SELF INDUCTION

Electromagnetic induction appears in all cases when the magnetic flux through a loop changes. It
is not important at all what causes the variation of the flux. If in a certain loop there is a time
varying current the magnetic field of the current will also change and this leads to the variation
of the magnetic flux through the loop, and hence to the appearance of induced emf.

Thus, the variation of current in a circuit leads to the appearance of an induced emf in this
circuit. This phenomenon is called self-induction.

Let us consider a coil in series with a switch and a battery as shown in Fig. 17 (a) when the
switch is first closed, the growing current creates a changing magnetic field. As the flux through
the coil changes, there is an induced emf that opposes this change.
It tries to prevent the rise in the current. As a result, the current does not reach its final
value instantly, but instead rises gradually as shown in Fig 17 (b). When the switch is opened,
the flux rapidly decreases. This time the self induced emf tries to maintain the flux, it has the
same polarity as the battery.

SELF INDUCTANCE
It is convenient to express the induced emf in terms of the current in a circuit rather than
the magnetic flux through it. If no magnetic materials are present, the magnetic field produced by
a coil, and hence also the flux, are directly proportional to the current flowing through it,
Thus,

=LI

(10)

Where L is a constant of proportionality called the self-inductance of the coil. Its SI unit is
henry (H). The self-inductance of a circuit depends on the size and shape.
Using Faradays law the induced emf in the coil is given by

The polarity of the emf depends on the rate of change of the current, not on its magnitude or
its direction. This is illustrated in Fig. 18.

Self-inductance of a solenoid

Illustration-7
Find the self inductance of a solenoid of length 10 cm, area 5 cm2 and number of turns
100.

Solution

MUTUAL INDUCTION
The appearance of an induced emf in one circuit due to changes in the magnetic field
produced by a nearby circuit is called mutual induction.
The flux linkage through coil 1 due to current I2 in coil 2 may be written as
12 = M12I2
where the constant of proportionality M12 is called the mutual inductance of the coil 1 with
respect to coil 2. Similarly the flux linkage through coil 2 due to current I1 in coil 1 may be
written as
21 = M21 I1
The mutual inductance of two circuits depends on their sizes, their shapes, and their relative
positions. Intuitively one would expect the mutual inductance to be greater when the coils are
near to each other and oriented so that the maximum amount of flux from the coil intercepts the
other. The SI unit of mutual inductance is henry (H).
There is one remarkable property of mutual inductance, i.e.

This is also called the reciprocity theorem

The emf induced in coil 1 due to changes in I2 takes the form

Illustration 8
Two concentric coplanar circular loops 1
and 2 are shown in the Fig 19. The radii of the
loops are r and R. Current I flows in the loop 1.
Find the magnetic flux 2 through the loop 2 if r
<< R.

Solution
The direct calculation of the flux F2 is very complicated because the magnetic field is not
uniform over the big loop 2. However, the application of the reciprocity theorem greatly
simplifies the solution of the problem
Let us pass the same current I through the loop 2. Then the magnetic flux F1 created by this
current through loop 1 can be easily found because magnetic field is more or less uniform in the
small loop 1 (because r << R) Thus, magnetic field at the centre of the loops is

and the magnetic flux through the loop 1 is