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Jefferson Lab's Workbench Projects

Overview

Based on a description found on the Harvard University web site, this device consists of three main sections: the base, the coil and the core. The base needs to be constructed from a non-conductive material in order to prevent creating eddy currents within it. The coil was wound from approximately 76 meters (250 feet) of 18 gauge stranded hook-up wire around a core composed of 400 steel rods. The device runs on household alternating current (120 VAC, 60 Hz) and draws an average of 4.3 amps during steady state operation. Never operate this device with the core removed from the coil as the resulting current drawn by the device will be too high for standard household circuits.

Citation and linking information

For questions about this page, please contact Steve Gagnon.