Motion of charge particles in a uniform electric field

If we are given a field E, what forces will act on a charge placed in it?

We start with special case of a point charge in uniform electric field E. The electric field will exert a force on a charged particle is given by

F = qE

The force will produce acceleration

a = F/m

where m is the mass of the particle. Then we can write

F = qE = ma

The acceleration of the particle is therefore given by

a = qE/m

If the charge is positive, the acceleration will be in the direction of the electric field. If the charge is negative, the acceleration will be in the direction opposite the electric field.