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POGIL-style PhET Generator Simulation Analysis

This document describes a simulation that models how magnets and magnetic fields interact with electrons in wires to generate electric current. It explains that a magnet creates a magnetic field, with the strongest force near the magnet. When the magnet moves near a coil of wire, the magnetic field causes the electrons in the wire to move in a circular pattern, generating an electric current that flows in one direction as the magnet approaches and the opposite direction as it moves away. The stronger the magnetic field or the more loops in the coil, the greater the voltage generated. By moving a magnet near a coil of wire, the simulation demonstrates how a generator uses magnetic fields and the motion of electrons to produce electric current from mechanical motion.

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Sharmet Solarz
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857 views1 page

POGIL-style PhET Generator Simulation Analysis

This document describes a simulation that models how magnets and magnetic fields interact with electrons in wires to generate electric current. It explains that a magnet creates a magnetic field, with the strongest force near the magnet. When the magnet moves near a coil of wire, the magnetic field causes the electrons in the wire to move in a circular pattern, generating an electric current that flows in one direction as the magnet approaches and the opposite direction as it moves away. The stronger the magnetic field or the more loops in the coil, the greater the voltage generated. By moving a magnet near a coil of wire, the simulation demonstrates how a generator uses magnetic fields and the motion of electrons to produce electric current from mechanical motion.

Uploaded by

Sharmet Solarz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Magnets and Electrons

OBJECTIVES
 Describe the magnetic field around a magnet.
 Describe the movement of a magnetic field.
 Describe the movement of electrons in a wire.
 Explain how the magnetic field affects the electrons in the wire.

Click this link: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/generator. When it loads, click “Run Now”.

1. Click on the BAR MAGNET tab. The little red and white compasses around the screen show the magnetic
field – the influence of the magnet, the direction it applies force to other magnetic objects. This is
actually the same idea as when you did the compass part of the magnet investigations.
a. Use drawings (with captions) to describe the magnetic field around the magnet.
b. Click on the “Show Field Meter”. Drag the meter around the screen. The top number tells you the
strength of the field. Where (outside the magnet) is the force strongest? Where is it weakest?
c. Click and drag the magnet back and forth. What happens to the magnetic field?
2. Summarize what you now know about the magnetic field around a magnet (see first two objectives).

CHECK WITH YOUR TEACHER BEFORE YOU MOVE ON!!!!


3. Open PICKUP COIL tab.
a. What do the dots in the coiled wire represent? Don’t know? Try choosing different options on the right
hand side. 
b. When the dots move, this is called electrical current. What happens to the direction of the current
when you move the magnet back and forth?
c. Why do you think this happens?
d. Click on the voltage indicator. What happens as you move the magnet from the left of the coil to the
right?
e. Why do you think this happens?
f. How does changing the number of loops affect the voltage when you move the magnet?
g. Why do you think this happens?

4. Summarize what is happening that causes the light bulb to light up. Include the magnet, the magnetic
field, and the electrons in the wire.

CHECK WITH YOUR TEACHER BEFORE YOU MOVE ON!!!!


5. Open the GENERATOR tab. Click “Show Field” (you can click off “Show Compass”). Click the voltage
indicator next to the light bulb. Turn the water on very slow. Set the loop area at 100%.
a. Watch carefully. Look at the little compasses near the wire. When does the direction of the current
change?
b. Revise your answer to 3b – why does the direction of the current change?

CHECK WITH YOUR TEACHER BEFORE YOU MOVE ON!!!!

6. THE BIG IDEA! – INDIVIDUAL WORK Write a conclusion to answer the


following question. What happens to make electrical current flow in a generator?
Include these ideas:
 The magnetic field
 The movement of the magnet
 The description of electrons in the wire
 How the magnetic field affects the electrons in the wire
7. Think back to your generator prototype redesign. Why did your design change affect the amount of electric
current? Think about what you saw in the simulation and the energy story.

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