PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

(2022-23)

NAME – PRAKASH SHAILENDRA ADKE

ROLL NO. – 1218
SUBJECT TEACHER – ARINDAM DEY SIR

SUBJECT - TEMPERATURE AFFECTS MAGNET’S

STRENGTH
 CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Prakash Adke, a
student of Class XII SCIENCE, has
successfully completed the research on the
below mentioned project under the
guidance of Mr. Arindam Dey (subject
teacher) during the year 2022-2023 in
partial fulfillment of physics practical
examination conducted by AISSCE.

Signature Signature
Subject Teacher Principal
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In the accomplishment of this project

successfully many people have best owned upon
me their blessings and the hard pledged support
this time I am utilizing to thank all the people
who have been concerned with project.
Primarily I would thank god for being able to
complete this project with success then I would
like to thank my principal Mr. S.P.Borse and my physics
teacher Mr. Arindam Dey who is valuable guys has been
the ones that help me patch this project and make it
full proof success his suggestions and his instructions
has served as the major contributor towards the
completion of the project.
Then I would like to thank my parents and friends
who have help me with their valuable suggestions
and guidance and has been helpful in various
phases of the completion of the project.
Last but not the least I would like to thank my
classmates who have helped me a lot.
 DECLARATION

I here by declare that the investigatory

project work in title “temperature of a magnet
affects its strength”
submitted to department of physics
Jawahar Navodaya vidyalaya Ahmednagar,
is prepared by me. All the work are result
of my personal efforts.

- Prakash Adke
XII (PCB)
 OBJECTIVE
The objective of this project is to
determine whether the temperature of a
magnet affects its strength.

❖ INTRODUCTION
Magnets are fascinating; they are fun to play with and
can even create artistic creations. Figure 1, below,
gives you a glimpse of what you can expect during
this science project.
Figure 1. Magnets allow you to create fascinating and beautiful creations,
like this pattern of paper clips that are stuck to one big magnet.
Scientists need magnets that function in extreme conditions, like in the
cold emptiness of space. In our day-to-day life, magnets experience
more-moderate extremes, like the freezing winter temperatures in Alaska
or the unbearable heat of a summer day in Death Valley, California.
Would a magnet still function well in those conditions?
It is important to note there are several types of magnets. This science
project only deals with permanent magnets, magnets that always retain
their magnetic characteristics. In other words, they always create
a magnetic force (magnetic pull or push) on magnetic material in their
vicinity. Do you think these magnets are always permanent, or are there
exceptions at extreme temperatures?
In everyday language, we usually refer to magnets, and materials that are
attracted to magnets, as magnetic. Technically, these materials are
called ferromagnetic. Not all metals are ferromagnetic. Try to pick up a
copper penny or a piece of aluminum foil with your magnet. Does it work?
The most common ferromagnetic metals are iron, nickel, and cobalt. They
are special because at the microscopic level, they contain many
tiny magnetic domains. Each magnetic domain is like a tiny magnet with
a north and south pole. Normally, the tiny magnetic forces created in
those domains point randomly in all directions, so they cancel each other
out, and as a result the material will not exert a magnetic push or pull on
other ferromagnetic materials. However, when the material is placed in a
strong magnetic field, the material gets magnetized, and all of these tiny
magnetic fields line up, creating an overall larger magnetic field, as
illustrated in Figure 2, below. To learn even more about magnets, check
out the Science Buddies Electricity, Magnetism, & Electromagnetism
Tutorial.
Figure 2. In ferromagnetic material, tiny magnetic domains act like tiny
magnets. They can be oriented randomly in different directions, canceling
each other out (left) or they can line up and all point in the same direction
(right). When they line up, they combine and create a large magnetic
force field, which allows the magnet to exert a magnetic force on other
ferromagnetic materials.
Now, what would happen if you heated up the magnet? Scientists define
the temperature of a material as a measure of random movement of
atoms or molecules (the tiny particles the material is made of) within the
material. Even when you see a solid block of metal, the atoms within this
solid block are constantly vibrating back and forth. They move a little less
when the block is cold, and a little more when the block is warm. Because
heating up the block increases the random motion within the metal, would
it also affect the alignment of magnetic domains? If so, an increase in the
temperature of a magnet would tend to decrease its strength. In fact,
each ferromagnetic material has a Curie temperature (named after Pierre
Curie), above which it can no longer be magnetized. For some metals, like iron,
the Curie temperature is over 1,300°C! Your oven at home might get as hot as
260°C, so obviously 1,300°C is out of the question for a science project. But
what happens to the strength of a magnet over a more approachable range of
temperatures, like from the temperature of your freezer (about −20°C) to the
temperature of boiling water (+100°C)? In this science project, you will find out.
❖ EXPERIMENT
MATERIALS:
● 3 or 4 identical neodymium bar magnets
● Tongs
● Water
● Stove
● Pot
● Ice
● Bowl
● Compass
● Ruler
● Tape
Optional:
● Dry ice
● Safety glasses
● Oven mitts

PROCEDURE
Before testing each magnet:
1. Set one magnet out on a table so that it reaches room
temperature.
2. Place another magnet in a pot of boiling water for 45
seconds.
3. Place a third magnet in a bowl of ice water for 30
minutes.
4. Optional: Using your tongs, oven mitt, and safety
glasses, place a fourth magnet in a bucket of dry ice for
30 seconds.
To test the strength of each magnet:
5. Place the compass on a flat table so that the needle
facing right.
6. Turn the compass so the needle lines up with the ‘0.’
Tape the compass to the table.
7. Tape the ruler to the table so that its direction is
perpendicular to that of the needle. The ‘0’ on the ruler
should touch the ‘0’ on the compass.
8. Take a magnet (using tongs for the heated and cooled
magnets) and slide it along the ruler towards the
compass. You want the needle to move towards the
magnet, so if it is moving away, flip it over.
9. Take note of the distance between the magnet and the
compass when the needle of the compass begins to
move. Compare the distances you recorded for all of
your magnets. What do you notice? How do you think
you can explain your results?

RESULTS
Heating the magnet will cause the magnet to have a weaker
magnetic field. Cooling the magnet will cause the magnet to
have a stronger magnetic field. Cool magnets can be farther
away from the compass than hot magnets when they make
the compass’ needle move.
WHY?
An important part of the relationship between magnets and
temperature is the fact that heating the magnet causes its
molecules to become more disorderly. Magnets
are dipoles, which means they have an opposite charge, or
magnetic direction, at each end. This is a result of most of
the magnetic molecules facing the same direction. When we
heat our magnets, those polar molecules start moving
around. The average direction of the entire magnet’s polarity
becomes a little bit messier because those magnetic
molecules are no longer facing the same direction.
If magnets are heated to the Curie point, they lose their
ability to be magnetic. The dipoles become so disordered
that they can’t return to their original state. Curie points are
very hot, and you would not be able to get your magnets to
reach them without special lab equipment. For iron, the
Curie Point is 1417°F.
As your boiled magnet cools from the boiling temperature of
100°C back to room temperature, it will return to its normal
magnetic strength. Cooling the magnet even further to 0°C in
ice water or -78°C in dry ice will cause the magnet to become
stronger. Cooling causes the molecules in the magnet to
have less kinetic energy. This means that there is less
vibration in the magnet’s molecules, allowing the magnetic
field they create to be more consistently concentrated in a
given direction.
❖ TERMS AND CONCEPTS
● Permanent magnets
● Magnetic force
● Ferromagnetic materials
● Magnetic domain
● Temperature
● Equilibrate
● Diamagnetic materials
● Paramagnetic materials
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
● NDT Education Resource Center. (n.d.). Magnetic
Domains. Non-Destructive Testing Resource Center,
Collaboration for NDT Education. Retrieved
September 21, 2006.
● Costello, K. (2008, February). Measuring
Temperature, Mass, Volume, and Density. Retrieved
October 6, 2014.
● Nave, C.R. (n.d.). The Curie
Temperature. HyperPhysics, Departments of Physics
and Astronomy, Georgia State University. Retrieved
September 21, 2006.
● Science Buddies. (2014, November). Electricity,
Magnetism, and Electromagnetism Tutorial. Science
Buddies. Retrieved November 3, 2004.