Which fundamental force is responsible for static electricity and magnetism?
Quick Answer
The electromagnetic force is responsible for electricity, magnetism and light. It is carried by photons and has infinite range.
The Full Story
The electromagnetic force governs interactions between electrically charged particles. It explains everything from static shocks and electric circuits to chemical bonds and visible light. Because photons are massless, the force has infinite range, although its effects can be screened by charge arrangement in materials. Electromagnetism is one of the most precisely tested theories in physics, described by James Clerk Maxwell's equations in the 19th century and by quantum electrodynamics in modern form. It is the reason atoms can form and chemistry can exist.
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"The force behind lightning, magnets and light itself."
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