eddy current

electronics
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

eddy current, in electricity, motion of electric charge induced entirely within a conducting material by a varying electric or magnetic field or by electromagnetic waves. Eddy currents induced in a power transformer core represent lost power and are undesirable; eddy currents used to produce heat for cooking or for a metallurgical furnace represent useful applications of the phenomenon.