What happens if a wire carrying current is placed in a magnetic field?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

When a wire carries current and is placed in a magnetic field, several effects can be considered depending on the situation, so we evaluate each option one by one.

a. The wire will experience a magnetic force
- This is the standard result from the magnetic force on a current-carrying wire: F = I (L × B). The force is perpendicular to both the current direction and the magnetic field. In a uniform field, a straight wire experiences a net force equal to the cross product of the current element vector and the magnetic field. This option correctly describes the primary effect.

b. The wire will experience a magnetic loop
- A straight section of wire in a uniform magnetic field does not spontaneously form a loop due to the field alone. Magnetic loops are more characteristic of magnetic cores, current loops, or the bending of wire under certain constraints, not a universal consequence for a single straight wire with current.

c. The wire will experience a magnetic energy
- A magnetic energy is associated with the magnetic field configuration (such as energy stored in inductors or the energy of a magnetic field in space). However, a single straight current-carrying wire in a static, external magnetic field does not imply the wire itself experiences a separate, discrete magnetic energy as an effect; the relevant instantaneous effect in this setup is the force due to F = I L × B. This statement is not the standard immediate consequence of placing a current in a magnetic field.

d. The wire will experience a magnetic torque
- Torque arises when you have a current distribution that can rotate or when a loop experiences a magnetic moment in a field. A straight wire by itself has no intrinsic magnetic moment to torque in the field. Only a closed loop or a current distribution with angular dependence would typically experience torque. Therefore, a straight wire does not experience a torque in this context.

In summary, among the options, the most direct and correct description of what happens to a straight wire carrying current in a magnetic field is that it experiences a magnetic force. The other options describe phenomena that either do not occur for a straight wire in a uniform field or refer to effects (torque, loop formation, magnetic energy as a property of the wire itself) that are not the typical immediate outcome in this scenario.

UCIC 202503 PHYS101 Quiz 11

What happens if a wire carrying current is placed in a magnetic field?

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

Similar Questions

What is the magnitude of the magnetic force on a current carrying wire?

Which of the following pairs of quantities are not always perpendicular?

What is the magnitude of the magnetic force on a charged particle?

The force on a charged particle created by its motion in a magnetic field is maximum at what angle between the particle velocity and field?

An electron enters a magnetic field parallel to B. The electron's

A horizontal wire of length 3.0 m carries a current of 6.0 A and is oriented so that the current direction is 50o S of W. The horizontal component of the Earth's magnetic field is due north at this point and has a strength of 0.14 x 10-4 T. What is the size of the force on the wire?

A 2.0 m wire segment carrying a current of 0.60 A oriented parallel to a uniform magnetic field of 0.50 T experiences a force of what magnitude?

The direction of the force on a current carrying wire located in an external magnetic field is which of the following?

More Practical Tools for Students Powered by AI Study Helper

Homework AI Solver

Stylized AI Paper Writer

Plagiarism Checker Assistant

Citation AI Academic Writing Tool

In-Class Translation Assistant

AI Note Generator

AI Quiz Answers

Past Exam Questions from University Test Bank

Smart Practice Assistant

Adaptive Practice

Making Your Study Simpler