Electric charge

Electric charge is a fundamental conserved property of some subatomic particles, which determines their electromagnetic interactions. Electrically charged matter is influenced by, and produces, electromagnetic fields. The interaction between charge and field is the source of one of the four fundamental forces, the electromagnetic force.

Related Topics:
Subatomic particles - Electromagnetic interactions - Electromagnetic field - Fundamental force - Electromagnetic force

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Electric charge is a quantum number. Electrons have a charge, by convention, of −1. Protons have the opposite charge of +1. Quarks have a fractional charge of −1/3 or +2/3. The antiparticle equivalents of these have the opposite charge. There are other charged particles.

Related Topics:
Quantum number - Electron - Proton - Quark - Antiparticle - Charged particle

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Q is a measurement of the charge held by an object. The SI unit of electric charge is the coulomb, which represents approximately 6.24 x 1018 elementary charges (the charge on a single electron or proton). The coulomb is defined as the quantity of charge that has passed through the cross-section of a conductor carrying one ampere within one second. (see Ampere)

Related Topics:
SI - Coulomb - Elementary charge - Conductor - Ampere

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Electric charge can be directly measured with an electrometer. The discrete nature of electric charge was demonstrated by Robert Millikan in his oil-drop experiment.

Related Topics:
Electrometer - Robert Millikan - Oil-drop experiment

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Formally, a measure of charge should be a multiple of the elementary charge e (charge is quantized), but since it is an average, macroscopic quantity, many orders of magnitude larger than a single elementary charge, it can effectively take on any real value.

Related Topics:
Elementary charge - Quantized - Macroscopic - Real value

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