Electroscope

Electroscope

An electroscope is a scientific instrument used to detect the presence of electric charge on body. In the year 1600, British physician William Gilbert invented the first electroscope. It is the first electrical instrument. There are two types of electroscope: pith-ball electroscope and gold-leaf electroscope. An electroscope is made out of conducting materials, generally metal. It works on the principle that like charges repel each other. In a simple electroscope two metal sheets are hung in contact with each other. They are connected to a metal rod that extends upwards, and ends in a knob at the end.

The first electroscope developed in 1600 by William Gilbert was called versorium. The versorium was simply a metal needle allowed to pivot freely on a pedestal. The metal would be attracted to charged bodies brought near.

If you bring a charged object near the knob, electrons will either move out of it or into it. This will result in charges accumulating on the metal leaves inside the electroscope. If a negatively charged object is brought near the top knob of the electroscope, it causes free electrons in the electroscope to move down into the leaves, leaving the top positive. Since both the leaves have negative charge, they repel each other and move apart. If a positive object is brought near the top knob of the electroscope, the free electrons in the electroscope start to move up towards the knob. This means that the bottom has a net positive charge. The leaves will spread apart again now.

Gold leaf electroscope

The gold-leaf electroscope was developed in 1787 by a British scientist named Abraham Bennet. Gold and silver are used in electroscope because they are the best conductors of electric current.

Structure of Electroscope

It is made up of a glass jar. A vertical brass rod is inserted into the jar through a cork. The top of the brass rod has a horizontal brass rod or a brass disc. Two gold leaves are suspended from the brass rod inside the jar.

Working of Electroscope

When the brass disc of the electroscope is touched by a charged object, electric charge gets transferred to the gold leaf through the rod. This results in gold leaves moving away from each other. This happens because both the leaves have similar charges.

 Charging

Transfer of charge from one object to another is called charging. In case of the gold leaves, charge is transferred through the brass rods.

Electrical discharge

The gold leaves resume their normal position after some time. This happens because they lose their charge. This process is called electrical discharge. The gold leaves would also be discharged when someone touches the brass rod with bare hands. In that case, the charge is transferred to the earth through the human body.