Understanding Lenz's Law and Induced Currents

In summary, Lenz's law states that current is induced in such a way as to oppose the the change in flux. This is done in order to conserve energy.
  • #1
MIA6
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There is something on Lenz's law about induced current and the magnetic field that I don't quite understand. "Apply Lenz's law that when the magnet is brought near the coil, the magnet's magnetic field through the coil increases, and therefore the flux increases."
Here, why the magnet's magnetic field would increase?? No matter if it goes near the coil, I think it keeps the same, instead, the magnetic field created by the current should increase or coming to existence?
"The magnetic field of the magnet points upward. To oppose the upward increase, the magnetic field inside the coil produced by the induced current needs to point downward."
Here, why the magnetic field in the coil needs to oppose the upward increase??!
"When the magnet is brought far away from th coil, the flux decreases, so th induced current in the coil produces an upward magnetic field through the coil that is 'trying' to maintain the status quo."
Again, why it needs to main the status quo? I don't get the purpose of all these. Hope you can explain them to me. Thank you very much.
 
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  • #2
Conservation of energy

MIA6 said:
There is something on Lenz's law about induced current and the magnetic field that I don't quite understand. "Apply Lenz's law that when the magnet is brought near the coil, the magnet's magnetic field through the coil increases, and therefore the flux increases."
Here, why the magnet's magnetic field would increase?? No matter if it goes near the coil, I think it keeps the same, instead, the magnetic field created by the current should increase or coming to existence?
The field from the magnet is not uniform--it's stronger the closer you get to the end of the magnet. So when you bring the magnet closer to the loop, the field through the loop is stronger.
"The magnetic field of the magnet points upward. To oppose the upward increase, the magnetic field inside the coil produced by the induced current needs to point downward."
Here, why the magnetic field in the coil needs to oppose the upward increase??!
"When the magnet is brought far away from th coil, the flux decreases, so th induced current in the coil produces an upward magnetic field through the coil that is 'trying' to maintain the status quo."
Again, why it needs to main the status quo? I don't get the purpose of all these. Hope you can explain them to me. Thank you very much.
Lenz's law states that current is induced in such a way as to oppose the the change in flux. This is a consequence of conservation of energy. Having the current oppose the change means that it takes work (a force pushing through a distance) to create that induced current. If it didn't, we could get free current! (That's not going to happen.)
 
  • #3
Doc Al said:
Lenz's law states that current is induced in such a way as to oppose the the change in flux. This is a consequence of conservation of energy.

Do you mean that when the flux seems to increase,the magnetic field inside the coil will point in the opposite direction of the magnetic field of the magnet, just because of the conservation of energy; when the flux seems to decrease, B in the coil will point in the same direction of B in the magnet? But by the way, flux=BA. here Is B the magnetic field of the coil or the magnet?
 
  • #4
I mean if it is only either magnetic field of the coil or of the magnet, then it doesn't matter if the other one's magnetic field's direction as I stated before. If you don't understand what I meant, tell me. thank you.
 
  • #5
Think of the induced current as a response to the changing flux within the loop due to the movement of the magnet. The induced current will be in such a direction as to create a secondary field that opposes the change in flux.

You might find this discussion of Lenz's law helpful: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/Hbase/electric/farlaw.html#c2"

If I missed your point, please ask again.
 
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1. What is Lenz's Law?

Lenz's Law is a fundamental principle in electromagnetism that states the direction of an induced current in a conductor will always oppose the change in magnetic field that produced it.

2. How is Lenz's Law related to Faraday's Law?

Lenz's Law is a consequence of Faraday's Law, which states that a changing magnetic field will induce an electric field in a conductor. Lenz's Law specifies the direction of the induced current in response to this changing magnetic field.

3. What are some real-life applications of Lenz's Law?

Lenz's Law is used in many everyday devices, such as generators, motors, and transformers. It is also essential in technologies like electromagnetic braking in trains and eddy current testing in non-destructive evaluation.

4. How does Lenz's Law affect the behavior of a magnet near a conductor?

When a magnet is brought near a conductor, the changing magnetic field induces an electric current in the conductor. According to Lenz's Law, this induced current will create a magnetic field that opposes the initial magnetic field, causing the magnet to experience a force in the opposite direction.

5. Can Lenz's Law be violated?

No, Lenz's Law is a fundamental principle in electromagnetism and has been experimentally verified countless times. It is a consequence of the law of conservation of energy and is always observed in nature.

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