The Motor Effect Flashcards

All 6 cards in this deck

What is the motor effect?

A current-carrying conductor placed in (near) a magnetic field experiences a force.

When a current-carrying wire near a magnet feels a force, what force acts on the magnet?

An equal and opposite force (the forces are equal in size and opposite in direction).

What causes the force on a current-carrying wire in a magnetic field?

The interaction between the magnetic field of the magnet and the magnetic field produced by the current in the wire.

How must a current-carrying wire be placed in a magnetic field for the force on it to be maximum, and when is the force zero?

Maximum when the wire is at right angles to the field; zero when the wire is parallel to the field.

What happens to the force on a current-carrying wire in a magnetic field if the current is reversed?

The force acts in the opposite direction (same size).

True or false? Reversing both the current and the magnetic field reverses the direction of the force on the wire.

False. The two reversals cancel, so the force acts in its original direction.