When a magnetic field is applied perpendicular to a conductor carrying current, a potential difference is observed between points on opposite sides of the conductor. This happens because the magnetic field deflects the moving electrons...
How does shielding work? Is it a two-way street and work both ways? Can electric fields not penetrate metals? What's going on? This sequence of demonstrations addresses these questions.
(1) Shielding the inside from the outside. It is well...
A neutral conductor (or dielectric) experiences a torque, but no net force, when placed in a uniform electric field. It does experience a net force in a non-uniform field.
When an electrically neutral object is suspended in a uniform electric...
The transmission and detection of radio frequency electromagnetic radiation by use of LC oscillator circuits recreates the discovery by Hertz of a method to generate and detect electromagnetic waves.
The core of the apparatus...
The basic principles of the parallel plate capacitor made large.
The capacitance C of a simple parallel plate capacitor is given by
A replica of Franklin's Thunder House demonstating the efficacy of his invention—the lightning rod. The class will get a charge out of this one.
Stable levitation of one magnet by another is usually prohibited by Earnshaw's Theorem, but the introduction of diamagnetic material at special locations can stabilize such levitation. The demonstration is a replica of an experiment...
A lecturer's faith in the principle that an electric field cannot exist inside a charged conductor is put to the test using a Faraday cage that is large enough to sit in.
The lecturer (or some volunteer) climbs the three steps...
