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By Ankit Gupta
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Updated on 25 Apr 2025, 15:24 IST
Electricity is all around us — from the lights in our homes to the devices we use every day. But have you ever wondered how electric charges create forces, or how energy is stored in electric fields? To understand these things, we need to learn about a very important concept in physics: Electrostatic Potential.
Before diving into electrostatic potential, let’s recall that electric charges can either attract or repel each other. Positive and negative charges pull toward each other, while like charges push away. These forces act at a distance, meaning they don’t need to be touching to interact. This interaction happens through something called an electric field. Now, imagine if you had to move a tiny test charge inside that electric field — how much effort or work would it take? That’s where electrostatic potential comes in.
So, what is electrostatic potential? In simple words, electrostatic potential at a point is the amount of work needed to bring a unit positive charge from a faraway place (usually infinity) to that point in an electric field, without accelerating it. It helps us understand how much energy a charge has at a particular location in an electric field.
You can think of it like climbing a hill. If you're at the bottom, you have less potential energy. As you go up, you need to work against gravity, and your potential energy increases. Similarly, moving a charge in an electric field requires work, and this work gets stored as electrostatic potential energy. The higher the potential at a point, the more energy the charge would have at that location.
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Electrostatic potential is a scalar quantity, meaning it has only magnitude and no direction. Its unit is the volt (V), named after the scientist Alessandro Volta. Understanding electrostatic potential is important not only in physics but also in real-life applications like designing electric circuits, batteries, capacitors, and electronic devices.
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In the next sections, we will explore the formulas, applications, and derivations related to electrostatic potential in a very easy-to-understand manner.
Electrostatic potential at a point is the amount of work done to bring a unit positive charge from infinity to that point in an electric field.
Definition: It is the electric potential energy per unit charge.
V = W / q
V = (1 / 4πε0) * (Q / r)
Electrostatic potential energy is the energy stored due to the position of charges.
Formula: U = (1 / 4πε0) * (q1q2 / r)
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The dimension of electrostatic potential is [ML2T-3I-1].
Capacitance (C): C = Q / V
| Property | Electrostatic Potential | Capacitance |
| Definition | Work per unit charge | Charge per unit voltage |
| Formula | V = W / q | C = Q / V |
| Unit | Volt (V) | Farad (F) |
| Dimension | [ML2T-3I-1] | [M-1L-2T4I2] |
| Depends on | Electric field and position | Geometry and medium |
| Type | Scalar | Scalar |
In conductors, the electrostatic potential is the same throughout, and no electric field exists inside in electrostatic equilibrium. This leads to electrostatic shielding.
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Use electrostatic potential and capacitance NCERT solutions and notes for exam preparation. These include solved problems and derivations. You can also access the electrostatic potential and capacitance NCERT PDF or notes PDF for quick revision.
| Concept | Formula |
| Electrostatic Potential | V = W / q |
| Point Charge Potential | V = (1 / 4πε0) * (Q / r) |
| Electrostatic Potential Energy | U = (1 / 4πε0) * (q1q2 / r) |
| Capacitance | C = Q / V |
| Parallel Plate Capacitor | C = ε0A / d |
Q: Find the electrostatic potential energy between two charges of +3μC and -3μC placed 0.1 m apart.
Solution: U = 9 x 109 * (3 x 10-6 * -3 x 10-6) / 0.1 = -0.81 J
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We explored how to define electrostatic potential, learned about electrostatic potential energy and its formula, examined the dimension of electrostatic potential, and connected everything with capacitance. With the help of electrostatic potential and capacitance NCERT solutions and downloadable notes PDF, you can revise efficiently for Class 12 exams or competitive exams like NEET and JEE.
Electric potential, potential drop, or electric field potential.
Volt (V).
ML²T⁻³I⁻¹.
V and φ (phi).
You can download electrostatic potential and capacitance NCERT solutions, notes PDF, and even NCERT chapter PDFs from trusted educational platforms like Infinity Learn, NCERT’s official website, or academic apps that provide Class 12 Physics resources.
Electrostatic potential is the work per unit charge (V = W/q).
Electrostatic potential energy is the total energy due to the interaction between charges (U = k·q₁·q₂/r).
Potential is per charge; energy is total for a system of charges.
Electrostatic potential is the amount of work needed to bring a unit positive charge from a far distance (infinity) to a specific point in an electric field. It tells us how much energy a charge would gain or lose at that point.