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Lenz's Law

OCR A-level PhysicsElectromagnetic InductionLesson 5 of 12

The direction of an induced current is given by Lenz's law: the induced current always flows in a direction that opposes the change that produced it.

When the north pole of a bar magnet is pushed into a coil, the induced current makes the end of the coil nearest the magnet a north pole. This repels the incoming magnet, so work has to be done to push it in. When the magnet is pulled out, the current reverses and that end becomes a south pole, which attracts the magnet and opposes its removal.

Diagram

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