Colorado State University

Adam shows us how you can use a magnet to make the filament in a lightbulb dance!

Build It!

The lightbulb is hooked up trough a transformer which acts as an inductive load causing the bulb to be dim, so you can actually see the filament. The bulb goes directly in between the poles of the magnetic where the magnetic field is strong and uniform.

What’s Happening?

The magnet applies a force to the moving electric charge in the lightbulb filament. In the United States, our electricity is 60Hz alternating current (AC), which means the direction of the electrical current switches 60 times a second. Therefore the direction of the force on the filament also switches 60 times every second, causing it to dance!