate using field and vector diagrams, the electric field and the electric forces produced by a single point charge, two point charges, and two oppositely charged parallel plates (e.g., analyse, using vector diagrams, the electric force required to balance the gravitational force on an oil drop or on latex spheres between parallel plates);
• EG1.07 describe and explain, in qualitative terms, the electric field that exists inside and on the surface of a charged conductor (e.g., inside and around a coaxial cable);
• EG1.08 predict the forces acting on a moving charge and on a current-carrying conductor in a uniform magnetic field.

Developing Skills of Inquiry and Communication

By the end of this course, students will:

• EG2.01 determine the net force on, and resulting motion of, objects and charged particles by collecting, analysing, and interpreting quantitative data from experiments or computer simulations involving electric, gravitational, and magnetic fields (e.g., calculate the charge on an electron, using experimentally collected data; conduct an experiment to verify Coulomb’s law and analyse discrepancies between theoretical and empirical values);
• EG2.02 analyse and explain the properties of electric fields and demonstrate how an understanding of these properties can be applied to control or alter the electric field around a conductor (e.g., demonstrate how shielding on electronic equipment or on connecting conductors [coaxial cables] affects electric and magnetic fields).