NAVY CHILDREN SCHOOL

2024-25

VISAKHAPATNAM
PHYSICS
INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

TOPIC :
TO DETERMINE EARTH’S MAGNETIC FIELD
USING TANGENT GALVANOMETER

NAME : ADARSH SINGH CLASS :

XII C
ROLL NO :
 NAVY CHILDREN SCHOOL NAUSENABAUGH,
VISAKHAPATNAM, ANDHRA PRADESH

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Adarsh Singh, a student of XII-C of

Navy Children School, Visakhapatnam has satisfactorily
completed this project as per requirement of the Central
Board Of Secondary Education (CBSE).

Signature External Signature Signature

Examiner Teacher Principal
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my special thanks and gratitude to my

Physics Teacher, Vemuri Eswari who gave me the golden
opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic “To
determine Earth’s Magnetic Field using Tangent
Galvanometer”, which enabled me to do a lot of research
and helped me learn new things. I am really thankful to her. I
also thank our principal Dr. Parul Kumar for providing me with
all the facilities to finish this project on time.

Lastly, I would like to thank my parents, friends and Physics Lab

Assistant who have helped me in finalizing the project.

Adarsh Singh
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

S No Sub-Topics

1 Overview Aim

2 of Project

3 Apparatus and Material Required

4 Theory

5 Procedure Observations

6 and Graph Result

7 Precautions and Applications

8 Bibliography

9
 OVERVIEW
Earth possesses a magnetic field, also known as the
geomagnetic field, which extends from the planet's interior to
where it interacts with the solar wind, a stream of charged
particles emanating from the Sun. This magnetic field is
comparable to a tilted bar magnet positioned at Earth's
center. Its intensity varies, but it's generally reported in
nanoteslas (nT). The field plays a crucial role in shielding
Earth from harmful solar radiation, including ultraviolet
radiation and cosmic rays, which would otherwise strip away the
upper atmosphere.
The geomagnetic field is generated by the motion of molten iron
and other alloys in Earth's outer core. The North and South
magnetic poles wander, but slowly enough for compasses
to remain useful for navigation. However, the field reverses
polarity every several hundred thousand years. Earth's
magnetic field is essential for life on Earth as it deflects most of the
solar wind, protecting the ozone layer. The field's strength varies,
with the intensity often measured in gauss (G) or nanoteslas (nT).
The field is tilted at an angle of about 10 degrees relative to
Earth's rotational axis.
 PRACTICAL ANALYSIS

The tangent galvanometer was first described in 1837 by

Claude-Servais- Mathias Pouillet, who later employed this
sensitive form of galvanometer to verify Ohm's law.

The process to use the galvanometer involves:-

Set it up on a levelled surface.
Align the coil with the magnetic north-south direction. (This
means that the compass needle at the middle of the coil is
parallel with the plane of the coil when it carries no
current)
The current to be measured is now sent through the
coil, which in turn produces a magnetic field,
perpendicular to the plane of the coil which is directly
proportional to the current applied.

Let, The magnitude of the magnetic field produced by the coil

be B, and the magnitude of the horizontal component of the
Earth's magnetic field is BH.
The compass needle aligns itself along the vector sum of B and
B' after rotating through an angle Ø from its original
orientation. The vector diagram shows that

tanθ = B/BH
Since the magnetic field of the Earth, BH is constant, and B
depends directly on the current, the current is thus
proportional to the tangent of the angle through which the
needle has turned.
 AIM OF THE PROJECT

The project aims to study the Earth's magnetic field and find its
value (BH) using a tangent galvanometer.

Tangent galvanometer made by

J.H.Bunnell Co, around 1890

Top view of a tangent galvanometer

made in 1950
 APPARATUS AND MATERIALS REQUIRED

Tangent Galvanometer (TG),

Commutator (C),

Rheostat (R),

Battery (E),

Ammeter (A),

Key (K), etc

TANGENT GALVANOMETER PLUG KEY BATTERY ELIMINATOR

AMMETER RHEOSTAT
 THEORY

Tangent galvanometer is an early measuring instrument for

small electric currents. It consists of a coil of insulated
copper wire wound on a circular non-magnetic frame.

Its working is based on the principle of the tangent law of

magnetism. When a current is passed through the circular coil,
a magnetic field (B) is prodüced at the centre of the coil in a
direction perpendicular to the plane of the coil.

The working of a tangent galvanometer is based on the

tangent law. It is stated that when a bar magnet is
suspended in two Magnetic fields B and B H, it comes to rest
making an angle θ with the direction of BH.

B=Htan θ
Let a current I be passed through the coil of radius R,
having turns N. Then the magnetic field produced at the
centre of the coil is,

Let H be the horizontal component of Earth's magnetic

field and the magnetic needle comes to rest at an angle 8 with
the direction of H, then according to Eq. (1)

by substituting the value of current 1, from eq. (3)

Radius of a coil of galvanometer R, deflection B and N, the

value of H can be calculated.
 PROCEDURE

Connections are made as shown in the figure given below, the

following elements are marked as :

K is the key
E is the battery
A the ammeter
R is the rheostat
C is the commutator, and
T.G is the tangent galvanometer.

(The commutator can reverse the current through the T.G. coil
without changing the current in the rest of the circuit.)

Taking the average of the resulting two readings for

deflection in the tangent galvanometer, any small error in
positioning the TG coil relative to the Earth's magnetic

field H.
 PROCEDURE FOR PERFORMING THE
EXPERIMENT

1. Make the circuit connections in accordance with the

given circuit diagram.

2. Using a spirit level, level the base and the compass

needle in the compass box of the tangent galvanometer by
adjusting the levelling screw.

3. Now rotate the coil of the galvanometer about its

vertical axis, till the magnetic needle, its image in the plane mirror
fixed at the base of the compass box and the coil,
i.e. all these three lie in the same vertical plane.

4. In this setting, the ends of the aluminium pointer should

read zero-zero. Otherwise, rotate the box without
disturbing the position of the coil till at least one of the
ends of the pointer stands at zero marks.

5. By closing the key K, the current flow in the

galvanometer. Read both ends of the pointer.

6. Now reverse the direction of the current by using the

reversing key. When the mean values of both deflections
shown by the pointer in the two cases (i.e. before and after
reversing the current) differ by more than 1 then turn the
vertical coil until the two values agree. This will set the
plane of the coil exactly in the magnetic meridian.
7. By adjusting the rheostat, bring the deflection in the
galvanometer around 45°. The deflection should not be
outside the range (30°-60°).

8. Record the reading of the ammeter and the deflection of the

compass needle in the box shown by two ends of the
pointer on the scale.

9. Reverse the current in the coil of the galvanometer and

again record the current and deflection of the needle.

10. By changing the current value, take four or more sets of

readings and plot the graph between I and tane The graph will
be a straight line.

11.Measure the inner and outer diameter of the coil with a

half-metre scale at least three times.
 OBSERVATIONS
1.Range of Ammeter - 0-1 Amps
2.Least Count of Ammeter - 0.02 A
3. Zero Error in Ammeter - 0
4. Number of Turns Used (N) - 0.492

Table 1 : For Variation of θ with I

Table 2 : For Radius of Tangent Galvanometer

Mean radius of coil R = 8.04 x 10^-2 cm

 GRAPH

C
tan θ A

RESULT
The value of Earth’s magnetic field by using tangent
galvanometer is :
 PRECAUTIONS
1.The battery should be freshly charged.

2. The magnetic needle should swing freely in the horizontal

plane.

3. The plane of the coil must be set in the magnetic meridian.

4. There should be no parallax in noting down the readings of the

ammeter and deflection.

5. All the readings should be adjusted between 30° and 60°.

APPLICATIONS
1. T.G. can be used to measure the magnitude of the
horizontal component of the geomagnetic field.

2. The principle can be used to compare the galvanometer

constants.

3. For calibration of secondary instruments.

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1.Tangent Galvanometer (Procedure): Comprehensive Physics

Activities Volume 1: Laxmi Publications Pvt Ltd.

2. Tangent Galvanometer (Theory): Comprehensive Physics

Activities Volume 1: Laxmi Publications Pvt Ltd.

3. Tangent Galvanometer (Precautions): Comprehensive

Physics Activities Volume I: Laxmi Publications Pvt Ltd.

4. Galvanometer:
http://physics.kenyon.edu/EarlyApparatus/Electrical_Measure
ments/Tangent_Galvanometer/Tangent_Galvanometer.html

5. Galvanometer: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanometer