Particle Acceleration in Electric Field Calculator

Acceleration of a Charged Particle

A charged particle in a uniform electric field experiences an electric force \(F = qE\). By Newton's second law, its acceleration is determined by charge, field strength, and mass.

Formula

where \(q\) is charge in coulombs (C), \(E\) is electric field in newtons per coulomb (N/C), and \(m\) is mass in kilograms (kg). An electron (\(q = 1.602 \times 10^{-19}\) C, \(m = 9.109 \times 10^{-31}\) kg) in a 1000 N/C field accelerates at about \(1.76 \times 10^{14}\) m/s².

Direction and Sign

Positive charges accelerate in the direction of the electric field; negative charges accelerate opposite to the field. The magnitude depends only on \(|q|\), \(E\), and \(m\) when solving for acceleration magnitude.