Electrostatics, as the name implies, is the study of stationary electric charges. A rod of plastic rubbed with fur or a rod of glass rubbed with silk will attract small pieces of paper and is said to be electrically charged. The charge on plastic rubbed with fur is defined as negative, and the charge on glass rubbed with silk is defined as positive.

Electrostatic Measurement: Most static electric measurements involve the determination of fundamental electric quantities, like voltage difference, current, resistance, and capacitance. In practice, however, electrostatic measurements differ from traditional electrical measurements, first of all because the voltage differences are caused by static charge distributions, which are unable to deliverer a current without ruining the voltages. As a consequence, normal voltmeters, analog as well as digital, are unsuited for static measurements, because their functioning is based on a current, however minute, passing through the instrument. Similarly, the resistances of interest in static electric context are often so high that they cannot be measured by ordinary resistance measuring equipment. Further, investigations of static electric phenomena often require the determination of special static related quantities like electric field strength and charge, and although the methods used for such measurements are primarily based on the principles for measuring voltage differences and current, a series of special requirements have to be considered.

Static Voltage: The voltage of a statically charged insulated conductor can in principle be determined in two ways: by directly connecting the charged conductor to a suitable electrometer or static voltmeter, or by using a field meter or a so-called non-contacting voltmeter reacting to the field from the charged conductor. We shall return to the second possibility after having discussed field measurements.