A laboratory apparatus contains a uniform magnetic field described in Cartesian…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · A Level · Physics · Fields and their consequences · Fields and their consequences
Problem
A laboratory apparatus contains a uniform magnetic field described in Cartesian unit-vector notation as B=(0.30T)^+(0.40T)^−(0.10T)k^. A straight wire segment of length 0.50m is inserted into the region so that it runs in the direction of the vector s=2^−2^+1k^. The wire carries a steady current of 10A in the +s direction.
(a) Determine the angle between the current direction and the magnetic field. Explicitly outline the method you use to obtain the angle from the two given vectors.
(b) Using the result from part (a), compute the magnitude of the magnetic force acting on the wire segment. Clearly indicate any vector components employed in your calculation.
(c) State the direction of the magnetic force on the wire segment in unit-vector form, and justify your answer based on appropriate vector operations and a right-hand rule.