Lenz's law

(lĕnt′sĭz)

The principle stating that an electric current induced by a source such as a changing magnetic field always creates a counterforce opposing the force inducing it. The law accounts for such phenomena as diamagnetism and the electrical properties of inductors.

[After Heinrich Friedrich Emil Lenz (1804-1865), German physicist born in Livonia who formulated the principle.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Lenz's law

(ˈlɛntsɪz)

(General Physics) physics the principle that the direction of the current induced in a circuit by a changing magnetic field is such that the magnetic field produced by this current will oppose the original field

[C19: named after H. F. E. Lenz (1804–65), German physicist]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

References in periodicals archive

According to Lenz's Law, which describes the direction of induced currents in the presence of varying fields, the induced currents oppose the change in applied magnetic field and possess a unique field of its own.

External corrosion mapping and anomaly assessment utilizing eddy currents

After the first video, when the students were asked to explain the Meissner Effect using the physics that they already knew, it was clear that without the theory behind superconductors, the students' only recourse for explaining the Meissner Effect lay in their knowledge of Lenz's Law. Lenz's Law forms a key component of the Stage 6 Physics Syllabus in New South Wales, as it is contained in the mandatory module of 'Motors and Generators' (New South Wales Board of Studies, 2002).

Incorporating active learning with videos: a case study from physics

When turbines are generating they supply power to the electricity grid enabling conventional power stations (with significant fossil fuel use) to burn less fuel -the simplified reason for this is that the generators are easier to turn because of the extra help (technically this is Lenz's Law to physicists).This is undisputable.

Your Letters: Wind power help

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