Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-physics-course-of-the-year-1-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2021/section-b/10/b/solution
Past exam of the physics course of the year 1 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2021 Section B 10 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
Choose along the electric current, upward normal to the sheet, and to complete a right-handed frame. In the interior region far from its edges, treat the sheet as infinite in its plane. Its surface current density isReflection and translational symmetry make the magnetic field parallel to the sheet, perpendicular to its current, and equal in magnitude with opposite direction above and below. Choose an Ampère's circuital law rectangle with length along , straddling the full thickness. The two long sides each contribute with the same sign; on the vertical sides since is horizontal. The enclosed electric current is . ThusThe right-hand rule fixes the directions:The current density inside the finite-thickness conductor is , so integrating through thickness gives the same . These are exterior fields in the broad-sheet approximation, not exact finite-width edge fields.
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