Mistake Master
Mistake Master · AP Physics C: E&M · Unit 10 · Step-Through Animation
The Hole Is Not the Metal
You'll learnwhere "zero field inside a conductor" really applies, what a metal box can and cannot hide, and why sparks start at sharp points.
A metal shell with a charge sealed inside its hollow centre. Is the field zero in there? Can anyone outside tell the charge is in it? Twelve short steps; press Next for each one.
zero field in the metal only · the shield only works one way
Before you start
What you're looking at
A metal shell in cross-section: the grey ring is metal, the hole is a cavity, and a small pink disc is a positive charge. Green arrows are the electric field.
The question
Where exactly is the field zero, and what can the metal really shield?
Step 1 / 12