Predict the directions of the induced currents in metal rings 1 and 2 lying in the same plane, where the current I in the straight wire is increasing steadily.
Answer: Ring 1: clockwise; Ring 2: anticlockwise (as seen in the figure).
Solution
The straight wire sets up a magnetic field that is into the plane on one side of the wire and out of the plane on the other. As I increases, the flux through each ring grows in magnitude. By Lenz's law each ring drives a current that opposes this increase. Ring 1 (above the wire) and Ring 2 (below the wire) sit in oppositely directed fields, so their induced currents circulate in opposite senses: the current in ring 1 is clockwise and in ring 2 is anticlockwise.