Jumping Rings with AC or DC driving

• D+15+19

diagram for demo

A large coil has a long metal cylinder, extending well past the body of the coil, put into the middle and it is wired up to permit either 120 V AC or DC voltage to be applied. A copper ring that has been encased in liquid nitrogen is then put on top of the coil by threading it around the cylinder. In the case of DC voltage being applied the inital kick of rising electritciy and hence a changing magnetic field is adequite to launch the ring to the top of the metal cylinder and then it drops down again. In the case of AC the initial change doesn't generate an initial magnetic field change strong enough to launch the ring, instead it hovers above the coil (camera must be used to show this.)

Related Demos


D+15+0 Bar magnet induces current in a coil, shown on galvanometer. D+15+1 Oscillating magnets in coupled coils D+15+2 Elementary generator: Bar moved in magnetic field. D+15+4 Earth inductor: Coil spun in Earth's field makes voltage. D+15+6 Generator: Coil with DC commutator rotates between magnets. D+15+8 Alternator: Coil with AC commutator rotates between magnets. D+15+10 Hand-cranked AC alternator powers 120 volt lamp. D+15+11 Hand-cranked DC generator powers 120 volt lamp. D+15+12 Back EMF in a series DC motor with large flywheel. D+15+14 Eddy currents: Copper disk rotates over a spinning bar magnet. D+15+16 Damped pendulum: Swinging metal disks damped in magnetic field. D+15+20 Jumping rings: High current AC coil causes rings to jump. D+15+22 Skin effect: Metal sheet shielding varies with frequency. D+15+24 Levitator: Aluminum dish floats four inches off platform. D+15+26 Eddy currents:Small magnet slowly drops between aluminum rails. D+15+28 Eddy currents: Neodymium Magnet Drop. D+15+30 Demonstration of dependence of number of coils on induced flux D+15+35 Equivalence of large and small loops around enclosed flux D+15+40 Flux through loop. EMF depends on position of the meter? D+15+45 Magnet inserted and withdrawn from copper ring causes ring to swing D+15+50 Applet: Faraday's Electromagnetic Lab D+15+55 Applet: Faraday's Law D+15+60 Applet: Genereator D+15+65 Applet: The Falling Ring with Finite Resistance D+15+70 Applet:Visualizing Electricity and Magnetism at MIT D+15+75 Applet: Light Index