Fields
Fields are an imaginary concept where, at every point in space (be it 2d, 3d, or any-d), there exists a value at that point. What this value represents is up to you, as fields are only imaginary abstractions! (yes, including electric fields too).
Scalar Field
Assunme you have some object at a point in space, , and that object has a property you'd like to measure which varies depending on where you are. This scalar property is part of a scalar field, as every point on the plate has a temperature you can measure just the same. It's as if you placed an invisible number at every point in space. In this case, a function, exists, which maps the coordinates and to a scalar.Scalar fields are used for measuring simple, one-dimensional quantities such as temperature, pressure, sound pressure level, or color.
Vector Field
What if what we are trying to measure has a little more dimension to it? Let's say for example, the air flow at a point near an airplane wing. This measurement will be a 3d vector, with components in the , , and directions. is our vector field, which maps the coordinates , and to a 3-vector.This means for every measurement point in 3d space, there exists a 3 dimensional value (a 3-vector). We give the our measurement function a vector and it returns a vector! This is a vector field. Vector fields are incredibly useful for measuring things like flow, electric fields, gravity, acceleration, or anything else where there is force, or directional information of some kind.