Online reading assignment: flux laws & devices

Physics 205B, spring semester 2018
Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA

Students have a bi-weekly online reading assignment (hosted by SurveyMonkey.com), where they answer questions based on reading their textbook, material covered in previous lectures, opinion questions, and/or asking (anonymous) questions or making (anonymous) comments. Full credit is given for completing the online reading assignment before next week's lecture, regardless if whether their answers are correct/incorrect. Selected results/questions/comments are addressed by the instructor at the start of the following lecture.

The following questions were asked on reading textbook chapters and previewing presentations on flux laws and devices.


Selected/edited responses are given below.

Describe what you understand from the assigned textbook reading or presentation preview. Your description (2-3 sentences) should specifically demonstrate your level of understanding.

"I am beginning to understand generators better now, and better understand how moving a magnet creates energy than when I did the last reading assignment."

"The magnetic flux Φ_B is the product of the magnetic field magnitude B and the area A. The maximum magnetic flux occurs if the magnetic field is perpendicular to the surface."

"Magnetic flux is an area multiplied by a magnetic field. Faraday's law says that an induced emf occurs in a wire loop when the magnetic flux through it changes."

"Magnetic flux Φ_B is the product of the magnetic field magnitude B and the area A. Units of T·m² or webers."

"Induced current opposes Φ_B change."

"Induced emf, which is produced by changing magnetic flux."

"The slide-rail generator and Faraday's law. The faster the rod moves, the more area there is, thus more emf is produced. In addition, if magnetic flux is constant, an emf can not be produced."

"Faraday's law states that an induced emf in a wire loop occurs while the magnetic flux through it changes. If flux is constant there is no emf. Induced current always opposes the magnetic flux. Differing primary and secondary coil turns allow emf to be stepped up or down."

"How transformers work to step up or down the voltage from the primary loop to the secondary loop."

"I'm not sure I really understand any of this lesson."

Describe what you found confusing from the assigned textbook reading or presentation preview. Your description (2-3 sentences) should specifically identify the concept(s) that you do not understand.

"The slide-rail generator--how the force generated on charges through the rod makes the ends charged."

"I'd like clarification on what magnetic flux is, I'm still confused by it after reading the examples."

"How magnetic flux works with the induced current."

"How and when to apply Lenz's law."

"I am confused in the situational uses of these equations. More in-class assistance and instruction would be helpful."

"I found the section on transformers pretty confusing. Also the step-down vs. step-up stuff didn't make a lot of sense to me."

"A little bit of everything is confusing. I just need to make the connections between the different piece...Lenz's law is not yet understood."

"I definitely need a lot of explaining on this stuff I cannot grasp the concepts from just reading the lectures online."

"What is Lenz's law? I don't know what is used for and what context it is useful. Really some explanation for me here would go a long way."

"How to incorporate RHR3 to Lenz's law."

"I'm pretty confused about most of this lesson."

State/describe the symbol used for magnetic flux, and give its SI units.

"Magnetic flux Φ_B is the product of the magnetic field magnitude B and the area A. Units of T·m² or webers."

The symbol looks like a circle with a vertical line through it and it is the product of a magnetic field and an area."

For each situation involving magnetic flux and a wire loop, determine whether or not there would be an induced current in the loop.
(Only correct responses shown.)

Constant zero magnetic flux: no induced current in loop [87%]
Constant non-zero magnetic flux: no induced current in loop. [39%]
Magnetic flux increasing in strength: induced current in loop. [83%]
Magnetic flux decreasing in strength: induced current in loop. [52%]

For an ideal transformer that "steps-down" voltage from its primary coils at 120 V to its secondary coils at 2.1 V, determine what happens to the current and to the power from its primary coils to its secondary coils.
(Only correct responses shown.)

Current: stepped-up (increases). [30%]
Power: no change. [39%]

For an ideal transformer that "steps-up" voltage from its primary coils at 1.5 V to its secondary coils at 220 V, determine what happens to the current and to the power from its primary coils to its secondary coils.
(Only correct responses shown.)

Current: stepped-down (decreases). [30%]
Power: no change. [35%]

Explain why a transformer that has the same number of primary coils and number of secondary coils would not be useful.

"There would be no change in emf as the ratio of N₂ to N₁ would be 1."

"The transformer would not be able to regulate voltage to step it up or down. The primary coil and secondary coil turns cannot be the same amount."

"The whole point is that they have a different number of turns in order for voltages to be stepped up or down."

"Because nothing is being transformed."

Ask the instructor an anonymous question, or make a comment. Selected questions/comments may be discussed in class.

"Following this pace is getting hard."

"Please go over these examples I am very lost on this subject!"

"Help..."