NARAYANA E-TECHNO SCHOOL

MEDAVAKKAM
PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

TANGENT GALVANOMETER

SUBMITTED BY:
SHAKURAH O

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TANGENT GALVANOMETER

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 NARAYANA E-TECHNO SCHOOL

This is to certify that this “Physics Investigatory

Project” on the topic “Tangent Galvanometer” has
been successfully completed by SHAKURAH.O of
class XII, under the guidance of Ms. PATHMAVATHI
in particular fulfilment of the curriculum of Central
Board of Secondary Education {CBSE} leading to
the award of annual examination of the year 2024-
25.

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 Teacher in Charge External
Principal

PAGE
SL.NO. CONTENT NO.
1 Certificate 2
2 Acknowledgement 4
3 Aim/Objective 5
4 Introduction 6
About The Topic-
5 Tangent galvanometer 10
6 Experiment 14
7 Observation Table 16
8 Result 17
9 Conclusion 17
10 Bibliography 17
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 11 End of Project 18
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I have taken efforts in this project. However, it
would not have been possible without the kind
support and help of many individuals.

I would like to thank my principal Mr. SREENIVASA

RAO MADALA and school for providing me with
facilities required to do my project. I am highly
indebted to my Physics teacher, Ms.
PATHMAVATHI, for her invaluable guidance which
has sustained my efforts in all the stages of this
project work.

I would also like to thank my parents for their

continuous support and encouragement. My
thanks and appreciations also go to my fellow
classmates and the laboratory assistant in
developing the project and to the people who
have willingly helped me out with their abilities.

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OBJECTIVE

 To study the earth’s magnetic

field using a tangent

galvanometer.  To find out

the horizontal component of
earth’s magnetic

field (Bh).

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INTRODUCTION
Earth's magnetic field, also known as the geomagnetic
field, is the magnetic field that extends from the Earth's
interior to where it meets the solar wind, a stream of
charged particles emanating from the Sun. Its magnitude
at the Earth's surface ranges from 25 to 65 microteslas
(0.25 to 0.65 gauss).Roughly speaking it is the field of a
magnetic dipole currently tilted at an angle of about 10
degrees with respect to Earth's rotational axis, as if there
were a bar magnet placed at that angle at the center of the
Earth. Unlike a bar magnet, however, Earth's magnetic field
changes over time because it is generated by a
geodynamic (in Earth's case, the motion of molten iron
alloys in its outer core).
The North and South magnetic poles wander widely, but
sufficiently slowly for ordinary compasses to remain useful
for navigation. However, at irregular intervals averaging
several hundred thousand years, the Earth's field reverses
and the North and South Magnetic Poles relatively abruptly
switch places. These reversals of the geomagnetic poles
leave a record in rocks that are of value to paleomagnetists
in calculating geomagnetic fields in the past. Such
information in turn is helpful in studying the motions of

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continents and ocean floors in the process of plate
tectonics.

The magnetosphere is the region above the ionosphere and

extends several tens of thousands of kilometers into space,
protecting the Earth from the charged particles of the solar
wind and cosmic rays that would otherwise strip away the
upper atmosphere, including

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the ozone layer that protects the Earth from harmful
ultraviolet
radiation.

Earth's magnetic field serves to deflect most of the solar

wind, whose charged particles would otherwise strip away
the ozone layer that protects the Earth from harmful
ultraviolet radiation. One stripping mechanism is for gas to
be caught in bubbles of magnetic field, which are ripped off
by solar winds.

The intensity of the field is often measured in gauss (G),

but is generally reported innanoteslas (nT), with 1 G =
100,000 nT. A nanotesla is also referred to as a gamma
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(γ).The tesla is the SI unit of the Magnetic field, B. The field
ranges between approximately 25,000 and 65,000 nT
(0.25–0.65 G).
Near the surface of the Earth, its magnetic field can be
closely approximated by the field of a magnetic dipole
positioned at the center of the Earth and tilted at an angle
of about 10° with respect to the rotational axis of the Earth.
The dipole is roughly equivalent to a powerful bar magnet,
with its South Pole pointing towards the geomagnetic North
Pole. The north pole of a magnet is so defined because, if
allowed to rotate freely, it points roughly northward (in the
geographic sense). Since the north pole of a magnet
attracts the south poles of other magnets and repels the
north poles, it must be attracted to the south pole

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Page 10 of 22
ABOUT THE TOPIC Tangent

Galvanometer

A tangent galvanometer is an early measuring instrument

used for the measurement of electric current. It works by
using a compass needle to compare a magnetic field
generated by the unknown current to the magnetic field of
the Earth. It gets its name from its operating principle, the
tangent law of magnetism, which states that the tangent
of the angle a compass needle makes is proportional to
the ratio of the strengths of the two perpendicular
magnetic fields. It was first described by Claude Pouillet in
1837.
A tangent galvanometer consists of a coil of insulated
copper wire wound on a circular non-magnetic frame. The
frame is mounted vertically on a horizontal base provided
with leveling screws. The coil can be rotated on a vertical
axis passing through its centre. A compass box is mounted
horizontally at the centre of a circular scale. It consists of a
tiny, powerful magnetic needle pivoted at the centre of the
coil. The magnetic needle is free to rotate in the horizontal
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plane. The circular scale is divided into four quadrants. Each
quadrant is graduated from 0° to 90°. A long thin
aluminium pointer is attached to the needle at its centre
and at right angle to it. To avoid errors due to parallax, a
plane mirror is mounted below the compass needle.
In operation, the instrument is first rotated until the
magnetic field of the Earth, indicated by the compass
needle, is parallel with the plane of the coil. Then the
unknown current is applied to the coil. This creates a
second magnetic field on the axis of the coil, perpendicular
to the Earth's magnetic field. The compass needle responds
to the vector sum of the two fields, and deflects to an angle
equal to the tangent of the ratio of the two fields. From the
angle read from the compass's scale, the current could be
found from a table.[2] The current supply wires have to be
wound in a small helix, like a pig's tail, otherwise the field
due to the wire will affect the compass needle and an
incorrect reading will be obtained.
A tangent galvanometer can also be used to measure the
magnitude of the horizontal component of the geomagnetic
field. When used in this way, a low-voltage power source,
such as a battery, is connected in series with a rheostat,
the galvanometer, and ammeter. The galvanometer is first
aligned so that the coil is parallel to the geomagnetic field,
whose direction is indicated by the compass when there is
no current through the coils. The battery is then connected

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and the rheostat is adjusted until the compass needle
deflects 45 degrees from the geomagnetic field, indicating
that the magnitude of the magnetic field at the center of
the coil is the same as that of the horizontal component of
the geomagnetic field. This field strength can be calculated
from the current as measured by the ammeter, the number

of turns of the coil, and the radius of the coils.

CIRCUIT DIAGRAM

When a bar magnet is suspended in two magnetic fields B

and Bh, it comes to rest making an angle θ with the
direction of Bh.

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From Figure B = Bh tanθ. This is known as tangent law of magnetism.

If θ is the deflection of the needle, then according to tangent law,

B = Bh tanθ (1)

Let I be the current passing through the coil of radius a with n turns,
then the magnetic field generated by the current carrying coil is,

B = µ0nI/2a (2) (a is the radius of the coil)

Equating (1) and (2), we get,

Bh tanθ = µ0nI/2a (3)

2aBh/µ0n = I/tanθ (4)

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The left hand side of equation (4) is a constant and is called the
reduction factor K of the given Tangent Galvanometer.

K = I/tanθ (5)

Now from the equation (3) & (5), the horizontal intensity of Earth’s
magnetic field Bh is,

Bh = µ0nK/2a (6)

APPLICATIONS
 Tangent Galvanometer can be used to measure the magnitude
of the horizontal component of the geomagnetic field.
 The principle can be used to compare the galvanometer
constants.

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 EXPERIMENT

Aim
 To determine the reduction factor of a tangent
galvanometer.
 To find the horizontal intensity of the Earth’s magnetic
field

Apparatus
Accumulator, Rheostat, Ammeter, Commutator, Tangent
Galvanometer

Principle&Formulae
 The reduction factor of T.G is K=I/tanθ, where I is the
current flowing through the T.G which produces the
deflection θ.
 The horizontal intensity of Earth’s magnetic field at a
place. Bh
= µ0nK/2r, where n is the number of turns of the coil, µ 0
= 4π×10-7 NA-2 is the permeability of free space, K is

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 the reduction factor of the T.G and r is the radius of the
coil of the T.G.

Procedure
The circuit is made as shown in the
diagram. The plane of the coil is made vertical by adjusting
the leveling screws. The plane of the coil is made by
adjusting the leveling screws. The plane of the coil is made
parallel to (90-90) in the compass box. The whole T.G is
rotated to read (0-0) at the ends of the aluminum pointer.
Now the plane of the coil is in the magnetic meridian.

The Commutator keys are put. The

rheostat should be adjusted for deflection in T.G between
10 and 60. For a current I, the deflections of the pointer θ1 &
θ2 are noted. The Commutator is reversed. The deflections
of the pointer θ3 & θ4 are noted. The average of the four
readings is the deflection θ. From the theory of the T.G, I=K
tanθ.

By varying the current the experiment is

repeated. Using a string the circumference of the coil is
measured. Hence its radius r is found. Let n be the number
of turns of the coil. The horizontal intensity at the place is
given by, Bh = µ0nK/2r

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OBSERVATION TABLE
Deflection in T.G Ammeter
SL.No Reading θ1 θ2 θ3 θ4 Mean K=I/tanθ
(A)

1 0.15 35 35 35 35 35 0.2142

2 0.20 49 47 60 64 53.6 0.1474

3 0.25 36 36 55 58 46.25 0.2389

4 0.30 50 50 65 68 58.2 0.1860

5 0.27 45 45 64 65 53.8 0.1976

Mean K = 0.19682

• The reduction factor of TH = 0.19682

• Number of turns of the coil = 50

• Circumference of the coil (S) = 2πr = 50.49 cm

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 • Radius of the coil r = S/2π = 8.04 cm = 8.04×10 -2
cm Horizontal Intensity at the place Bh = µ0nK/2r

= 2πnK×10-7/r

= 7.6867×10-8 T

For different values of current I, deflections are noted and

values are calculated. Knowing K, n and r the value of
horizontal intensity Bh can be calculated.

Result
1.The reduction factor of T.G, K = 0.19682 A
2.Horizontal Intensity at the place, Bh = 7.6867×10-5 T

CONCLUSION
Experiment in tangent galvanometer gives the reduction
factor of galvanometer and horizontal intensity of Earth’s
magnetic field.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
 Illustrative Oxford Book

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 Wikipedia
 NCERT Practical’s
 Introduction to Physical Science

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Thank
you!
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