Lightning Plate



ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM - ELECTRIC FIELDS AND POTENTIAL - ELECTROSTATIC POTENTIAL	NC State University Faculty Access

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Description: Hang the lightning plate on the insulating stand and connect each end to either the Van De Graaff or Wimshurst electrostatic generators. When the generator is turned on, sparks will begin to jump the gaps (at the same time) as the generator is grounded. Things to note about this demonstration: 1) The sparks always follow the shortest path. 2) Spark brightness is uniform for all gap widths. The total of all the spark gaps is about 1.1 inches (2.8mm) and will require a minium voltage of 25,000 to 30,000 volts. Parts: Lightning Plate Van de Graaff or Wimshurst Electrostatic Generator Grounding Stand Grounding Rod Purchased/Built: purchased Setup Time: 1 hour Quant. in Demo Room: 1 Source: Central Scientific

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