electric potential

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A Dictionary of Biology

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

electric potential

electric potential work per unit of electric charge expended in moving a charged body from a reference point to any given point in an electric field (see electrostatics ). The potential at the reference point is considered to be zero, and the reference point itself is usually chosen to be at infinity. It can be shown that the potential associated with a charged body at a given point in a static electric field is independent of the path along which the body has traveled in passing from infinity to the given point. Potential is measured in volts and is sometimes called voltage.

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electric potential

A Dictionary of Biology | 2004 | Â© A Dictionary of Biology 2004, originally published by Oxford University Press 2004. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

electric potential Symbol V. The energy required to bring unit electric charge from infinity to the point in an electric field at which the potential is being specified. The unit of electric potential is the volt. The potential difference (p.d.) between two points in an electric field or circuit is the difference in the values of the electric potentials at the two points, i.e. it is the work done in moving unit charge from one point to the other.

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