[Physics] Force on a dielectric

capacitancedielectric

Why is a dielectric slab repelled when inserted between the plates of a parallel plate capacitor which is connected to a battery of constant emf?

I think that it should get repelled as when the dielectric is inserted in the capacitor (connected to a battery) it increases the potential energy . And in most simple terms , the system tries to decrease its energy by repelling it . But I don't know if it is correct . And if it is correct please can you elaborate how it actually happens.

Best Answer

Due to opposite charges induced on the faces of the dielectric due to the capacitor plates, the slab is attarcted. You can also see that as the dielectric goes in there is a constant rearrangement of charges, which requires work to be done. Who van do this work? Of course, thr electric field of the capacitor does thereby decreasing its own electric field by 1/k (k= dielectric const.) And this decreases the field energy finally. Edge effects also play a role here