Charles François de Cisternay du Fay (Paris, September 14,1698 – 1739) was a French chemist and superintendent of the Jardin du Roi.

He discovered the existence of two types of electricity and named them "vitreous" and "resinous" (later known as positive and negative charge respectively.) He noted the difference between conductors and insulators, calling them 'electrics' and 'non-electrics' for their ability to produce contact electrification. He also discovered that alike-charged objects would repel each other and that unlike-charged objects attract.He also disproved certain misconceptions regarding electric charge, such as that of Dr.Stephen Gray who believed that electric properties of a body depended on its colour.du Fay's observations on electricity were reported in a paper written in December of 1733 and printed in Volume 38 of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society in 1734.

External links

• Two Kinds of Electrical Fluid: Vitreous and Resinous, du Fay 1733

1698 births | 1739 deaths | French chemists

Charles du Fay | Charles François de Cisternay du Fay | Charles François de Cisternay du Fay