How it works

• When a current-carrying wire is placed into a magnetic field, it experiences a force known as the motor effect
• The direction of the force depends on the directions of the magnetic field and the current
• Fleming's left hand rule can be used to determine the direction of the force
• If two wires with currents flowing in opposite directions are connected to form a coil, the coil will experience forces in opposite directions
• A coil with current flowing in from the positive terminal on the right and out to the negative terminal on the left will start to spin clockwise
• To ensure continuous rotation in the same direction, a split ring commutator is used to swap the positive and negative connections every half turn
• The split ring commutator ensures that the direction of the current also swaps every half turn, maintaining the force in the same direction on the coil
• This mechanism is used in various motors, such as fans, vehicles, and hard drives, to create spinning motion using electricity
• Ways to increase the speed of rotations in a motor include increasing the current passing through the wire, adding more turns to the coil, and increasing the magnetic flux density by using more powerful magnets