12 April 2020

Difference between Electric and Magnetic Field

The main key difference between the electric magnetic filed is that the electric field is the area around the charged particle, it was introduced by Faraday while the magnetic field is the area or region around the magnetic where the poles of magnetic shows force of attraction or propulsion. The main key difference between electric and magnetic field are listed below.

Definition of the electric field:

The force around the electric charge particle is called an electrical field or electric field intensity. In same way, it is an area around the electric field where the force line exists. It has magnitude and direction. Hence it is a vector quantity. The symbol of E is expressed in the electric field and it is measured in newton/ coulomb.

Definition of a magnetic field:

The region around the magnetic field where its poles exhibit a force of attraction or repulsion is called the magnetic field. The magnetic field also induces when the electric charges are moving in space or an electrical conductor.


The main key difference between electric and magnetic field are listed below:


  • The SI unit of an electric field is the newton per coulomb whereas the SI unit of the magnetic field is Tesla.
  • Direction and magnitude specify the magnetic field. Thus it is a vector quantity. The electric field is also called as the vector field.
  • The electric field intensity is expressed by the symbol of E whereas the magnetic field intensity is expressed by B.
  • The region around the electric charge where the electric force exists that is called an electric field. The area around the magnet where the pole of the magnet exhibits a force of attraction or repulsion is called a magnetic field.
  • The electric field lines do not form a loop whereas the magnetic field lines form the closed-loop.
  • The electric field line induces on a positive charge and extinguishes on a negative charge while the magnetic field line generated from a north pole and terminates to the south pole of the magnet.
  • In an electromagnetic field, the electric field is perpendicular to the magnetic field whereas the magnetic field is perpendicular to an electric field.
  • The electric field intensity is measured by a spectrometer whereas the magnetometer measures the magnetic field intensity.
  • The electric field produces by a unit pole charge either by a positive or through a negative charge while the magnetic field caused by a dipole of the magnet.
  • The electric field induced by a single charge while the magnetic field induced by a north and south pole of the magnet.
  • The electric field is directly proportional to the flux whereas the intensity of the magnetic field depends on the number of field lines produces by the magnet.
  • The formula of the electric field is E = F/q while the magnetic field is B = Fi/ A.
  • An electric field exists two-dimension while the magnetic field exists three-dimension.
  • The electric field line can do work the speed and the direction of the charge changes while the magnetic field cannot do work. The direction of the charge change but the speed of the particles remains constant.
  • In the electric field, the like charges repel each other and the unlike charges attract each other, whereas the magnetic field the like poles repel each other the unlike poles attracts with each other.