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An electric arc between two nails. An electric arc (or arc discharge) is an electrical breakdown of a gas that produces a prolonged electrical discharge. The current through a normally nonconductive medium such as air produces a plasma, which may produce visible light. An arc discharge is initiated either by thermionic emission or by field ...
In electromagnetism, an eddy current (also called Foucault's current) is a loop of electric current induced within conductors by a changing magnetic field in the conductor according to Faraday's law of induction or by the relative motion of a conductor in a magnetic field. Eddy currents flow in closed loops within conductors, in planes ...
The temperature of the resulting electric arc is very high (tens of thousands of degrees), causing the metal on the contact surfaces to melt, pool and migrate with the current. The high temperature of the arc causes dissociation of the surrounding gas molecules creating ozone, carbon monoxide, and other compounds. The arc energy slowly destroys ...
An arc flash is more likely to form in a switch that is closed slowly, by allowing time for an arc to form between the contacts, so it is usually more desirable to "throw" switches with a fast motion, quickly and firmly making good contact. High-current switches often have a system of springs and levers or even pneumatic assists to assist with ...
The motion of electric charges is an electric current and produces a magnetic field. In most applications, Coulomb's law determines the force acting on an electric charge. Electric potential is the work done to move an electric charge from one point to another within an electric field, typically measured in volts .
As the gap was reduced further, the voltage required to cause an arc began to rise and again exceeded its original value. For a given gas, the voltage is a function only of the product of the pressure and gap length. [2] [3] The curve he found of voltage versus the pressure-gap length product (right) is called Paschen's curve. He found an ...
The ampere is an SI base unit and electric current is a base quantity in the International System of Quantities (ISQ). [4]: 15 Electric current is also known as amperage and is measured using a device called an ammeter. [2]: 788 Electric currents create magnetic fields, which are used in motors, generators, inductors, and transformers.
This field causes, by electromagnetic induction, an electric current to flow in the wire loop on the right. The most widespread version of Faraday's law states: The electromotive force around a closed path is equal to the negative of the time rate of change of the magnetic flux enclosed by the path.