unit electrical charge

The unit electrical charge, symbolized as e, is a fundamental physical constant representing the smallest naturally occurring unit of electric charge. It is equal to 1.602176634 × 10⁻¹⁹ coulombs. All charged subatomic particles, such as electrons (negative charge) and protons (positive charge), possess a charge equal to this value or a whole-number multiple of it. Electric charge is a basic property of matter that governs how particles interact with electric and magnetic fields. Charges can be positive or negative, and like charges repel while opposite charges attract. This fundamental unit of charge was precisely measured in the Millikan oil-drop experiment.123