A dielectric is an electrical insulator that can be polarized by an applied electric field. When a dielectric is placed in an electric field, electric charges do not flow through the material as they do in a conductor, but only slightly shift from their average equilibrium positions causing dielectric polarization. Because of dielectric polarization, positive charges are displaced toward the field and negative charges shift in the opposite direction.

Noun

dielectric (plural dielectrics)

1. (physics) An electrically insulating or nonconducting material considered for its electric susceptibility, i.e. its property of polarization when exposed to an external electric field.

Synonyms

• insulator