Electric Motor

electricity · magnetism · machines · energy

Converts electricity. Electric motors take electrical energy and transform it into mechanical motion. This is how your toys, fans, and power drills actually work.

Magnetism does the work. Inside a motor, magnetic fields push and pull on electric currents flowing through wire coils. This pushing force, called the Lorentz force, makes the motor's shaft spin round and round.

Works both ways. An electric generator is basically an electric motor in reverse. While a motor turns electricity into motion, a generator spins to create electricity instead.

Powers the world. Electric motors are everywhere from your bedroom ceiling fan to the motor in an electric car. They're one of the most useful inventions ever because they silently convert energy we can control.