Properties of a Magnetic Circuit

Using a Hall probe, the flux density in a magnetic circuit as a function of air gap
and excitation current is investigated. In addition, the flux produced by a permanent
magnet is examined.

Introduction
Magnetic circuits are typically loops of ferromagnetic material which are designed to gener-
ate high magnetic fluxes (see Fig. 1). They are fundamental to understanding and designing

Figure 1: A magnetic circuit

all types of electrical machinery, including motors and generators. The flux might be gener-
ated by some of the core material being permanently magnetized, or alternatively by current
carrying coils wound around the core. The latter case is examined in this experiment. The
aim is to investigate the flux density in the magnetic circuit as a function of both the coil
current I and also as a function of the thickness of the air gap la in the circuit. Increasing
the air gap leads to lower flux densities, so in many applications the gap is made as narrow
as possible.

However, in some applications the gap is there intentionally. Thus if one requires an
inductance of large magnitude, it is inevitable that ferromagnetic material will be used. An
air gap can be introduced in the circuit to linearize the inductance. (A linear inductance
means the magnitude of the inductance is independent of the current in the coils.) A lab-
oratory electromagnet or a U-shaped permanent magnet are other examples of magnetic
circuits which need an air gap.

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 In an auxiliary investigation, the flux density close to a permanent slab-shaped magnet
is examined. The experiment also introduces the use of Hall probes to measure flux density.
A brief introduction to the Hall effect and Hall probes is given in the Appendix.

Theory
Flux Density in a Magnetic Circuit
Ampere’s law states that the path integral of the magnetic intensity H around any closed
path must have the following result
I
H · dl = N I, (1)

where N is the number of turns (coils) that enclose the path of integration and I is the
current in each turn. In a magnetic circuit (Fig. 1) the path may include regions of ferro-
magnetic material and also regions of non-magnetic material. In the non-magnetic region
the flux density B is related to H by B = µ0 H where µ0 is the permeability of free space.
In the ferromagnetic material we have B = µr µ0 H where µr is the relative permeability. In
real materials µr is not a constant. If B is not too high µr may be very large, perhaps as
much as 1000 or more, but at very small B, as here, it might be much smaller. In addition,
its value depends not only on the material but also on the previous history of B, i.e. it shows
hysteresis. The experiment ‘Ferromagnetic Hysteresis’ gives much more information about
this behaviour. For simplicity we will assume that B is the same across a cross section,
and is also the same at any point throughout the circuit. We also take B to be parallel to
the path around the core. These might be a rather crude approximations in many cases,
including the present experimental setup. With these assumptions we can rewrite Eqn. (1)
as
Bla Blc
NI = + , (2)
µ0 µr µ0
where la and lc are the lengths of the air gap and the core, respectively. The equation
has been likened to Kirchoff’s law in an electrical circuit with N I being equivalent to the
voltage, and B and l/µr µ0 to the current and resistance, respectively, in each branch. We
can rewrite the equation as
 
µ0 N I 1 1 lc
B= or = la + . (3)
la + µlcr
B µ0 N I µr

This equation shows that B ∝ I for a given la . This is only strictly true if µr is a constant,
but in practice the non-linearity is not important provided la  (lc /µr ). This linearity be-
tween B and I means that the inductance of the magnetic circuit is a constant independent
of the current. The circuit acts like a toroid with an air core that is only the length of the
air gap la .

If we fix I and take µr to be a constant, then B −1 ∝ la with an intercept at B −1 = 0 of

(lc /µr ) = −la . This enables us to estimate µr .

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Flux Density Due to a Permanent Magnet
A permanent magnet is also an example of a magnetic circuit, though the air gap is not
so well defined and our elementary analysis is not easily extended to this case. Instead,
we will examine the problem from a different point of view. (See M. A. Plonus Applied
Electromagnetics §6.10, or W. J. Duffin Electricity and Magnetism §7.2).

Magnetism is caused by atoms having magnetic moments, say m. It is always possible to

replace a magnetic moment by an equivalent current loop, i.e. a current i circulating around
the perimeter of a small area S such that m = iS. The leftmost image in Fig. 2 sketches
these current loops for a rectangular slab of magnetized material with magnetization M
perpendicular to the plane. The magnetization is simply the net magnetic moment per

Figure 2: Current loops and magnetic moment (left) and surface

current (right) of a uniformly magnetized thin slab
P
unit volume M = vol m. It can be shown that this relation implies that if a material is
uniformly magnetized (i.e. M is the same everywhere) then the resulting B is equivalent to
that of a net current flowing around the surface of the material. In particular, a thin slab
uniformly magnetized perpendicular to the largest surface has everywhere the same B as
that due to a current circulating around its periphery as shown in the rightmost image in
Fig. 2. From the definitions, this current has magnitude Im = M V /A = M h where V , A
and h are the volume, area and thickness of the slab, and M is the magnitude of M. (It
should be noted that I in Eqn. (1) includes only the externally applied currents, and does
not include Im from the material).

Experiment
1. Connect the Hall probe output voltage to the DVM (see Fig. 4(b) of the Appendix).
Examine and record V0 , the zero offset reading of the probe, when the probe is in a
region of low B, i.e. well away from any permanent magnet. If a U-shaped permanent
magnet is available, measure the maximum flux density in the gap. Do this with the
Hall probe in both possible orientations. If you find the offset voltage to be significant,
you will need to make all measurements with the probe in both directions to eliminate
it. If not, take all measurements with the probe in one direction only.
2. A small commercial inductance is used as the magnetic circuit. This has been modified

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 so that air gaps of varying thickness can be introduced into the flux path. Assemble the
circuit of Fig. 3 to provide current to the inductance, say IL . Insert a pair of aluminum
spacers between the core pieces of the inductance (aluminum is non-magnetic and
behaves like air provided the field is constant so there are no induced eddy currents).

Figure 3: Schematic of the magnetizing apparatus

Measure the Hall probe output for values of IL from 0-60 mA in 10 mA steps (you
will have time for more steps if your probe has a negligible offset voltage). Move the
probe around and note that the flux density is not constant as assumed in the theory
section. Also notice that the flux density does not drop to zero outside the area of
the core; this is ‘flux leakage’. The Hall probe cannot reach all positions in the core,
so you may not necessarily be able to measure the absolute maximum of flux density,
though the difference should not be large; it is more important to make sure that the
Hall probe is in the same position for all readings.
3. Repeat the procedure with each of the remaining set of spacers.
4. With a vernier or micrometer, measure the thickness of each spacer. Using a ruler,
measure the dimensions of the ferromagnetic core and estimate its magnetic length
and cross sectional area.
5. Measure and plot the perpendicular component of the flux density of the permanent
slab-magnet provided. There is a grid mounted above the magnet which provides a
convenient x − y coordinate system. First determine the symmetry of the magnetic
field. Then concentrate on obtaining a detailed map of the locus of points of equal flux
density in a region which symmetry shows gives all the relevant information. Make
sure you obtain a locus of where the field changes sign. Sketch the outline of the
magnet on the same plot. Also record the field at the middle of the magnet.

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Analysis and Report
• Draw a clear diagram showing the flux paths in the inductance and determine how
the air gap in the circuit is related to the thickness of the spacers.
• Plot B as a function of IL for each spacer thickness (use the same graph for all plots).
The linearity of the graph determines the validity or otherwise of Eqn. (3). Do you
expect to see saturation effects given that transformer iron saturates at about 1.2 T?
What would be the effect on the graphs of hysteresis in the core?
• For IL of 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 mA, plot B −1 as a function of la . Use a single graph for
all the plots. Extrapolate the lines and show the intercepts at B −1 = 0. Estimate the
value of µr from the intercepts. This value is appropriate to the initial magnetization
curve and you might be able to find typical values in textbooks. Estimate the number
of turns on the inductance N from the slopes of the graphs and also estimate the
magnitude of the inductance at the smallest gap (using the definition L = N ΦB /I =
N AB/I).
• Comment on the shape of the field distribution around the permanent slab-shaped
magnet in terms of the theoretical model outlined above. Assuming M for the slab is
uniform, use the Biot-Savart law to estimate the magnitude of the peripheral circu-
lating current using the value of B measured at the centre. Use this to estimate the
magnitude of M.

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Appendix: The Hall Effect and Hall Probes

(a) (b)

Figure 4: Diagrams of (a) a Hall bar and (b) the circuit for a Hall
probe

There are a number of methods of measuring B, but the most convenient is probably the
Hall probe. Hall probes make use of the Hall effect which was discovered in 1879 by Edwin
Hall. When a conducting plate (usually made of a semiconductor in practical applications)
carrying a current IH is placed in a field B (Fig. 4(a)), a voltage is produced not only
along the current direction, say VR (this is the usual resistive part), but also in a transverse
direction, say VH (this is the Hall voltage). The magnitude of VH depends on the product
of IH , the magnitude of B, and cos θ, where θ is the angle between the plate normal and
B. It also depends on the thickness and type of the material. Thus

VH = kBIH cos θ, (4)

where k is a constant which we refer to as the probe constant. Notice VH reverses when
B is reversed (i.e. cos θ changes sign). Because it is difficult to align the Hall voltage con-
tacts exactly opposite each other, a part of the measured voltage is due to VR . This is
the offset voltage V0 , which may depend on the magnitude B, but does not reverse when
B is reversed. This means that V0 can be eliminated by measuring the probe output for ±B.

In this experiment the probe is powered by a constant current supply which is contained
in a box. There are two output terminals on the front of the box for the Hall probe output
voltage. There are also two output terminals on the rear with which the Hall probe current
may be checked. In order to translate measurements of the Hall voltage into values of B,
IH and k must be recorded. The value of k is written on the power supply. A schematic of
the circuit is shown in Fig. 4(b).