Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-physics-2-paper-of-the-university-of-oxford/2018/2/solution
Past exam of the physics 2 paper of the University of Oxford 2018 2 Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
For steady currents in vacuum, Ampère's circuital law isHere is an oriented closed curve, its tangent line element, and the signed electric current through a spanning surface oriented by the right-hand rule. A circular contour about a straight infinite wire has constant tangential magnetic field, so . The Lorentz force on a length of the other wire is . ThereforeThe right-hand rule makes the force on each parallel, same-direction current point toward the other wire.
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