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In electromagnetism, charge density is a measure of electric charge per unit volume of space, in one, two or
three dimensions. More specifically: the linear, surface, or volume charge density is the amount of electric charge
per unit length, surface area, or volume, respectively. The respective SI units are C·m−1, C·m−2 or C·m−3.[1]
Like any density, charge density can depend on position, but because charge can be negative - so can the
density. It should not be confused with the charge carrier density, the number of charge carriers (e.g. electrons,
ions) in a material per unit volume, not including the actual charge on the carriers.
In chemistry, it can refer to the charge distribution over the volume of a particle; such as a molecule, atom or ion.
Therefore, a lithium cation will carry a higher charge density than a sodium cation due to the lithium cation's
having a smaller ionic radius, even though sodium has more protons (11) than lithium (3).
Contents
1 Definitions
1.1 Continuous charges
1.2 Average charge densities
2 Free, bound and total charge
2.1 Total charge densities
2.2 Bound charge
2.3 Free charge density
3 Homogeneous charge density
4 Discrete charges
5 Relative charge density
6 Charge density (quantum mechanics)
7 Application
8 See also
9 References
10 External links
Definitions
Continuous charges
The linear charge density is the ratio of an infinitesimal electric charge dQ (SI unit: C) to an infinitesimal line
element,
Integrating the definitions gives the total charge Q of a region according to line integral of the linear charge
density λq (r) over a line or 1d curve C,
The total charge divided by the length, surface area, or volume will be the average charge densities:
Free charges are the excess charges which can move into electrostatic equilibrium, i.e. when the charges
are not moving and the resultant electric field is independent of time, or constitute electric currents.[2]
where subscripts "f" and "b" denote "free" and "bound" respectively.
Bound charge
The bound surface charge is the charge piled-up at the surface of the dielectric, given by the dipole moment
perpendicular to the surface:[3]
where s is the separation between the point charges constituting the dipole. Taking infinitesimals:
and dividing by the differential surface element dS gives the bound surface charge density:
where P is the polarization density, i.e. density of electric dipole moments within the material, and dV is the
differential volume element.
Using the divergence theorem, the bound volume charge density within the material is
hence:
The negative sign arises due to the opposite signs on the charges in the dipoles, one end is within the volume of
the object, the other at the surface.
Derivation of bound surface and volume charge densities from internal dipole moments
(bound charges)
The electric potential due to a dipole moment d is:
For a continuous distribution, the material can be divided up into infinitely many infinitesimal dipoles
where dV = d3r′ is the volume element, so the potential is the volume integral over the object:
Since
integrating by parts
which separates into the potential of the surface charge (surface integral) and the potential due to
the volume charge (volume integral):
that is
Free charge density
The free charge density serves as a useful simplification in Gauss's law for electricity; the volume integral of it is
the free charge enclosed in a charged object - equal to the net flux of the electric displacement field D emerging
from the object:
The proof of this is immediate. Start with the definition of the charge of any volume:
Then, by definition of homogeneity, ρq (r) is a constant denoted by ρq, 0 (to differ between the constant and non-
constant densities), and so by the properties of an integral can be pulled outside of the integral resulting in:
so,
The equivalent proofs for linear charge density and surface charge density follow the same arguments as above.
Discrete charges
If the charge in a region consists of N discrete point-like charge carriers like electrons the charge density can be
expressed via the Dirac delta function, for example, the volume charge density is:
where r is the position to calculate the charge, qi is the charge of the charge carriers, labelled conveniently by
number using the index i, whose position is ri.
If all charge carriers have the same charge q (for electrons q = −e, the electron charge) the charge density can
be expressed through the charge carrier density n(r) by
Again, the equivalent equations for the linear and surface charge densities follow directly from the above
relations.
where q is the charge of the particle and |ψ(r)|2 = ψ*(r)ψ(r) is the probability density function i.e. probability per
unit volume of a particle located at r.
Application
The charge density appears in the continuity equation for electric current, also in Maxwell's Equations. It is the
principal source term of the electromagnetic field, when the charge distribution moves this corresponds to a
current density.
See also
Continuity equation relating charge density and current density
Ionic potential
charge density wave
References
1. ^ P.M. Whelan, M.J. Hodgeson (1978). Essential Principles of Physics (2nd ed.). John Murray. ISBN 0-7195-
3382-1.
2. ^ a b I.S. Grant, W.R. Phillips (2008). Electromagnetism (2nd ed.). Manchester Physics, John Wiley & Sons.
ISBN 9-780471-927129.
3. ^ a b c d D.J. Griffiths (2007). Introduction to Electrodynamics (3rd ed.). Pearson Education, Dorling
Kindersley. ISBN 81-7758-293-3.
4. ^ A. French (1968) Special Relativity, chapter 8 Relativity and electricity, pp 229–65, W. W. Norton.
A. Halpern (1988). 3000 Solved Problems in Physics. Schaum Series, Mc Graw Hill. ISBN 978-0-
07-025734-4.
G. Woan (2010). The Cambridge Handbook of Physics Formulas. Cambridge University Press.
ISBN 978-0-521-57507-2.
P. A. Tipler, G. Mosca (2008). Physics for Scientists and Engineers - with Modern Physics (6th ed.).
Freeman. ISBN 978-0-7167-8964-2.
R.G. Lerner, G.L. Trigg (1991). Encyclopaedia of Physics (2nd ed.). VHC publishers. ISBN 978-0-
89573-752-6.
C.B. Parker (1994). McGraw Hill Encyclopaedia of Physics (2nd ed.). VHC publishers. ISBN 978-
0-07-051400-3.
External links
[1] (http://faculty.wwu.edu/vawter/PhysicsNet/Topics/Gauss/SpacialCharge.html) - Spatial charge
distributions