- #1
rushingwind
- 3
- 0
Homework Statement
I'm a summer REU student tasked with building a tri-axial square helmholtz coil setup. My frame will be made of aluminum while the wire used will be copper. I've been researching for days, having actually never studied these coils before, and I'm having serious trouble figuring out the correct dimensions, turns, necessary wire thickness, and current.
The center of the field will contain a MOT. I'm looking to cancel out slightly more than 1 gauss. Presently, I don't quite understand how to apply Gauss's Law (or if I'm doing it correctly/incorrectly), as I've only taken Introductory Physics (I have, however, taken Calculus, but not Calc II).
The Attempt at a Solution
So far, this is the setup I've been able to come up with: (I've edited this after finally being able to see my workspace). I'm very limited in space, so the sides of each square set must be 18in (about .46m), 16in (about .41m), and 14in (about .36m). That brings my calculations for spacing between pairs to .25m, .2m, and .19m, respectively.
Running 2A of current through each coil (can't go below 1A, or above 5A), these are the number of turns I calculated:
18in/.46m -- 15 turns
16in/.41m -- 13 turns
14in/.36m -- 12 turns
I need to cancel out slightly more than 1 gauss at the center of this tri-axial configuration, and my math shows me that it does... If I'm doing this right. I've also calculated that I need at least 14 gauge copper wire for this setup.Disclaimer: I appreciate any pointers because I actually have no idea what I'm doing, even after days of research. I don't know if my work is on the right track or completely off, as this is a little beyond my current level of physics education! Any help (or pointers in the right direction!) would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.
Last edited: