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Q.A vertically held bar magnet is dropped along the axis of a copper ring having a cut as shown in the diagram. The acceleration of the falling magnet is: (A) zero (B) less than gg (C) gg (D) greater than gg

Figure — 55/6/1 Q7
Figure
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Figure — 55/6/1 Q7
Figure — 55/6/1 Q7

Because the copper ring has a cut (it is not a closed loop), no induced current can flow. Without induced current, there is no magnetic braking force, so the magnet falls with acceleration gg.

The key idea here is Lenz’s law and what it requires. Lenz’s law says that an induced current flows in a direction that opposes the change causing it. That opposition creates a retarding force on a moving magnet — but only if the current can actually flow. A cut in the ring breaks the conducting path, so no current circulates. No current means no opposing magnetic field, and therefore no upward force on the falling magnet.

Many students memorise that a magnet falling through a copper ring slows down, but they forget the ring must be a closed loop. An open ring is just a curved piece of metal — it cannot sustain a current.

Let’s walk through it step by step.

  1. What happens when a magnet moves near a conductor?

    A changing magnetic flux through a conducting loop induces an emf (Faraday’s law). If the loop is closed, this emf drives a current. That current produces its own magnetic field, which opposes the motion of the magnet (Lenz’s law). The result is a retarding force, so the magnet falls with acceleration less than gg.

  2. What is different here?

    The copper ring has a cut — it is not a closed loop. An emf is still induced across the gap (a potential difference appears), but without a complete conducting path, no current can flow.

    Watch out

    A common mistake is to think that an induced emf automatically means a retarding force. It does not. Without current, there is no magnetic field from the ring, and therefore no force on the magnet. …

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