Meaning of Permittivity
Question:
What does the term "permittivity" actually mean? I
thought it is like permeability but my classmates say they are
totally different. Aren't they both some kind of resistance
presence in a medium?
Answer:
Dielectric permittivity is the ability of a dielectric to store
electrical potential energy under the influence of an electric
field measured by the ratio of the capacitance of a condenser
with the material as dielectric to its capacitance with vacuum as
dielectric -- called also dielectric constant. Magnetic
permeability is the ability of a material to effect the magnetic
field created by an electric current, measured by the ratio of
the field strength in the given material to that in a vacuum.
Permeability acts in magnetic circuits somewhat analogus to
conductance in electric circuits. Permittivity acts in electric
circuits more like the spring constant in Hookes law in
mechanics.
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