white01 phymath01 physicscentral.com A dipole can be created, for example, when you place a neutral atom in an electric field, because the positively-charged constituents of the atom will be pulled one way, and the negatively-charged constituents the other way, creating a separation of charge in the direction of the field.

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What is an electric dipole?

Electric dipole: A physical dipole with charge, equipotentials and electric fields indicated.
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Answer: An electric dipole is two charged objects, with equal but opposite electric charges, that are separated by a distance. The electric field caused by a dipole falls off as the cube (third power) of the distance from the dipole, and has a directional variation that depends on whether you’re moving along the line separating the two charges or perpendicular to it. A dipole can be created, for example, when you place a neutral atom in an electric field, because the positively-charged constituents of the atom will be pulled one way, and the negatively-charged constituents the other way, creating a separation of charge in the direction of the field.
Answered by:
Alan Chodos, PhD
Associate Executive Officer
The American Physical Society
Submitted by:
Mayank from India