Magnetic Properties of Materials

Magnetism
The phenomenon by which materials exert an attractive or repulsive force or influence on other
materials.
Many modern technological devices rely on magnetism and magnetic materials, including electrical
power generators and transformers, electric motors, radio, television, telephones, computers, and
components of sound and video reproduction systems.

Magnetic Dipole
Magnetic dipoles may be thought of as small bar magnets composed of north and south poles instead
of positive and negative electrical charges.

Magnetic Field
The magnetic field is an imaginary line of force around a magnet which enables other ferromagnetic
materials to get repelled or attracted towards it.

Properties of Magnetic Field Lines

• The Magnetic field lines by convention enter through the south pole and comes out of the north pole.

• The magnetic field lines are strong near the poles of the magnet.

• There is no chance of magnetic field lines intersecting with other.

• More the closeness of the magnetic field lines, more is the strength of the magnet.
Magnetic Dipole Moment
A torque that material experiences when you put it in a magnetic field. And so if you add an object to a
magnetic field and it is not affected, then it does not have this magnetic dipole moment.

that Magnetic Dipole Moment inside the bar magnet that

is causing it to be magnetized.

Origin of Magnetic Moments

Each electron in an atom has magnetic moments that originate from two sources:

a) Orbital motion around the nucleus

 Electron considered to be a small current loop, generating a very small magnetic

field having a magnetic moment along its axis rotation.

b) Spin of electrons

 The spin of electrons also produces a magnetic moment along the spin axis.

 Spin magnetic moments may be only parallel or antiparallel.

Magnetism in a material arises due to alignment of magnetic moments.

 Every material has orbital and spinning electron, then
are all materials can be a magnet??? NO!

Two reasons
Reason 1
Pauli exclusion rule
Two electrons with same energy level must have opposite spins – thus so are their magnetic
moments, which cancel out each other.

Reason 2
Orbital moments of electrons also cancel each other – thus no net magnetic moments if there is no
unpaired electron(s).

Basic Terminology

 Magnetic Field Strength (H)

 It is the externally applied magnetic field.

 It is given by

 Magnetic Induction/Magnetic Flux Density (B)

 Represents the magnitude of the internal field strength within a substance that is
subjected to an H field.

The magnetic field strength and Flux density are related as

𝐵𝑜 = 𝜇𝑜 H B = 𝜇𝐻

Vacuum Solid Material

Magnetism
Depending on the existence and alignment of magnetic moments with or without application of magnetic field, five
types of magnetism can be defined

• Diamagnetism

• Paramagnetism

• Ferromagnetism

• Ferrimagnetism

• Antiferromagnetism

Diamagnetism
 Weak form of magnetism which arises only when an external field is applied.

 It arises due to change in the orbital motion of electrons on application of a magnetic field.

 There is no magnetic dipoles in the absence of a magnetic field and when a magnetic field is applied the dipole
moments are aligned opposite to field direction.

Paramagnetism
 In this the cancellation of magnetic moments between electron pairs is incomplete and hence magnetic
moments exist without any external magnetic field.

 However, the magnetic moments are randomly aligned and hence no net magnetization without any external
field.

 When a magnetic field is applied all the dipole moments are aligned in the direction of the field.
Both diamagnetic and paramagnetic materials are considered nonmagnetic because they exhibit magnetization only
when in the presence of an external field.

Ferromagnetism
 Certain metallic materials possess a permanent magnetic moment in the
absence of an external magnetic field.

 Permanent magnetic moments arise due to uncancelled electron spins by

virtue of their electron structure.

 The coupling interactions of electron spins of adjacent atoms cause alignment

of moments with one another.

Antiferromagnetism
 If the coupling of electron spins results in anti parallel alignment then spins
will cancel each other and no net magnetic moment will arise.

 MnO is one such example.

 In MnO, 𝑂2− ions have no net magnetic moments and the spin moments of
𝑀𝑛2+ ions are aligned anti parallel to each other in adjacent atoms.

Ferrimagnetism
 Certain ionic solids having a general formula 𝑀𝐹𝑒2 𝑂2 , where M is any metal, show permanent magnetism,
termed ferrimagnetism, due to partial cancellation of spin moments.

 In 𝐹𝑒3 𝑂4 , Fe ions can exist in both 2+ and 3+ states as 𝐹𝑒 2+ 𝑂2− - (𝐹𝑒 3+)2(𝑂2− )3 in 1:2 ratio. The antiparallel
coupling between 𝐹𝑒 3+ moments cancels each other.

 𝐹𝑒 2+ moments are aligned in same direction and result in a net magnetic moment.
THE INFLUENCE OF TEMPERATURE ON MAGNETIC BEHAVIOR

 The atomic vibration increases with increasing temperature and this leads to misalignment of magnetic
moments (as they free to rotate).

 Above a certain temperature all the moments are misaligned and the magnetism is lost. This temperature is
known as Curie Temperature (Tc).

Domains
 Ferromagnetic materials exhibit small-volume regions in which magnetic moments are aligned in the same
directions. These regions are called domains.

 Adjacent domains are separated by domain boundaries. The direction of magnetization changes across the
boundaries.

 The magnitude of magnetization in the material is vector sum of magnetization of all the domains.