What is the condition called when a sine wave peaks are excessively high due to current drawn only at the peaks?

The condition where the peaks of a sine wave are excessively high due to current being drawn only at those peaks is referred to as flat-topping. This phenomenon occurs when a load connected to the sine wave only draws energy at particular instances, typically at the peaks of the wave, causing those peaks to become exaggerated while the troughs may remain low or unaffected. This results in a distortion of the wave’s shape, making it "flat-topped" because the waveform’s peaks become truncated and flattened.

In contrast to the correct choice, wave distortion generally encompasses a broader range of irregularities in waveforms and does not specifically refer to the phenomenon of peaking at the tops. Harmonic generation relates to the creation of additional frequencies that are integer multiples of the fundamental frequency due to nonlinearities in a system, which is not the same as flat-topping. Sine wave fluctuation is a more general term that describes variations in amplitude or frequency of the sine wave without specifically addressing the condition of excessive peak currents, making it less precise in describing the flat-topping phenomenon.