Question

Describe what happens when a positive charged rod is brought close (but does not touch) to a metal electrosphere?

What happens (same scenario) if the electrosphere is neutral?

Answer 1

When a positively charged rod is brought close to (but does not touch) a metal electrosphere, in the sphere, the free electrons closest to the rod get attracted to the side where the rod is. As a result, the part of the sphere nearest the rod becomes negatively charged and the part farthest away becomes positively charged. These positively and negatively charged regions were induced to form because of the attractive force between the positive rod and the free electrons in the sphere. If the rod were removed, the free electrons would return to their original places, and the charged regions would disappear.

If the electrosphere is neutral, the electric force would be small. The electric force would cause the positive and negative charges in the molecules of the sphere to separate slightly, with the negative charges being attracted toward the positive charged rod.