A vertical wire carries a current straight up in a region where the magnetic field vector points due north. What is the direction of the resulting force on this current?
Question
Question
A vertical wire carries a current straight up in a region where the magnetic field vector points due north. What is the direction of the resulting force on this current?
Answer:
The direction of the resulting force on this current is due east.
Explanation:
Given;
direction of the magnetic field to be due north
Applying right hand rule which states that: to determine the direction of the magnetic force on a positive moving charge point the thumb of the right hand in the direction of velocity v, the fingers in the direction of magnetic field B, and a perpendicular to the palm points in the direction of magnetic force.
Since the magnetic force must be perpendicular to the magnetic field, and direction of the magnetic field is due north, then the magnetic force must be due East.
Therefore, the direction of the resulting force on this current is due east.