Transformers are ____ components that make good use of the induction process.

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Transformers rely on electromagnetic induction to transfer energy between windings, and induction needs a changing magnetic flux. That changing flux is produced when current continually reverses direction, which is what alternating current does. If you apply direct current, the flux in the core quickly settles to a steady value, and after the initial transient there’s no changing flux to sustain induction, so energy isn’t transferred effectively. The idea of being step-up describes a possible function, not the fundamental mechanism at work, and while transformers are passive devices in that they don’t generate energy themselves, the essential point is that a changing current—alternating current—drives the induction that makes them operate.