Measuring Inductance Value of Handmade Inductor

[Gretik]

Hi all!
I tried to make an inductor.
Naturally, I am not sure about it's inductance value.
I made an LC series circuit on a bread board.
I am using a oscilloscope and an a function generator to find the value of L during the resonant frequency. Channel one goes from function generator straight to the oscilloscope. Can somebody tell me please what should channel 2 measure? ...the voltage across the capacitor or the inductor??

Thanks a lot.

 

[Antiphon]

Either One would work but you'll most easily measure across the series combination. At resonance the LC impedance is zero so you'll see only the voltage of the generator and resistor.

You can measure across the capacitor and you'll see the largest voltage at the resonance. Same with the inductor.

BTW, you should connect the RLC circuit to the function generator or you'll read zero everyplace.

 

[Gretik]

I did connected across the generator. BTW I didn't put the resistor in my circuit... should still work, right?

 

[Antiphon]

Yes. The generator and/or the scope might be a 50 ohm impedance. Won't change the resonant frequency much at all.

 

[PJC01]

Hello there,

It's great that you are experimenting with making your own inductor! Measuring the inductance value of a handmade inductor can be a bit tricky, but with the right equipment and method, it can be done accurately.

To answer your question, channel 2 should measure the voltage across the inductor. This is because in an LC series circuit, the voltage across the inductor and capacitor are out of phase with each other. At the resonant frequency, the voltage across the inductor will be at its maximum value while the voltage across the capacitor will be at its minimum value. By measuring the voltage across the inductor, you can determine the inductance value using the formula V = L(di/dt), where V is the voltage, L is the inductance, and di/dt is the rate of change of current.

It's also important to note that the inductance value may vary depending on the materials and construction of your inductor. To get a more accurate measurement, you can also try using an LCR meter specifically designed for measuring inductance.

Best of luck with your experiment! Keep exploring and learning.