Understanding Electrostatic Potential and Field Distributions by Simulation

Pragati Ashdhir, Aishwary Jai Singh, Chirag Tutlani

Hindu College, University of Delhi

Electrostatic field and potential distribution in space due to different charge configurations are computed and simulated. The aim is to aid the teaching-learning of these concepts at the high school and introductory undergraduate level. The finite difference method is used to numerically solve Laplace and Poisson equations subject to boundary conditions appropriate for a given charge configuration. Charge configurations in the form of a single point charge, multiple point charges, a dipole, a quadrupole and a line charge have been discussed. Scilab, an open source computational software has been used for numerical simulations in the work.