A copper wire of uniform cross-section is bent into a zig-zag between two terminals

PHYSICS · Multi-part · Fermi University Physics · Mathematical Methods for Physics · Electricity, Magnetism & Electromagnetism · Vector calculus and field geometry

Electricity, Magnetism and Electromagnetism, Ch Current, current density, conductivity and Ohm's law

Problem

A copper wire of uniform cross-section is bent into a zig-zag between two terminals. Its length measured along the wire is

1.20\,\mathrm{m}

, while the two terminals are only

0.30\,\mathrm{m}

apart in a straight line. A steady current flows, with a uniform current density of magnitude

J = 2.5\times10^{6}\,\mathrm{A\,m^{-2}}

everywhere in the wire, directed along the wire. The conductivity of copper is

\sigma_{\mathrm{c}} = 6.0\times10^{7}\,\mathrm{S\,m^{-1}}

. ((a)) Find the magnitude of the electric field inside the copper. ((b)) Find the potential difference between the two terminals.

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