e&m.jpg (12862 bytes)

Oersted's Experiment

 

EQUIPMENT
    redball.gif (326 bytes) Oersted Apparatus
    redball.gif (326 bytes) Large Generator
    redball.gif (326 bytes) Compass Needle



NARRATIVE
       The direction of the magnetic field due to a current in a rectangular conductor is determined by the direction of the current. When current is in the rectangle, its faces act like the poles of a magnet. Adjust the generator to 100 VDC. Make sure that the apparatus is aligned parallel to the needle at the beginning of the demonstration. Connect the apparatus through a reversing switch. The compass needle points in one direction when current flows in a certain direction and another when the direction is reversed.