Shielding Cloud Reduces Visible Charge - Plasma Physics: Debye Shielding, Gyromotion, and Collective Oscillations Step by Step

Debye shielding begins here as a finite signed charge response, not a full exponential profile. Exact arithmetic here means exact results for the stated model inputs; measured inputs still carry uncertainty and significant-figure limits.

highlighted = computed this step

The response cloud has the opposite sign

A source charge of 6 coulombs and response charge -4 coulombs combine by signed addition. This is a finite response-charge ledger, not an exponential Debye profile or real field-decay calculation.

6\ \text{C}+(-4\ \text{C})=2\ \text{C}

Shielding reduces the visible charge

The outside ledger sees only 2 coulombs after the finite response is added.

Q_{\text{visible}}=2\ \text{C}