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May 15, 2017 at 11:43 comment added DerStrom8 Unless the negative side of the battery was connected to the piece of metal, you would not be able to measure the potential difference between the two because the 12 volts is referenced to the negative terminal of the battery, not to the piece of metal. If you connect the piece of metal to the negative side of the battery, then they both become the same node and you will be able to measure 12 volts between the metal and the positive side of the battery. You cannot measure potential difference between two objects in completely different networks. They must have the same reference.
May 14, 2017 at 21:25 comment added Emil Ok so if I have, lets say a 10x10x10 cm piece of metal. Would I be able to use a multimeter and put the negative wire to the piece of metal and the positive wire to the positive side of a battery, and measure a potential difference? If not, why? If yes, would this work for an even smaller piece of metal?
May 14, 2017 at 21:16 comment added Emil I understand potential, what I don't understand, is what makes a metal object qualify as a ground, or in other words, what are the requirements of a metal object to be used as a ground.
May 13, 2017 at 0:47 history answered DerStrom8 CC BY-SA 3.0