Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-medicine-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/1867/first-examination/physics/11/solution

The coils form a mutual induction apparatus. Changing primary electric current changes secondary magnetic flux linkage . Faraday's law of induction gives
On closing the primary circuit, increasing electric current produces a transient secondary electric current and galvanometer deflection. By Lenz's law its direction opposes the increasing magnetic flux. Once primary electric current and core magnetization are steady, the derivative vanishes: the galvanometer returns to zero despite the continuing magnetic field.
On opening the circuit, the decreasing magnetic flux induces a secondary electric current tending to sustain that flux. The galvanometer deflects oppositely, then returns to zero. Making and breaking produce opposite transient deflections; steady primary current produces no sustained induced current.
For fixed linear coils, and , with mutual inductance . Opposite equal changes of primary electric current give opposite equal areas under the induced-electromotive force curves in that model. Peak sizes can differ with switching times. Real iron-core magnetic hysteresis and remanent magnetization can also change the flux excursion, so equality of the actual peaks is not required.

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