Induction cooktops use the principal of magnetic induction to heat pots
which heats food. This is one of the three main ways we cook food using electric appliances.
How it works:
Electrical Engineer Bill Kornrumpf worked on induction cooktops at
General Electric and explains how they work in the video below:
Above: magnetic lines of flux shown in this diagram, the magnetic field collapses and grows
at high frequency, warming the iron based pot.
Beginnings:
Some of the challenges for engineers in the making of induction stoves
have been designing the high frequency power supplies and getting the
device to be powerful enough to compete with regular calrod type stoves.
Below: the insides of an induction stove, coils on the top generate the magnetic field,
while power conditioning apparatus underneath creates the high frequency power.
Related Topics
Article by M. Whelan and W. Kornrumpf
Sources
Interview with W.Kornrumpf. Edison Tech Center. 2013