Charged conductors:
1. Conduction of Charges: Charged conductors allow electric charges to move freely within their material. When a charged conductor is touched or connected to another conductor, the electric charges can easily transfer from one object to another.
2. Electric Field Distribution: In a charged conductor, the electric field is zero inside the conductor. This is because the mobile charges inside the conductor redistribute themselves to cancel out any internal electric field.
3. Charge Distribution: The charges in a charged conductor tend to accumulate on the outer surface of the conductor. This is due to the repulsive forces between like charges, causing them to spread out as far as possible.
4. Attraction of Charges: Charged conductors attract both positive and negative charges. The attractive force between a charged conductor and a neutral object is due to the polarization of the neutral object.
5. Discharging: Charged conductors can be easily discharged by touching or connecting them to a grounded object. This allows the electric charges to flow away and neutralize the conductor.
Insulators:
1. Non-conduction of Charges: Insulators are materials that do not allow electric charges to move freely within them. They have high resistance to the flow of electric current.
2. Electric Field Distribution: The electric field inside an insulator is not zero. It is determined by the external charges influencing the insulator.
3. Charge Distribution: Insulators do not accumulate electric charges on their surfaces. They remain neutral even when placed in an electric field.
4. No Attraction of Charges: Insulators do not attract charged objects since they do not have any mobile charges to experience a force.
5. Charging: Insulators can be charged by friction or induction, but the charges remain fixed on the surface of the insulator rather than moving freely.
In summary, charged conductors are materials that allow the movement of electric charges and have a zero electric field inside, while insulators are materials that do not conduct electric charges and have a non-zero electric field inside.
