Practice question · Select all that apply
Which are true of a conductor in electrostatic equilibrium?
Hints
- Three follow from nothing moving; one would drive a surface current.
- A tangential field along the surface would push charge along it.
Show the answer
- A. All excess charge resides on the surface
- C. The entire conductor is at one potential
- D. The interior field is zero
Why
Zero interior field forces surface-only charge and a single potential throughout. A tangential surface field would drive charge along the surface, which contradicts equilibrium, so the surface field is purely perpendicular.
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