Magnetic Force

on Charges
and Current-
Carrying Wires
Understanding the magnetic force requires us
to work in THREE dimensions.

So we need to invent a new notation to depict

the forces in the TWO dimensional world of
my presentation slides and web pages, and
your homework and exams.

x x x x x . . . . .
x x x x x . . . . .
x x x x x . . . . .
x x x x x . . . . .
B into the page B out of the page
 How in the world am I going to
remember whether I should use
dots or x’s?

The tail of The tip of

an arrow. an arrow.

x .
The x’s The dots
What is the direction of the magnetic
force in this case?

x x x x x
x x x x x
v
x x x x x
+
x x x x x
B into the page
 Fingers point in the
direction of the magnetic
field.

Thumb points in the

direction of the motion
of a positive charge.

Palm faces the direction

of the magnetic force.
 +
v B

B
The magnetic
force is out
of the page.
v
 What about for this case?
x xF x x x
B
x x x x x
v
x x x x x
+
x x x x x
B into the page

And which way would the force point

if the charge was negative rather
than positive?
 What about a negative charge?
x x x x FBx
x x x x x
v
x x x – x x
x x x x x
B into the page

You still use the right hand rule, but since

the charge is negative, you reverse the
direction.
 On what does the magnitude of
the magnetic force depend?
The strength of the magnetic field (B).
The magnitude of the charge (q).

The speed with which the charge is moving (v).

The direction the charge is moving with

respect to the field (sin q).

q v
 DON’T FORGET:
Forces
have
directions!

    
F  qv  B  q v B sin q
WARNING: cross-product
(NOT simple multiplication!)

This force acts in the direction perpendicular

to the plane defined by the vectors v and B
as indicated by the right-hand rule!
   
F  q v B sin q

 F
B  
q v sin q

 F N N
B    
q v sin q C m/ s A m

Tesla Weber/m2
1 Tesla is a very strong magnetic field.

So, magnetic fields are often measured

in the cgs (i.e., centimeter, gram,
second) unit of Gauss.

1 Tesla = 104 Gauss

The Earth’s magnetic field is

about 0.5 Gauss near the
surface.
 A proton moves at right angles to a
magnetic field of 0.1 T with a speed of
2.0 X 107 m/s. Find the magnitude of
the acceleration.
  
F  q v B sin q
.  1019 C)(2.0  107 m / s)(01
 (16 . T)(sin 90o )
13
 3.2  10 N
 
F  ma

 F 3.2  1013 N
a    19
.  10 m / s
14 2

m 1.67  10 kg -27
Remember when we talked about the motion
of charges in a wire….

Vd Dt

The charges move with an average velocity vd.

The magnetic force on a wire with N charge
carriers moving with velocity vd in a uniform
magnetic field B should just be the vector sum
of the force on each individual charge.

Since the average velocity is the same for all N

charge carriers, the magnetic force acts in the
same direction (on average) on all the charge
carriers. Therefore...
  
F  Nq vd B sin q
Where q is the angle between the long dimension
of the wire and the magnetic field. The force
acts in the direction perpendicular to both.
   
F  Nq vd B sin q

N  nAL
N = Number of charge carriers
n = number of charge carries per unit volume
A = cross-sectional area of wire
L = length of wire
   
F  nALq vd B sin q

But recall our definition of current in a wire...

I  nqvd A
Substituting, we get the simpler expression:

 
F  B I L sin q
So, the maximum value of the
magnetic force on a current
carrying wire occurs when the wire
is perpendicular to the magnetic
field and has the value...

Hey, Mr. Sluggo.

Magnetic Force on
a wire is named
after me!

 
Fmax  B I L
 Fingers point in the
direction of the magnetic
field.
Thumb points in the
direction of the current.

Palm faces the direction

of the magnetic force.
 So what happens if we put a loop of wire
carrying current I in a magnetic field?

B
 
I F  B I L sin q

The currents in the top and bottom of this loop

are anti-parallel and parallel to the magnetic field.
Therefore, sin q = 0. So the magnetic forces on
the top and bottom of the loop are 0!
 B
 
I F  B I L sin q

On the left side of the loop, we use the right-

hand rule to determine that the force is out
(toward us).

On the right side of the loop, we use the right-

hand rule to determine that the force is in
(away from us).
In each case, q = 90o, sin q = 1, so

 
F  B IL

So, the magnitude of the force on the left side

of the loop is the same as the magnitude on
the right side of the loop.

What, therefore, is going to happen to the

loop in this magnetic field?
The loop
rotates! The magnetic
force produces
B a TORQUE on
the current loop,
causing it to
I b rotate. In this
case, the loop
rotates
counterclockwise
as viewed from
a/2 a/2 above...


 left
   a
 F d  B ILd  B Ib
F
GI
J
HK
2
counter - clockwise
The loop
rotates! The magnetic
force produces
B a TORQUE on
the current loop,
causing it to
I b rotate. In this
case, the loop
rotates
counterclockwise
as viewed from
a/2 a/2 above...


 right
   a
 F d  B ILd  B Ib
F
GI
J
HK
2
counter - clockwise
The loop
rotates! The magnetic
force produces
B a TORQUE on
the current loop,
causing it to
I b rotate. In this
case, the loop
rotates
counterclockwise
as viewed from
a/2 a/2 above...

    
 total   left   right  B Iab  B I (Area of loop)
  
  B I A sinq
Where q is the angle between the normal
to the loop and the magnetic field.

normal
Top View:
q
B
I
x
The normal is the direction perpendicular
to the plane of the loop of wire.
If the loop has N turns, then the torque
becomes...

 
  N B I A sinq

A small circular coil of 20 turns of wire

lies in a uniform magnetic of 0.5 T so
that the normal to the plane of the coil
makes an angle of 60o with the
direction of B. The radius of the coil is
4 cm, and it carries a current of 3 A.
What is the magnitude of the torque
on the coil?
x x x x x
x x x x x
60o
x x x x x
top view
x x x x x
N = 20 turns B = 0.5 T
side view I=3A A = p(.04)2
q = 60o
 
  N B I A sinq

  (20)(0.5 T)(3 A )(5  10 m ) sin60
3 2 o

 013
. Nm
x x x x x x
x x x x x I
I
x x x x x 60o
x x x x x top view
side view

If the current flows clockwise

around the loop (viewed face on),
which way does the loop rotate?

The force on the left side of the loop is

toward the top of the top view diagram.
x x x x x x
x x x x x I
I
x x x x x 60o
x x x x x top view
side view

The force on the right side of the loop is

toward the bottom of the top view diagram.

These two forces combine, both creating a

torque in the same direction, causing the loop
to rotate

CLOCKWISE!
x x x x x x
x x x x x I
I
x x x x x 60o
x x x x x top view
side view

But what about the forces on the

top and bottom parts of this
loop?

The force on the top of the loop is toward

the bottom of the loop, trying to contract
the loop’s area.
x x x x x x
x x x x x I
I
x x x x x 60o
x x x x x top view
side view
The force on the bottom of the loop is
toward the top of the loop, also trying to
contract the area of the loop.

The sum of these two oppositely directed

forces, as you might have guessed, is

ZERO!
x x x x x x
x x x x x I
I
x x x x x 60o
x x x x x top view
side view
Notice that the shape of the loop (a circle)
only impacts the final result in that the
magnitude of the force is proportional to
the area the loop encloses.
The physical argument that we just went
through is valid for squares, rectangles,
circles, and octagons…and any other
shape you prefer!
Let’s go back and look more carefully at
what happens to a charged particle moving
through a uniform magnetic field...

x x FB x x x
x x x x x
v
x x x x x
+
x x x x x
B into the page
We saw earlier that the force acts to the left
on the positively charged particle in this case.
But what happens to the particle as the force
begins to accelerate the particle to the left?
x x x x x x x FBx x x
x x vx x x x x x x x

+
v
xFB x x x x x x x x x
+
x x x x x x x x x x
B into the page B into the page

x + x x x x x x x x x
x x x x x x x x x x
FB
xv x x x x x x x x x
FB +
x x x x x x xv x x x
B into the page B into the page
 So a charged particle moving in a uniform
magnetic field will move in a circle!

What useful construct did we encounter

in Physics 111 to analyze the motion of
particles moving in a circle?

The Centripetal Force!

Here, we balance the magnetic force with the

centripetal force.

    mv 2
F qv B FC 
r
 2
mv mv
qvB  r
r qB
x x x x x
x x x x x
x x x r x x
x x x x x

So a positive charge in this uniform magnetic

(from this perspective) will move in a
counterclockwise circle of radius r.
 In 1819, Hans
Oersted discovered
that current carrying
wires deflected
compass needles!
N
W E The current
S in the wire
N N must be
W E . W E generating
S S the magnetic
N field the
compasses
W E
are detecting!
S
 Well…on what could the magnetic
field around a wire depend?

I certainly it depends upon the current

in the wire.

r the distance from the wire.

And some constants...

As I increases, B should increase.

As r increases, B should decrease.

The magnetic field
around a very long,   0I
current carrying wire B
is given by: 2pr
Where the constant of proportionality is
known as the permeability of free space
and is found to be

 0  4p  10 Tm / A
7

The magnetic field is a

vector quantity, so it has
a direction!!!!
 Wrap your hand around
the wire with your thumb
pointed in the direction
of the current.

Your fingers curl around

the wire in the direction
I the magnetic field points.
 N In our earlier
W E example of Oersted’s
S experiment...
N N
W E . W E
S S
The compass needles
N
point in the direction
W E of the magnetic field.
S
Let’s try the right hand
rule on this example and
see if it agrees with the
compasses!
 If we have two very long, current
carrying wires parallel to one
another, what force do they feel?
I1

I2 d

 
F  B IL sin q
If the wires are parallel,
the magnetic field from
q = 90o one wire will be
  perpendicular
Fmax  B IL to the direction of the
current in the other wire.
 I1
1
I2 d
2

    0 I1
F  B1@2 I 2 L2 B1@2 
2pd

  0I1I 2 F  0I1I 2
F L2 
2pd L2 2pd
 I1
1
I2 r
2

In what direction does the force act???

Using the right hand rule, we determine

that the magnetic field from wire 1 at the
location of wire 2…. Is into the page!

Now, using the OTHER right hand rule (the

one for magnetic force on a current carrying wire
in a magnetic field), we find that the direction of
the force on wire 2 ... Is UP toward wire 1!
 I1
1
I2 r
2

Parallel wires carrying current in the SAME

direction are attracted to one another.

You might be able to guess…

Parallel wires carrying current in the OPPOSITE

direction are repelled from one another.
But what if the wire isn’t a very long, straight wire?
What if it’s a loop of wire instead?

We won’t go into the details of the magnetic

field created by a single loop, but this is what
it looks like --- a lot like the field of a bar magnet!
However, we will look at the magnetic field
created by a whole bunch of such loops
combined…AKA
Solenoids produce fairly uniform magnetic
fields inside their boundaries, and generate
negligible fields outside their boundaries.


Binside   0nI
Where n is the number of turns per unit
length of the solenoid.

The magnetic field is directed parallel to the

axis of the solenoid. The right hand rule
for currents will help you determine toward
which end the field points.
 A solenoid has length of 25 cm, radius
of 1 cm, 400 turns, and carries a
current of 3 A. What is the value of the
magnetic field inside the solenoid?


Binside   0nI N 400
n   1600m1

L .25


Binside  (4p  10 )(1600)(3)  6  10 T
7 3
 We saw that charged particles in a uniform
magnetic field will move in a circle.

x x x x x
x x x x x
x x x r x x
x x x x x

We can take advantage of our understanding

of the magnetic force to create a device
which can tell us the elemental composition
of unknown particles.
 x x x x x
mv
x x x x x
r
x x x r x x qB
x x x x x

We saw that the radius of the circle is

determined by the mass, speed, and charge
of the particles, and the strength of the
magnetic field.

If we know the velocity at which a particle

enters a magnetic field, the strength of that
field, and the particle’s charge, we can
measure the radius of curvature of the particle.
x x x x x
rqB
x x x x x
m
x x x x x v
x x x x x
d We can measure d
using a photographic
plate (for example) to
record the location of
the end of the particle’s
path.

d=2r
If two particles with the same charge enter
the magnetic field with the same velocity,
then the difference in the radii of their paths
must be due to a difference in their masses.

x x x x x x x x x
x x x x x x x x x
x x x x x x x x x
x x x x x x x x x
d1
d2
x x x x x x x x x
mv
x x x x x x x x x r
x x x x x x x x x qB
x x x x x x x x x
d1
d2
d 2 d1 v
  ( m2  m1 )
2 2 qB

2v Mass
d 2  d1  (m2  m1 ) Spectrometer
qB
 Two singly ionized particles enter a
mass spectrometer at a speed of
3 X 106 m/s. The strength of the
magnetic field is 0.625 T. If one of the
particles is H and the other particle hits
the photographic plate 110 cm further
away than the H atom, what chemical
element is the second particle?

Let’s first determine the distance from the

entrance point that the H atom hits the
photographic plate.
27
.  10 kg)(3  10 m / s)
mv (167 6
r  19
 5 cm
qB .  10 C)(0.625T)
(16
 Now, let’s figure out the radius of curvature
of the mystery element...

We were told that the 2nd element collides with

the photographic plate 110 cm further away from
the entrance point than the H atom.
x x x x x x x x x
x x x x x x x x x d2 - d1= 110 cm
x x x x x x x x x d2 = 110 + 2r1
x x x x x x x x x
d2= 120 cm
d1
d2 r2= 60 cm
 Finally, let’s determine the mass of
our mystery element...

19
.  10 C)(0.625T)
rqB (0.6 m)(16 26
m   2  10 kg
v 3  10 m / s
6
PHYSICS Televisions rely upon
RULES! electromagnetic fields
to produce the images
we see.

An electron “gun” fires electrons

at the television screen. When
they collide with the material on
the back side of the screen, colored
light is emitted, producing one pixel
in the image we see on the screen.
television electromagnet
screen

Changing the strength of the magnetic field

changes the degree to which the electron beam
is deflected.