Magnetic Effects of Current and Magnetism - Moving Charges and Magnetic Field (Biot-Savart & Ampere's Law)
Review the key concepts, formulae, and examples before starting your quiz.
🔑Concepts
Oersted's Experiment: Demonstrated that a current-carrying conductor produces a magnetic field around it, with the direction determined by the Right Hand Thumb Rule.
Biot-Savart Law: Relates the magnetic field to the current element . The field is proportional to the current and the sine of the angle between the element and the position vector, and inversely proportional to the square of the distance.
Magnetic Field of a Circular Loop: At the center, the field is maximum and directed perpendicular to the plane of the loop. For turns, the field is multiplied by .
Ampere's Circuital Law: The line integral of the magnetic field around any closed path (Amperian loop) is equal to times the total current threading through the loop.
Solenoid and Toroid: A solenoid produces a strong, uniform magnetic field inside along its axis. An ideal toroid confines the magnetic field within its core, with zero field outside or in the central hole.
Permeability of Free Space: The constant has a value of .
📐Formulae
💡Examples
Problem 1:
Calculate the magnetic field at the center of a circular coil of turns and radius carrying a current of .
Solution:
Explanation:
We use the formula for the magnetic field at the center of a circular coil, accounting for turns. Convert the radius from to () before calculation.
Problem 2:
A long straight wire carries a current of . Find the magnitude of the magnetic field at a point from the wire.
Solution:
Explanation:
Applying Ampere's Law for an infinite straight wire. The distance must be in meters (). The factor simplifies to .
Problem 3:
A solenoid of length has a radius of and is made up of turns. It carries a current of . What is the magnitude of the magnetic field inside the solenoid?
Solution:
Explanation:
First, calculate the number of turns per unit length (). Then use the formula for the interior field of a long solenoid. Note that the radius is irrelevant if the solenoid is long enough.