Exams › JEE Main › Physics

Conservation of electric charge implies that:

1. charge resides on particles
2. charge cannot be created or destroyed
3. equal and opposite charges can be created simultaneously
4. the total number of charged particles in the universe stays constant

Correct answer: equal and opposite charges can be created simultaneously

Solution

Charge conservation means the net charge of an isolated system is constant. Charges can still be created or destroyed in equal and opposite amounts (e.g., pair production/annihilation), which keeps the net charge unchanged. The number of charged particles can change, and the statement that charge cannot be destroyed at all is too strong.

Related JEE Main Physics questions

• What is the SI unit of the permittivity of free space, ε₀?
• What is the SI unit used for electric flux?
• A constant electric field E is directed along the positive x-axis. If a charge of 0.5 C is displaced by 2 m along a line inclined at 60° to the x-axis, and the work done in this process is 10 J, what is the magnitude of the electric field?
• An electric dipole is located at the origin O along the x-axis. A point P lies 20 cm from O, and the line OP makes an angle π/3 with the x-axis. If the electric field at P is inclined at an angle θ to the x-axis, what is θ?
• A uniformly charged semicircular wire has radius a and linear charge density λ. The magnitude of the electric field at the centre of the semicircle is
• A point Q is located on the perpendicular bisector of an electric dipole whose dipole moment is p. If Q is at a distance r from the dipole and r is much greater than the dipole size, the electric field at Q varies as

⚔️ Practice JEE Main Physics free + battle 1v1 →