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Teaching Modern Physics - QuarkNet - Fermilab

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Millikan’s Experiment<br />

Draw on the student’s experimentation with the sticky tapes. . . .<br />

What would happen to an electron if it were near a negatively charged tape?<br />

(Repel)<br />

What would happen if an electron were placed near a positively charged tape?<br />

(Attract)<br />

If the electron has mass, what would the electron do under the influence of Earth’s gravitational<br />

field?<br />

(Fall down . . .)<br />

How could you design an experiment to make an electron stop falling to the Earth?<br />

You get to use an electron, Earth’s gravity, a negatively charged plate and a positively charged<br />

plate.<br />

(The experiment designed should always have the force of gravity (weight) of the electron<br />

balanced by the electric force of the field created by the charged plates. See diagram on website<br />

listed below.)<br />

This website has an excellent discussion with a link which simulates the experiment. The student<br />

needs to cause the electron to stop falling in the electric field.<br />

http://www68.pair.com/willisb/millikan/experiment.html<br />

(This site is nice, but the Java application/demo of Millikan’s Experiment freezes the computer<br />

eventually. . . .)<br />

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