A horseshoe magnet is placed on a top pan balance. A rigid copper wire is fixed between the poles of the magnet, as illustrated in Fig. 8.1. The wire is clamped at ends A and B. [Figure 8.1]
- (a)(i)When a direct current is switched on in the wire, the reading on the balance is seen to decrease. State and explain the direction of: the force acting on the wire[3]
- (a)(ii)the current in the wire.[2]
- (b)A direct current of 4.6A in the wire causes the reading on the balance to change by 4.5 x 10⁻³ N. The direct current is now replaced by an alternating current of frequency 40 Hz and root-mean-square (r.m.s.) value 4.6 A. On the axes of Fig. 8.2, sketch a graph to show the change in balance reading over a time of 50 ms. [Figure 8.2][3]
This question uses a diagram from the original paper, which isn't shown here. Open the full paper from the past papers archive to see it.
Mark scheme
Marking points from the official mark scheme (Feb/Mar 2019). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.
- [B1] Either Newton's third law or equal and opposite forces
- [B1] force on magnet is upwards
- [B1] so force on wire downwards
- [M1] using (Fleming's) left-hand rule
- [A1] current from B to A
- [B1] sinusoidal wave with at least 1 cycle
- [B1] peaks at +6.4 mN and -6.4 mN
- [B1] time period 25 ms
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