| DESCRIPTION:
This simulation illustrates the magnetic field generated
by a ring of current, and shows how, by the principle
of superposition, a continuous current distribution
can be thought of as the sum of many discrete current
elements (in this case, thirty). Each element generates
its own field, described by the Biot-Savart Law (and
represented here by the small vectors attached to the
observation point), which, when added to the contribution
from all the other elements, results in the total field
of the ring (given by the large resultant vector). In
this animation, each element is being added up one by
one (indicated by the highlighted portion of the ring),
and the total field changes accordingly. As the entire
ring is integrated, the components of the field contributions
in the plane of the ring are cancelled out, leaving
a total field that is perpendicular to the ring on its
central axis.
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