Unipolar induction hypothesis testing experiment

Abstract

The phenomenon of unipolar induction is closely related to the problem of electrodynamics of rotating reference frames. Attempts to apply the general relativity theory to construct the electrodynamics of rotating systems have not yet led to a universally recognised theory. Various authors derive different systems of electrodynamics equations in rotating reference frames and different models of the electric field of a rotating magnet. These models can be tested in experiments with rotating magnets. In this work, an experiment is performed to test two models of the electric field of a rotating magnetised sphere. The theoretical models predict different values of the electric potential of unipolar induction at the pole and equator of the sphere relative to infinity. In the experiment, direct measurements of the potential of the pole and equator of a rotating magnetised sphere relative to a grounded screen are performed. The experimental results contradict the quadrupole model and correspond to the electric field model obtained by applying Lorenz transformations for the field vectors both inside and outside the sphere.