MAGNETISM

Brief History:

When Christopher Columbus set sail in 1492, he

used a compass to plot his course.

Compasses were vital instruments in the expansion

of European nations in the 15th and 16th centuries.

A compass was made by rubbing an iron needle on

a piece of naturally magnetized material called
lodestone.
Magnetism
The term magnetism is derived from Magnesia, the
name of a region in Asia Minor where lodestone, a
naturally magnetic iron ore, was found in ancient
times.
Magnetism deals with the magnetic force where
certain objects are attracted or repelled to one
another.
A magnet is anything that carries a static magnetic
field around with it.
A magnetic force is a non-contact force, even if the
objects eventually touch.
Properties of magnets
Magnets have these properties: -
Why does a magnetic compass point to the
Geographic North Pole?
A magnetic compass points to the
earth's magnetic poles. The magnetic pole near
earth's geographic North Pole is actually
the south magnetic pole. When it comes to
magnets, opposites attract. This fact means that
the north end of a magnet in a compass is attracted
to the Earth’s south magnetic pole, which lies close
to the geographic North Pole.
The geographic north and south poles indicate the
points where the earth's rotation axis intercepts
earth's surface.
Earth's magnetic field is caused by circulating
currents of liquid iron in the outer core. 
Currently, the magnetic south pole lies about ten
degrees distant from the geographic north pole.

 has a magnetic field around it.

 Directional Property-When you suspend a
bar magnet freely, it always comes to rest,
almost along North-South direction.

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 close to the S pole of another magnet, the two
magnets will repel each other.

Unlike poles attract and will stick together.

 will attract magnetic materials by inducing

(permanent or temporary) magnetism in
them. In other words, when a magnet is
placed near a magnetic material the two
objects always experience an attractive
force-It doesn’t matter which pole of the
magnet is placed nearest the object

 Magnetic pole, region at each end of

a magnet where the  magnetic field is
strongest.
-has 2 opposite poles (North or north-
seeking pole and South or south-seeking
pole) which exert forces on other magnets
 -will exert little or no force on a non-
magnetic material.

Magnetic and non-magnetic materials

A magnetic material is a material that experiences
a force when placed in a magnetic field.

These materials are attracted by the magnet, have

magnetic dipole in them and can be magnetized.
e.g iron, steel, nickel and cobalt. They are also
called ferromagnetics.
Like poles repel each other. If a N pole is brought  Non-magnetic: These are materials which
close to the N pole of a second magnet a repulsive are not attracted by the magnet, do not
force will be felt. Similarly if a S pole is brought have magnetic dipoles and cannot be

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 magnetised e.g copper, brass, aluminium,
wood, plastic, paper, glass etc.
Testing magnets
You cannot test what a magnet is attracted to, but
you can test what it repels. Objects that are made
of unmagnetised iron, cobalt and nickel are
attracted to either pole of a magnet, but not
repelled. You can only show that an object is a
magnet if it repels another magnet.
Magnetic field
A magnetic field is the region around a magnet
where a magnetic material experiences a
magnetic force.
When a magnetic material is placed near one piece
of a magnet, it is attracted. This shows that there’s
a magnetic effect in the space around a magnet.
The field is stronger near the poles of the magnet
and is weaker farther away from the poles.
Magnetic field is a vector quantity! It can be
graphically represented by magnetic field lines
which indicate its strength and direction.
ii)shape: They leave and meet a surface at right
angles. They repel each other sideways and cut as
stretched elastic bands
iii)strength : They are closer together where the
field is strongest. Field strength decreases with
distance from the magnet
v) They do not touch or cross each other field lines.
Finding magnetic fields
Although we cannot see magnetic fields, we can
detect them using iron filings. The tiny pieces of
iron line up in a magnetic field.
Procedure:
Step 1: Place a sheet of paper on the magn
Step 2: Sprinkle iron filings around
Step 3: Tap the paper gently and the iron filings w
arrange themselves in a pattern that is similar to t
magneticfieldpattern.
Step 4: Use a plotting compass to find the direction of t
magnetic field lines.

Direction of a magnetic field

The direction of a magnetic field at a point is the

direction which a free north pole would move if
placed at that point in the field. Thus, a magnetic
line of force can be defined as the path along which
a north pole would move if free to do so.

Magnetic field lines have the following properties

and will show m

i) the direction of magnetic field- Field lines around
a bar magnet point from north to south. The
direction of a magnetic field line shows the
direction of the force on a north pole at that point
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Drawing magnetic field diagrams
Using Plotting Compass
Procedure:
Step 1: Trace out the magnet at the center of the paper;
Step 2: Start by positioning the compass near one pole of
 themagnet  Without a magnet (external force), the
Step 3: Mark out two dots, A and B that are aligned with compass always points to the N pole of
the direction of compass needle. Earth.
 With a magnet, under the influence of
Step 4: Move the compass so that the end of the needle
magnetic effect from the magnet, the
is now directly over B and mark out third dot C. compass will align and point along the
Step 5: Repeat the process until the compass comes back direction of the magnetic field lines from
toanother pole of magnet. the magnet at that point where it placed.
Step 6: Join all the dots and this will give the pattern of
magneticfield line.
Step 7: Repeat the whole process by starting at different
points of magnet, a magnetic field pattern will be
obtained

Magnetic Field Pattern between Magnets

The magnetic field pattern when two magnets are

used is shown in this diagram.
.

Magnetic Field Pattern of a bar magnet

 Outside the magnet, the magnetic field lines

always start from N pole to S
pole while Within the magnet, the lines continue
from S pole to N pole. (However, these lines
cannot be traced.)

 Magnetic field lines must not cross each other.

 The closer the field lines, the stronger 
magnetic field.

Note:

 Magnetic field pattern is not just 2-
dimension. It occurs in 3-dimension. This
means when we place a compass above or
below the magnet, it will still point from N
pole to S pole of the magnet.
Note that point X is a neutral point where the
magnetic fields from both magnets cancel out each
other. There is no magnetic effect at X.
Uniform magnetic field

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When magnetic field lines are straight, parallel to
each other, moves in the same direction and are
equally spaced (the same distance apart from each
other), we say that the magnetic field is uniform.
This is shown in the diagram:

 This process is known as magnetic

induction and results in a force being
exerted on the material.
 When the material is removed from the
magnetic field, it will start to lose its
magnetism (depending on whether it is
Example 1: Between unlike poles of two different
magnetically hard or soft).
magnets, uniform magnetic field can be formed.

Example 2: Earth’s magnetic field

iii) Field pattern of a horse-shoe magnet

Comparison of magnetism between soft iron and
steel

Activity 1: Bring one iron nail and a steel nail near a

pole of a strong bar magnet.

Both the nails will be attracted to the magnet.

Move the free end of the nails in a pool of iron
Induced Magnetism fillings.
When a magnetic material is placed in a magnetic
Observation: More iron fillings are attracted to the
field, magnets attract materials by inducing
iron nail than that on the steel nail, by induced
magnetism in them, in other words the material magnetism.
becomes a magnet as well. i.e-the material can
temporarily become magnetised: Conclusion: The Iron nail is easier to magnetise
than steel and induced magnetism is stronger.
The side of the material facing the magnet will
become the opposite pole as the magnet.

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Activity 2: Hold both the nails in your hand firmly,
remove the magnet. The domain theory states that inside a magnet
there are small regions in which the magnetic
Observation: Almost all iron filings drop-off from
directions of all the atoms are aligned in the same
the iron nail and all iron –fillings remain attached to
the steel nail. directions. These regions are known as domains.
Conclusion: Iron becomes a temporary magnet and
Within a domain, the alignment of the magnetic
loses its magnetism easily, while steel becomes a
permanent magnet and retains its magnetism. direction is the same. In the next domain it may be
in a completely different direction. On average over
Soft-iron Steel the many domains in the magnet there is no
1.Can be easily 1.Difficult to preferential direction for the magnetic force.
magnetized magnetise. However, using an external magnetic field from
2. Induced magnetism Induced another magnet say, the direction of the magnetic
is more. magnetism is less.
direction in each domain can be made to align with
3. Loses magnetism, 3. Retains
the magnetic field, the domain walls will melt and
once the inducing magnetism once
magnet is removed. the inducing become a single domain with the net magnetic
magnet is field being increased.
removed.
4. Becomes a Becomes a
temporary magnet. permanent
magnet.
5. Can be easily 5. Difficult to de-
demagnetized. magnetise.
6. Used to make an 6. Used to make
electromagnet. permanent
magnets.
The Domain Theory of Magnetism

A popular theory of magnetism considers the

molecular alignment of the material. This theory
assumes that all magnetic substances are Unmagnetised state of a The magnetized state
Magnetic material
composed of tiny molecular magnets.

Any unmagnetized material has the magnetic

forces of its molecular magnets neutralized by
adjacent molecular magnets, thereby eliminating
any magnetic effect. A magnetized material will
have most of its molecular magnets lined up so
that the north pole of each molecule points in one
direction, and the south pole faces the opposite Methods of magnetisation
direction. A material with its molecules thus
Magnetisation: The process of making magnets
aligned will then have one effective north pole, and
from a magnetic material
one effective south pole.

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1. Stroking method
a) Single stroking method
A bar of steel can be magnetised by stroking it with
one pole of a bar magnet. The domains become
aligned, and a N pole and a S pole are induced.
When a steel bar is stroked several times in the
same direction by a magnet, the magnetic force
from the north pole of the magnet causes the
magnetic dipoles in the magnetic material to
become aligned in one direction and give rise to a
magnetic field.
Note: An opposite pole to the inducing pole is
induced at the end where the magnet is lifted.
b) Double stroking method:
Use unlike poles of two different magnets and
stoke them on a steel bar from centre to outwards
simultaneously, as shown above. Opposite poles to
that of inducing poles are created at the ends of
the steel bar.
2. Electrical method
A bar of steel or iron can be magnetised by placing
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it in a coil of wire (solenoid). Passing a d.c. (direct
current) through the wire will magnetise the bar.
The best method to make permanent magnets.
3. Hitting with a hammer, (mechanical) method
 If the magnetic material is placed in a
magnetic field and then hit with a hammer,
all the dipoles align in the same direction
and become magnetised.
Methods of Demagnetisation
The process of removing magnetism from a magnet
is called demagnetization.
Magnets can be demagnetised by using one of the
following methods:
1. Heating
Heat the material (until it begins to glow) and then
slowly let it cool.
When heated with Bunsen burner, the atoms of
the magnet will vibrate vigorously and cause the
magnetic domains to lose their alignment. Letting
the magnet cool in the East−West direction will
ensure that the domains will not realign

2. Hammering
Hit the material with a hammer (when it is not in a
magnetic field).
Hammering a magnet in the East−West direction
alters the alignment of the magnetic domains and
causes the magnet to lose its magnetism.
When a magnet is hammered or dropped, the
vibrations caused by the impact on the magnet
randomize the magnetic molecules within the
magnet, forcing them out of order and destroying
the long-range order of the unit magnet.
3. Alternating Current (AC) Field method
-Place the magnet to be demagnetized in a
solenoid (many turns of insulated copper coil) with
its axis pointing east-west as shown above.
-Connect it to an alternating current (a.c.) supply.
-Then slowly withdraw the magnet (with the a.c.
power source still attached to the coil), in the East-
West direction to a very long distance.
The AC current drags the magnetic molecules of
the magnet in different directions. When the AC
current is altered or reduced, the molecules within
the magnet do not all return to previous positions,
causing randomization of the molecules and
reducing the force of the magnet.
When suspended freely, it does not settle in any
particular direction. This shows that it has lost
magnetism.
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Electrical method is the most effective method of
demagnetization.
Uses of magnets
1. In navigation
In historic times, the magnets are used for
navigation.
Many computers use magnets to store data on
hard drives.
2. Sorting
a) Magnets are widely used in scrap yards to
separate and sort magnetic metals from other non-
magnetic metals for recycling.
b) Food manufacturers depend on magnets to
remove any small metal particles that have come in
contact with the food.
c) The mining industry relies on industrial strength
magnets to separate iron ore from rock, which
speeds up the process of sorting.
3. In medicine
Very strong magnets are used in MRI (Magnetic
Resonance Images) Scanning machines to generate
picture of bones, organs and other tissue.
4. In security
a) Magnets are used to make a tight seal on the
doors to refrigerators and freezers.
b) In credit cards- The dark magnetic strip on the
backside of a credit card stores data
5. in daily life
Magnets are used in phones, door bells, Vacuum
cleaners, blenders, washing machines, in stereos,
earphones, speakers, televisions, fridge magnets
and computers.

They are used in the Maglev trains. In the Maglev

trains, the super conducting magnets are used on
the tracks on which the train floats. These types of
the trains are working on the repulsion force of the
magnets.

In robotics, magnets are essential. Not only do

magnets assist with the electronics part, but they
assist make robots extra mobile and compact.
These days, foldable drones, magnetic
nanotechnologies like Google X and other
progressive makes use of magnets have popped
up.