Chapter 27, Problem 82PP

Clever farmers with power lines crossing their land have been known to steal power by stringing wire near the power line and making use of the induced current. At least one such crime went to court and resulted in a conviction—despite the defense’s claim that the defendant didn’t touch the lines. Figure 27.42 shows a possible crime scene, with a rectangular wire loop mounted in a vertical plane beneath a power line. The power line carries a current of 10⁴ A, alternating sinusoidally at 60 Hz.

FIGURE 27.42 Crime scene for Passage Problems 80–83

Suppose the same crime were committed in Europe, where the standard frequency is 50 Hz. Assuming everything else about the situation were the same, the induced emf would

1. a. be greater.
2. b. be less.
3. c. be unchanged.
4. d. depend on the nature of the energy source.