Question
An oil drop of 12 excess electrons is held stationary under a constant electric field of 2.55 x 104 NC–1 in Millikan’s oil drop experiment. The density of the oil is 1.26 g cm–3. Estimate the radius of the drop. (g = 9.81 ms–2 : e = 1.60 x 10–19 C).
Solution
Given,
Since, the droplet is stationary,
Weight of the droplet = force due to the electric field