Millikan’s Experiment

(Fields)

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1
 Learning Objectives The Four Fundamental Forces

D
Describe the Millikan experiment

Identify the forces on a charge in an

electric field

Apply the correct formulae to calculate

charge

Compare and contrast Millikan’s

methods with scientific practice
A All other forces you know about can be attributed to one of these!

Historical Setting

Einstein
Millikan
Early 1900s
Rutherford had reported his
alpha scattering
experiments. Structure of
atom known but not
accepted by everyone.
Charge on an alpha particle
known.
Experiments with cathode
rays known including fact
that negatively charged.

Starter… My Results:
Problem: Number Mass Subtract smallest value

Each container contains an unknown 8 22 0

2 27 5
number of sweets 5 27 5
4 32 10
6 32 10
How do I find the mass of one sweet?
10 42 20
1 42 20
9 47 25
3 47 25
7 52 30

2
 Change in Mass Histogram The Electron
3
N um be r

2
1
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Mass

So, Smallest mass must be……. Thompson measured the charge/mass

ratio of the electron to be 1.76 × 108
5g coulombs/g.

Millikan Oil Drop Experiment

Back to Millikan;

Describe the Millikan experiment

He too was
looking for
discrete units of
charge…

In essence;
Blue plates charged – charge can be Design of the Experiment
varied.
Describe the Millikan experiment

Describe the Millikan experiment

Oil drops fall through hole in top plate.

Xrays place electrons on drops.
Microscope used for observing drops.

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 Acceleration: gravitational and electrical

A falling ball An accelerating charge

starts at high starts at high

gravitational electrical
potential energy potential
energy
gravitational electric
field g field
mass m charge q +
height h
+ potential
difference V
gains gains
kinetic kinetic –
energy energy
ends at low ends at low
gravitational electrical
potential energy potential energy

+
gravitational electric
potential potential

ball falls down gravitational charge ‘falls down’ electrical

potential hill potential hill
∆Ep=mg∆h ∆W = Q∆V
gain of kinetic energy = loss of potential energy = mgh gain of kinetic energy = loss of potential energy = qV

An electric field accelerates a charge as a gravitational field accelerates a mass

Two ways of describing electrical forces

A B
Action at a distance Action via electric field F To move the charge from
+Q
A to B a force equal to F would
+V be needed. The work done
forces on
charges on moving Q from A to B is W.
charges from
+ _ plates produce + _
combined electric field
attractions and + _ + _ d W = Fd
repulsions by
charges on + _ forces on + _
repel + attract charges from + But E = F/Q or F = EQ
plates _ _
+ electric field +
(vectors) _ _ So, W = EQd
+ +
+ _ + – _
_ _
V Potential difference is defined as
+ + work done per unit charge:
attract – repel _ _
+ +
_ _ V = W/Q
+ +
position So: V = W/Q = EQd /Q
Forces act across empty space Electric field: forces act locally, field ‘fills space’ d
V = Ed
Defining electric field

E = F/q g = F/m E = V/d (Uniform fields)

field E
+ –1
unit of E is N C
charge q force F

Acceleration: gravitational and electrical

A falling ball An accelerating charge

starts at high starts at high

gravitational electrical
potential energy potential
energy
gravitational electric

g∆h
field g field

height h
mass m charge q

+
+

potential
difference V
∆Ep=m
gains gains
kinetic kinetic –
energy energy
ends at low ends at low

∆W = Q ∆V
gravitational electrical
potential energy potential energy

+
gravitational electric
potential potential

ball falls down gravitational charge ‘falls down’ electrical

potential hill potential hill
∆Ep=mg∆h ∆W = Q∆V
gain of kinetic energy = loss of potential energy = mgh gain of kinetic energy = loss of potential energy = qV

An electric field accelerates a charge as a gravitational field accelerates a mass

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 Draw the forces acting on the drop
E∆d

Identify the forces on a charge in an electric field

∆Ep=m

∆W = Q ∆V
E

∆V = E ∆d Can you come up with an expression

for the charge on the droplet?

E = ∆V/∆d

How do we find the mass?

Draw the forces acting on the drop
Identify the forces on a charge in an electric field

Identify the forces on a charge in an electric field

F= Eq Terminal velocity!

q = mg
E
Can you come up with an expression

for the charge on the droplet?

F= mg Fd=6πrηv1 η = Viscosity of air

Answers;
Worksheet
400 V +
3.2 × 10Š2 m 600 V
200 V Š

1) Orange lines above, with arrows

2) Green lines above, without arrows

3) E = V/d = 600 / 3.2 x 10-2 = 18,750 V m-1 = 1.9 x 104 V m-1 (2sf)

4) electric force upward = weight downward

EQ = mg
Q = mg/E = 1.8 x 10-15 x 9.81 / 1.9 x 104 = 9.4 x 10-19 C

5) 9.4 x 10-19 / 1.6 x 10-19 = 5.9

Therefore, most likely number of extra electrons = 6.

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 Cargo Cult Science…
-1.591 × 10-19 C A term used by Richard Feynman to
describe work that has the
semblance of being scientific, but is
missing…
−1.6021764874 × 10-19 C "a kind of scientific
integrity, a principle of

?
scientific thought that
corresponds to a kind of
utter honesty"

Mohr, Peter J.; Taylor, Barry N.; Newell, David B. (2006-06-06). "CODATA
recommended values of the fundamental physical constants". Reviews of Modern Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific
Physics 80: 633–730 practice

“Millikan… …got an answer

which we now know not to be
quite right. It's a little bit off Why didn't they discover
because he had the incorrect the new number was
value for the viscosity of air.
higher right away?

Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific
practice practice

“It's a thing that scientists are

ashamed of - this history - because
it's apparent that people did things
like this: When they got a number
that was too high above Millikan's, It gets worse……….
they thought something must be
wrong - and they would look for
and find a reason why something
might be wrong. When they got a
number close to Millikan's value
they didn't look so hard.”

Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific

practice

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 Was Millikan Dishonest? Was Millikan Dishonest?
Millikan's exclusions of data did not affect the final
Millikan did not use all his data points in value of e that Millikan obtained
his published articles.
That there was substantial "cosmetic surgery" that
Millikan performed which had the effect of
reducing the statistical error on e.
Millikan said in his articles that he did use
all points. This enabled Millikan to quote the figure that he had
calculated e to better than 0.5%; in fact, it was to
within 2%.
How can both be true? The slightly larger uncertainty might have allowed
more disagreement with his results within the physics
community.
Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific
practice practice

Describe the Millikan experiment

Identify the forces on a charge in an electric field

Is this ethically correct? Apply the correct formulae to calculate charge

Compare and contrast Millikan’s methods with scientific practice

And Finally
Would we have been more Write down:
likely to get a correct value
with all the info? One key thing you’ve learnt today

One question you’d like to ask me

Compare and contrast Millikan’s
methods with scientific practice One question I should ask the others to
check their learning