In an earlier article I argued that much of what used to be called “modern physics” stems from the intersection of two earlier technologies: high vacuum and high voltage. In this article I will discuss the induction coil, invented in the 1830s, reinvented in the second half of the 19th century, and still used today to produce the high voltages used to excite gaseous and high-vacuum discharge tubes.
References
1.
Thomas B.
Greenslade
Jr., “Physics stories
,” Phys. Teach.
56
, 286
–289
(May
2018
).2.
Sidney G.
Starling
, Electricity and Magnetism for Advanced Students
, 2nd ed. (Longmans, Green and Co.
, London
, 1916
), p. 319
3.
Henry M.
Noad
, The Student’s Textbook of Electricity
, revised by W. H. Preece (Crosby Lookwood and Co
, London
, 1879
), p. 361
.4.
E. Taylor
Jones
, The Induction Coil – Theory and Applications.
This book, published in 1932 and reprinted in 2008, is available online and will satisfy those who wish to see a more complete theory of the induction coil.5.
Thomas B.
Greenslade
Jr., “Apparatus named after our academic ancestors – I
,” Phys. Teach.
48
, 604
–606
(Dec
. 2010
). This reference has a picture of a Ruhmkorff coil made in England in 1869.6.
Thomas B.
Greenslade
Jr., “Devices to display electromagnetic rotation
,” Phys. Teach.
34
, 412
–416
(Oct.
1996
).7.
© 2021 Author(s). Published under an exclusive license by American Association of Physics Teachers.
2021
Author(s)
AAPT members receive access to The Physics Teacher and the American Journal of Physics as a member benefit. To learn more about this member benefit and becoming an AAPT member, visit the Joining AAPT page.