What Is the Electric Constant and Why Should You Care?

The article explains the significance of the electric constant, also known as Coulomb’s constant (k), which is fundamental in calculating the force between electric charges. This constant is crucial because electric forces govern the interactions between charged particles—primarily electrons and protons—that make up all matter. Without these forces, atoms and molecules would not form, and life as we know it would be impossible. The electric constant appears in Coulomb’s law, formulated by Charles-Augustin de Coulomb in 1785, which quantifies the electrostatic force between two charges based on their magnitude and the distance between them. The value of k is approximately 8.987 x 10^9 N·m²/C², reflecting the strength of electric forces, which are much stronger than gravitational forces but often cancel out at the macroscopic scale due to the balance of positive and negative charges. The article also touches on the nature of fundamental physical constants, such as the speed of light and Planck’s constant,