Magnetism

What is a Magnet?

 The ends of a magnet are called poles

 Magnets have two poles: a north and a south

Poles of a Magnet

 Magnets are objects which experience attraction and repulsion

o Like poles repel (push each other apart)
 For example a north pole will repel a north pole and a south pole
will repel a south pole
o Unlike poles attract (move towards each other)
 For example a north pole will be attracted to a south pole

 When two magnets are held close together, there will be a force between the
magnets:

Opposite poles attract; like poles repel

 Magnetised materials can both repel and attract

 o Magnetic materials (which are not magnets) will always be attracted to the
magnet, regardless of which pole is held close to it
 Unmagnetised materials can be attracted to a magnet but will never experience
repulsion
o Only a magnet can repel another magnet (This can be a useful test for a
magnet)

Magnetised vs. Magnetic

 Magnetised materials can both repel and attract

o This is because they themselves are a magnet and so have poles

 Only a magnet can repel another magnet.

o This can be a useful test for a magnet or to see if a material is magnetised

 Magnetic materials (which are not magnets) will always be attracted to the
magnet, regardless of which pole is held close to it

 These unmagnetised materials can be attracted to a magnet but will never

experience repulsion

 Non-magnetic materials are not attracted or repelled as they do not

interact with the magnetic field

Uses of Magnets
Uses of Permanent Magnet

 Permanent magnets are usually (but not always) made from steel
o They tend to stay magnetized
  Permanent magnets have many uses including
o Compasses: for thousands of years humans have used compasses for
navigation, since the needle always points north
o School lab experiments; the magnets used in school science
demonstrations are permanent magnets
o Toys; toy trains and trucks often have magnets which attach the carriages
or trailers to the engine or cab
o Fridge magnets; these are made either of flexible magnetic material or by
sticking a magnet to the back of something

Uses of Electromagnets

 Electromagnets use electricity to create a magnet from a current-carrying wire

o They have the advantage that they can be magnetised and demagnetised,
literally at the flick of a switch
o They can be switched on and off
 Soft iron is the metal normally used for this
o It can easily become a temporary magnet

 Electromagnets have many uses including

o MRI scanners in hospitals; an MRI scanner is a large, cylindrical machine
using powerful electromagnets to produce diagnostic images of the
organs of the body
o Speakers and earphones; the loudspeakers, microphones and earphones
used in phones and laptops use electromagnets to sense or send
soundwaves
o Recycling; because steel is a magnetic material it can be easily separated
from other metals and materials using electromagnets. Once recovered
 the steel is re-used and recycled, reducing mining for iron ore and
processing ore into steel
o Mag-Lev Trains; the ability of Mag-Lev trains to hover above the rails is
due to them being repelled by large electromagnets on the train and track.
This reduces friction and allows speeds of nearly 400 miles per hour

Magnets
Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials

Magnetic materials are attracted to a magnet; non-magnetic materials are not

 Very few metals in the Periodic Table are magnetic. These include:
o Iron
o Cobalt
o Nickel
 Steel is an alloy which contains iron, so it is also magnetic
 Magnetic materials (which are not magnets) will always be attracted to the
magnet, regardless of which pole is held close to it
 Magnetic materials attracted to magnets

 To test whether a material is a magnet it should be brought close to a known

magnet
o If it can be repelled by the known magnet then the material itself is a
magnet
o If it can only be attracted and not repelled then it is a magnetic material

Types of Magnets

 There are two types of magnets


o Permanent magnets
o Induced magnets

Permanent Magnets

 Permanent magnets are made out of permanent magnetic materials, for example
steel
 A permanent magnet will produce its own magnetic field
o It will not lose its magnetism

Temporary (Induced) Magnets

 When a magnetic material is placed in a magnetic field, the material

can temporarily be turned into a magnet
o This is called induced magnetism


o Some objects such as paperclips or needles (which are made from steel)
can be magnetised and will remain magnetic for a while
o Other objects, such as electromagnets or transformers (which are made
from iron) will be demagnetised as soon as the cause of the induced
magnetism is removed

 When magnetism is induced on a material:

o One end of the material will become a north pole
o The other end will become a south pole
 Magnetic materials will always be attracted to a permanent magnet
 o This means that the end of the material closest to the magnet will have
the opposite pole to magnets pole closest to the material

Inducing magnetism in a magnetic material

 When the magnetic material is removed from the magnetic field it will lose
most/all of its magnetism quickly

Worked Example
The diagram below shows a magnet held close to a piece of metal that is suspended by
a light cotton thread. The piece of metal is attracted towards the magnet.Which of the
following rows in the table gives the correct type of pole at X and the correct material of
the suspended piece of metal?
ANSWER: A


o X must be a north pole
 The piece of metal is being attracted towards the magnet
 The law of magnetism states that opposite poles attract
o The material of the suspended piece of metal is nickel
 Nickel is a magnetic material (It will experience a force when it is
placed in a magnetic field, in this case it is attracted towards the
magnet)


o B is incorrect because X cannot also be a south pole (and hence is a north
pole)
 If the pole at X was a south pole then the piece of metal would be
repelled from the magnet because the law of magnetism states that
like poles repel


o C and D are incorrect because aluminium is not a magnetic material
 A non-magnetic material would be unaffected by the magnetic field
produced by the magnet.
Magnetic Fields

 All magnets are surrounded by a magnetic field

 A magnetic field is defined as:

The region around a magnet where a force acts on another magnet or on a

magnetic material (such as iron, steel, cobalt and nickel)

 Two bar magnets can be used to produce a uniform magnetic field

 Point opposite poles (north and south) of the two magnets a few centimetres
apart
 A uniform magnetic field will be produced in the gaps between opposite poles
o Note: Outside that gap, the field will not be uniform

A uniform field is created when two opposite poles are held close together.
Magnetic fields are always directed from North to South

 A uniform magnetic field is one that has the same strength and direction at all
points
o To show that the magnetic field has the same strength at all points there
must be equal spacing between all magnetic field lines
o To show that the magnetic field is acting in the same direction at all points
there must be an arrow on each magnetic field line going from
the north pole to the south pole

 The magnetic field lines are the same distance apart between the gaps of the
poles to indicate that the field strength is the same at every point between the
poles
 This field can be determined by using plotting compasses that will point
from north to south or by using iron filings

Magnetic Field Lines

  Magnetic field lines are used to represent the strength and direction of a
magnetic field
 The direction of the magnetic field is shown using arrows

 There are some rules which must be followed when drawing magnetic field lines.
Magnetic field lines:
o Always go from north to south (indicated by an arrow midway along the
line)
o Must never touch or cross other field lines

Magnetic Field Around a Bar Magnet

 The magnetic field is strongest at the poles

o This is where the magnetic field lines are closest together
 The magnetic field becomes weaker as the distance from the magnet
increases
 This is because the magnetic field lines are getting further apart

The magnetic field around a bar magnet

Magnetic Field Strength

EXTENDED

 The strength of the magnetic field is shown by the spacing of the magnetic field
lines
o If the magnetic field lines are close together then the magnetic field will
be strong
 o If the magnetic field lines are far apart then the magnetic field will
be weak

 Magnetic forces are due to interactions between magnetic fields

o Two bar magnets can repel or attract

 The field lines will look slightly different for each:

Magnetic field lines for attracting and repelling bar magnets

 Therefore, the magnetic field lines around different configurations of two bar
magnets would look like:
 Magnetic field lines between two bar magnets

Exam Tip
If you are asked to draw the magnetic field around a bar magnet remember to indicate
both the direction of the magnetic field and the strength of the magnetic field.You can
do this by:

 Adding arrows pointing away from the north pole and towards the south pole
 Making sure the magnetic field lines are further apart as the distance from the
magnet increases
Plotting Magnetic Field Lines

 In your IGCSE examination you might be asked to describe a method of plotting

the magnetic field around a bar magnet
 There are two principle ways of doing this:

Using Iron Filings

 Place a piece of paper on top of the magnet

 Gently sprinkle iron filings on top of the paper
 Now carefully tap the paper to allow the iron filings to settle on the field lines

Iron filings can be used to plot a magnetic field

 Place the magnet on top of a piece of paper

 Draw a dot at one end of the magnet (near its corner)
 Place a plotting compass next to the dot, so that one end of the needle of the
compass points towards the dot
 Use a pencil to draw a new dot at the other side of the compass needle
 Now move the compass so that it points towards the new dot, and repeat the
above process
 Keep repeating until you have a chain of dots going from one end of the magnet
to the other. Then remove the compass, and link the dots using a smooth curve –
the magnetic field line
 The direction of the field line is the same as the direction of the plotting compass
 You can now repeat the whole process several times to create several other
magnetic field lines

Compasses can be used to plot the magnetic field around a bar magnet