Measuring the Magnetic Field Strength in a Solenoid

Mark Verndick Cabading1, Dominique John O. de Lara2

Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, University of the Philippines, Diliman
Quezon City
2
Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, University of the Philippines, Diliman
Quezon City
1

I. Introduction
Magnetism is a physical phenomena that occurs from the force caused by magnets. A magnet is referred to as
something that carries a static magnetic field around it. There are different kinds of magnets but the most
common ones are the permanent magnets. These kinds of magnets exert force on each other and on iron pieces
that are not initially magnetized. They are said to be polarized due to the way they interact with other magnets
that depends on their orientation. Like poles repel while opposite poles attract. This can be further explained
with the introduction of a magnetic field.
A magnetic field is carried by a magnetic material but is produced by an electric current or movement of
charges. Magnetic interactions are similar to electric interactions. A moving charge produces a magnetic field
aside from its electric field. A magnetic field exerts a force on another moving charge or current like the way an
electric field exerts a force on any other charge. Despite these similarities, magnetized objects do not come as
single poles the way charges can exist on their own. No matter how or where a magnet is split or broken it will
always have two poles, the north and the south.
A solenoid is a coil of current-carrying wire and is also often referred to as an electromagnet. It can be used
to generate a magnetic field similar to that of a bar magnet. It has many practical applications such as
transformers and DC motors. In this experiment, the strength of the magnetic field produced by the solenoid was
measured as well as how the field strength is affected by the physical properties of the solenoid. Magnetic field
lines of a bar magnet and combinations of it were also mapped.

References
1. H. D. Young, R. A. Freedman, University Physics, 12th Ed., Chapter 27, Pearson Education Inc., San
Francisco CA, 2008.