Question Detail

PHY 102 ELECTROSTATICS Objective Question
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Question

What happens when an electric field is applied across an insulator?
Options
A Free electrons move readily, allowing current to flow.
B The material breaks down immediately.
C Electrons are only displaced, causing the material to become polarized.
Correct Answer
D The material instantly becomes a semiconductor.
Correct Answer

Option C is the correct answer.

Detailed Explanation

The document states: 'Insulators do not have any free electrons in their outermost shells. As such, when you apply an electric field across an insulator, the electrons are only displaced, and you say such a material is polarized.'

Hint

Insulators resist the flow of current, but their internal charges can still respond to an external field.

Question Info

Course: PHY 102
Topic: ELECTROSTATICS
Type: Objective
Difficulty: Not specified
Question 777 of 1819
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