Cancelling magnetic fields#

Two long wires, one of which has a semicircular bend of radius \(R\), are positioned as shown in the figure.

Parallel wires, one with a semicircular bend

Part 1#

If both wires carry a current \(I\), how far apart must their parallel sections be so that the net magnetic field at P is zero?

In your symbolic expression, use pi to represent π.

Answer Section#

Part 2#

What is the direction of the current in the straight wire on the right-hand side?

Answer Section#

  • Towards the top of the screen

  • Towards the bottom of the screen

Attribution#

Problem is from the OpenStax University Physics Volume 2 textbook, licensed under the CC-BY 4.0 license.
Image representing the Creative Commons 4.0 BY license.