Induction in physics refers to the process of generating current in a conductor by placing it in a changing magnetic field. This process is also known as electromagnetic induction, which is the production of an electromotive force (emf) across an electrical conductor in a changing magnetic field. Induction is only present in AC circuits.
Michael Faraday is generally credited with the discovery of induction in 1831, and James Clerk Maxwell mathematically described it as Faradays law of induction. Lenzs law describes the direction of the induced field. Faradays law was later generalized to become the Maxwell–Faraday equation, one of the four Maxwell equations in his theory of electromagnetism.
Electromagnetic induction has found many applications, including electrical components such as inductors and transformers, and devices such as electric motors and generators. The principles of electromagnetic induction are applied in many devices and systems, including:
- Current clamp
- Electric generators
- Electromagnetic forming
- Graphics tablet
- Hall effect sensors
- Induction cooking
- Induction motors
- Induction sealing
- Induction welding
- Inductive charging
- Inductors
- Magnetic flow meters
In summary, induction in physics refers to the process of generating current in a conductor by placing it in a changing magnetic field, and it has many practical applications in electrical components and devices.