A discrete charge distribution is a collection of countable point charges. A point charge is a hypothetical point in space with no length, area, nor volume, but contains a specified charge.
In that sense, discrete charge distributions are:
- Countable
- Not found in the real world, as objects do have area or volume
- Used mostly in modelling and approximations
The forces and electric fields in a discrete charge distribution can be found using Coulomb’s Law (in vector form).
