Henry (unit) Henry (unit) The henry (symbol: H) is the SI derived unit of electrical inductance. If a current of 1 ampere flowing through the coil produces flux linkage of 1 weber turn, the coil has a self inductance of 1 henry.‌ The unit is named after Joseph Henry (1797–1878), the American scientist who discovered electromagnetic induction independently of and at about the same time as Michael Faraday (1791–1867) in England. The inductance of an electric circuit is one henry when an electric current that is changing at one ampere per second results in an electromotive force of one volt across the
Introduction to the metric system The result is that there are a variety of different named units available to measure the same quantity (for example 10 millimetres = 1 centimetre, 100 centimetres = 1 metre, 1000 metres = 1 kilometre). Each unit and each prefix has a standard symbol (not abbreviation) associated with it. In 1861, during discussions about standardising electrical units of measure, Charles Bright and Latimer Clark proposed that these units be named, not in relation to what they are used for, or common objects, but after eminent scientists; with the electrical units of resistance, potential difference and capacitance being named the ohm,