For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Lesson 2.1: Magnetic Fields and Magnetic

Forces
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, you (student) should be able to:
1) Describe the properties of magnets and the origin of magnetism in materials.
2) Identify the types and classification of magnets.
3) Define magnetic fields.
4) Calculate the magnitude and direction of magnetic force in a magnetic field
and the force on a current-carrying wire in a magnetic field.
5) Calculate the magnetic force on a charge placed in a constant magnetic field
and in an environment with both electric and magnetic field using the
Lorentz Force.

Materials and Equipment Needed

Learning Guide, Lecture Notes, Scientific Calculator, Laptop or Cellphone

Learning Activities (Activating Prior Knowledge)

Figure 1. The Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis.

Photo Source: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/aurora2.jpg

Most of us are already familiar with Northern Lights. Northern Lights, also
known as aurora borealis, is one of the most spectacular displays in the night sky.
These lights we see in the night sky are in actual fact caused by activity on the
surface of the Sun. Solar storms on our star's surface give out huge clouds of
electrically charged particles. These particles can travel millions of miles, and some
may eventually collide with the Earth. Most of these particles are deflected away,
but some become captured in the Earth’s magnetic field, accelerating down towards
the north and south poles into the atmosphere. This is why aurora activity is
concentrated at the magnetic poles. What we are seeing during aurora are atoms
and molecules in our atmosphere colliding with particles from the Sun. The aurora's
characteristic wavy patterns and 'curtains' of light are caused by the lines of force in
the Earth’s magnetic field.
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Learning Probe (Analysis)

As you go along this module, I want you to reflect on these questions:
How do magnets obtain their ability to attract other materials?
If we break a magnet in half, what do you think will happen? Will each
half only possess the other end of its poles?
Given the presence of a magnetic field, what force does it exert on a
moving charge or a current?

Learning Time (Acquire New Knowledge)

INTRODUCTION TO MAGNETISM

Magnetic phenomena were first observed at least 2500 years ago in

fragments of magnetized iron ore found near the ancient city of Magnesia (now
Manisa, in western Turkey). Chinese sailors employed magnets as navigational
compasses approximately 900 years ago. Throughout the world, early scientists
studied magnetic rocks, called lodestones.

Today, magnets play an increasingly important role in our everyday lives.

Electric generators, simple electric motors, television sets, cathode-ray displays,
tape recorders, and computer hard drives all depend on
the magnetic effects of electric currents. If you have ever
used a compass or picked up tacks or paper clips with a
magnet, you have observed some effects of magnetism.
You even might have made an electromagnet by winding
wire around a nail and connecting it to a battery. The
properties of magnets become most obvious when you
experiment with two of them. To enhance your study of
magnetism, you can experiment with magnets such as
those shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Magnets come in various shapes, sizes, and strengths.

Photo Source: https://www.altayscientificgroup.com/blog/2020/10/30/various-magnets/

Magnetism is a force exerted by magnets when they attract or repel each

other. It is caused by the motion of electric charges, fundamentally by this property
called electron “spin”. The fundamental nature of magnetism is the interaction of
moving electric charges. Unlike electric forces, which act on electric charges
whether they are moving or not, magnetic forces act only on moving charges.

MAGNETS AND ITS PROPERTIES

What is a Magnet?

A magnet is an object that is capable of producing a magnetic field,

attracting opposite poles, and repelling like poles. When a magnet is dipped in iron
filings, we can observe that the iron filings cling to the end of the magnet as the
attraction is maximum at the ends of the magnet. These ends are known as the
poles of the magnets. These poles can either be the north pole (indicated by the
letter N) or the south pole (indicated by the letter S) and these are the higher
attraction zones of a magnet.
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Types of Magnets

There are basically three types of magnets and these are the permanent,
temporary, and electromagnets.

1. Permanent Magnets

Permanent magnets are those magnets that are commonly used. They
are known as permanent magnets because they do not easily lose their
magnetic property once they are magnetized unless they are exposed to
extreme conditions such as very high temperatures, being hammered, or even
constantly rubbing them with
other magnets which eventually
loses their magnetic strength.

Magnets used in
refrigerators, speakers, fridge and
magnetic compass are some
familiar examples of a permanent
magnet.

Figure 2. Magnet in a speaker

Photo Source: https://www.stanfordmagnets.com/what-is-speaker-magnet.html

2. Temporary Magnets

Temporary magnets can be magnetized in

the presence of a magnetic field. When the
magnetic field is removed, these materials lose
their magnetic property. Iron nails and paper
clips are examples of a temporary magnet.

Figure 3. A permanent magnet magnetizing an iron nail, resulting it to attract a paper clip.
Photo Source: https://girlsprepscience.wordpress.com/2015/10/23/friday-october-23rd-2015/

3. Electromagnets

Electromagnets consist of a coil of wire wrapped around the metal core

made from iron. When this material is exposed to an electric current, a
magnetic field is generated, making the material behave like a magnet. The
strength of the magnetic field can be controlled by controlling the electric
current.

(a) (b)
Figure 4. (a) Electromagnet is used in a scrapyard to sort scrap metals. (b) A diagram of a simple electromagnet
Photo Source: (a) https://science.howstuffworks.com/electromagnet.htm (b) https://www.science-
sparks.com/how-to-make-an-electromagnet/
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Properties of Magnets

Suspend a bar magnet from a thread, as in Figure 5. When the magnet comes
to rest, is it lined up in any particular direction? Now rotate the magnet so that it
points in a different direction. When you release the magnet, does it come to rest in
the same direction? If so, in which direction does it point?

Figure 5. A freely suspended bar magnet

Photo Source: https://www.daviddarling.info/childrens_encyclopedia/Magnetism_For_Kids.html

You should have found that the magnet lined up in a north-south direction.
Mark the end that points to the north with the letter N for reference. From this
simple experiment, you can conclude that a magnet is polarized; that is, it has two
distinct and opposite ends. One of the poles is the north-seeking pole; the other is
the south-seeking pole.

Suspend another magnet to determine the north end, and mark it as you did
with the first magnet. While one magnet is suspended, observe the interaction of
the two magnets by bringing the other magnet near, as in Figure 24-2b. What
happens as you bring the two ends that were pointing north, the north poles,
toward each other? Now try it with the south poles. Lastly, what happens as you
bring opposite poles (the north pole of one magnet and the south pole of the other
magnet) toward each other?

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 6. (a) Unlike poles of a magnet attract each other while like pole repel. (b) Breaking a magnet in two will
always yield two new magnets, each having their own poles. (c) The earth itself is a magnet. Its north
geographic pole is close to a magnetic south pole, which is why magnets always orient themselves in a north-
south direction.
Photo Source: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-physics/chapter/22-1-magnets/

You should have observed that the two north poles repelled each other, as did
the two south poles. However, the north pole of one magnet should have attracted
the south pole of the other magnet. Like poles repel; unlike poles attract. If you
break a magnet in half, you create two smaller magnets, and each will have two
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

poles. Magnets always have two opposite magnetic poles. Scientists have tried
to break magnets into separate north and south poles, called monopoles, but no one
has succeeded, not even on the microscopic level.

Knowing that magnets always orient themselves in a north-south

direction, it may occur to you that Earth itself is a giant magnet. Because opposite
poles attract and the north pole of a compass magnet points north, the south pole of
the Earth-magnet must be near Earth’s geographic north pole.

MAGNETIC FIELDS AND MAGNETIC FORCES

To introduce the concept of magnetic field properly, let’s review the

formulation of electric interactions in during when the concept of electric field was
introduced. We represented electric interactions in two steps:

1. A distribution of electric charge at rest creates an electric field ⃗𝑬 in the

surrounding space.
2. The electric field exerts a force 𝑭 ⃗⃗ on any other charge that is present in
⃗ = 𝑞𝑬
the field.

We can describe magnetic interactions in a similar way:

1. A moving charge or a current creates a magnetic field in the surrounding

space (in addition to its electric field).
2. The magnetic field exerts a force ⃗𝑭 on any other moving charge or current
that is present in the field.

Like electric field, magnetic field is a vector field—that is, a vector quantity
associated with each point in space. We will use the symbol ⃗𝑩⃗ for magnetic field. At

Figure 7. A sketch of the earth’s magnetic field. The field, which is caused by currents in
the earth’s molten core, changes with time; magnetic field lines enter at S-pole and exits at N-pole.
Photo Source: Young, H. D., & Freedman, R. A. (2015). University physics with modern physics. Addison-Wesley.

any position, the direction of ⃗𝑩

⃗ is defined as the direction in which the north pole of
a compass needle tends to point. The arrows in Figure 7 suggest the direction of the
earth’s magnetic field; for any magnet, points out of its north pole and into its south
pole. There are no isolated poles on which field lines can start or stop, so magnetic
field lines always travel inside the magnet from the south pole to the north pole to
form closed loops.
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Magnetic Forces on Moving Charges

Four key characteristics of the magnetic force on a moving charge:

1. Its magnitude is proportional to the magnitude of the charge. If a 1-

µC charge and a 2-µC charge move through a given magnetic field with the
same velocity, experiments show that the
force on the 2-µC charge is twice as great as
the force on the 1-µC charge.
2. The magnitude of the force is also
proportional to the magnitude, or
“strength,” of the field; if we double the
magnitude of the field (for example, by
using two identical bar magnets instead of
one) without changing the charge or its
velocity, the force doubles.
3. The magnetic force depends on the
particle’s velocity. This is quite different
from the electric-field force, which is the
same whether the charge is moving or not.
A charged particle at rest experiences no
magnetic force.
4. We find by experiment that the magnetic
force ⃗𝑭 does not have the same
direction as the magnetic field ⃗𝑩 ⃗ but
instead is always perpendicular to
both 𝑩 ⃗⃗ and the velocity 𝒗 ⃗ . The
magnitude of the force is found to be
proportional to the component of
perpendicular to the field; when that
component is zero (that is, when and are
parallel or antiparallel), the force is zero.

⃗ acting on a positive charge q moving with velocity 𝒗

Figure 8. The magnetic force 𝑭 ⃗ is perpendicular to both 𝒗
⃗
⃗⃗ . For given values of the speed and magnetic field strength B, the force is greatest
and the magnetic field 𝑩
⃗ and 𝑩
when 𝒗 ⃗⃗ are perpendicular.
Photo Source: Young, H. D., & Freedman, R. A. (2015). University physics with modern physics. Addison-Wesley.

Figure 8 shows these relationships. The direction of ⃗𝑭 is always

perpendicular to the plane containing 𝒗
⃗ and ⃗𝑩
⃗ . Its magnitude is given by:

𝐹 = |𝑞|𝑣 ⊥ 𝐵 = |𝑞|𝑣𝐵 sin 𝜃 Eq. 1

where |𝑞| is the magnitude of the charge and θ is the angle measured from the
direction of 𝒗
⃗ to the direction of ⃗𝑩
⃗ as shown in the figure.

The force on a charge q moving with velocity 𝒗

⃗ in a magnetic field ⃗𝑩
⃗ is given,
both in magnitude and in direction, by:

⃗ × ⃗𝑩
𝐹 = 𝑞𝒗 ⃗ (magnetic force on a charged particle) Eq. 2
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Figure 9. Finding the direction of the magnetic force on a moving charged particle.
Photo Source: Young, H. D., & Freedman, R. A. (2015). University physics with modern physics. Addison-Wesley.

Equation 2 is valid for both positive and negative charges. When q is negative,
the direction of the force ⃗𝑭 is opposite to that of 𝒗 ⃗ (Figure 9b). If two charges
⃗ × ⃗𝑩
with equal magnitude and opposite sign move in the same field with the same
velocity, the forces have equal magnitude and opposite direction. Figures 27.6, 27.7,
and 27.8 show several examples of the relationships of the directions of and for both
positive and negative charges. Be sure you understand the relationships shown in
these figures.

Equation 1 gives the magnitude of the magnetic force in Eq. 2. We can

express this magnitude in a different but equivalent way. Since θ is the angle
between the directions of vectors 𝒗 ⃗ and ⃗ , we may interpret 𝐵 sin 𝜃 as the
⃗𝑩
component of 𝒗⃗ perpendicular to 𝑩 —that
⃗⃗ is, 𝐵⊥ . With this notation, the force
magnitude is

𝐹 = |𝑞|𝑣𝐵⊥ Eq. 3

From Eq. 1, the units of must be the same as the units of F/qv. Therefore, the
SI unit of B is equivalent to 1 N•s/C•m, or, since one ampere is one coulomb per
second (1 A = 1 C/s), 1 N/A•m. This unit is called the tesla (abbreviated T), in honor
of Nikola Tesla (1856–1943), the prominent Serbian-American scientist and
inventor:

1 𝑡𝑒𝑠𝑙𝑎 = 1 𝑇 = 1 𝑁/𝐴 ⋅ 𝑚

Another unit of B, the gauss (1 G = 10-4 T), is also in common use. The
magnetic field of the earth is of the order of 10-4 T or 1 G. Magnetic fields of the
order of 10 T occur in the interior of atoms and are important in the analysis of
atomic spectra. The largest steady magnetic field that can be produced at present in
the laboratory is about 45 T. Some pulsed-current electromagnets can produce fields
of the order of 120 T for millisecond time intervals.
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Sample Problem #1

A beam of protons (𝑞 = 1.6 × 10−19 𝐶) moves at 3.0 × 105 m/s through a uniform 2.0-T
magnetic field directed along the positive z-axis. The velocity of each proton lies in
the xz-plane and is directed at 30° to the +𝑧-axis. Find the magnitude and direction
of the force on a proton.

Diagram: Given: Required:

𝑞 = 1.6 × 10−19 𝐶 𝐹𝐵 = ?
⃗⃗⃗⃗
𝑣 = 3.0 × 105 m/s
𝐵 = 2.0 T
𝜃 = 30°

Solution:

1. Find the magnitude of the force on the proton. We will use equation 1.

2. We find the direction using the vector language.

Force on an Electric Current in a Magnetic Field (Magnetic Force on

Current-Carrying Conductors)

What makes an electric motor work? Within the motor are conductors that
carry currents (that is, whose charges are in motion), as well as magnets that exert
forces on the moving charges. Hence, there is a magnetic force along the length of
each current-carrying conductor, and these forces make the motor turn. The
magnetic forces on the moving charges within the conductor are transmitted to the
material of the conductor, and the conductor, as a whole, experiences a force
distributed along its length. We can then compute the force on a current-carrying
conductor using the formula:

𝐹= 𝐼ℓ𝐵 sin𝜃 Eq. 4

If the current’s direction is perpendicular to the field ⃗𝑩

⃗ (θ = 90⁰), then the
force is:

Fmax = 𝐼ℓ𝐵 Eq. 5

For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

The magnitude of ⃗𝑩
⃗ can be defined as:

𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐵= Eq. 6
Iℓ

Sample Problem #2

A wire carrying a steady (dc) 30.0-A current has a length of 12.0 cm between the
pole faces of a magnet. The wire is at angle θ = 60.0⁰ to the field. The magnetic field
is approximately uniform at 0.90 T. We ignore the field beyond the pole pieces.
Determine the magnitude of the force on the wire.

Given: Required:
I = 30.0 A Magnitude of F = ?
ℓ = 12.0 cm = 0.12 m
𝐵 = 0.90 T
𝜃 = 60.0°

Solution:
𝐹 = 𝐼ℓ𝐵 sin𝜃

= (30.0 A)(0.12 m)(0.90 T)sin60.0°

F = 2.8 N

Sample Problem #3

A 40.0-cm long copper wire carries a current of 6.0 A and weighs 0.35 N. A certain
magnetic field is strong enough to balance the force of gravity on the wire. What is
the strength of the magnetic field?

Given: Required:
I = 6.0 A Magnitude of B = ?
ℓ = 40.0 cm = 0.40 m
F = 0.35 N

Solution:
𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐵=
Iℓ

0.35 𝑁
=
(6.0 A)(0.40 𝑚)

𝐵 = 𝟎. 𝟏𝟓 𝑻

Lorentz Force

When an electric charge q is kept at rest in a magnetic field, no force acts on

it. At the same time, if the charge moves in the magnetic field, it experiences a
force– the magnetic force. In general, if the charge is moving in both the electric and
magnetic fields, the total force experienced by the charge is known as Lorentz force.
Lorentz force is defined as the combination of the magnetic and electric force on a
point charge due to electromagnetic fields. It is used in electromagnetism and is
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

also known as the electromagnetic force. In the year 1895, Hendrik Antoon Lorentz
derived the modern formula of Lorentz force.

⃗ +𝒗
𝐹 = 𝑞(𝑬 ⃗ × ⃗𝑩
⃗) Eq. 7

Where, 𝐅 is the force acting on the particle, 𝑞 is the electric charge of the
particle, 𝐯⃗ is the velocity, 𝐄
⃗ is the external electric field and 𝐁
⃗ is the magnetic field.

Motion of Charged Particles in Electric and Magnetic Field

A charged particle experiences a force when moving through a magnetic field.

In a vacuum where the magnetic force is more dominant, it then determines the
path of motion of the particle. Since the magnetic force is perpendicular to the
direction of travel, a charged particle follows a curved path in a magnetic field. The
particle continues to follow this curved path until it forms a complete circle.

(a) (b)
Figure 10. (a) The orbit of a charged particle in a uniform magnetic field. (b) A particle moving in a helical path
Photo Source: Young, H. D., & Freedman, R. A. (2015). University physics with modern physics. Addison-Wesley.

The magnetic force is perpendicular to the direction of travel, so the charged

particle follows a curved path in a magnetic field. The perpendicular force, 𝑞𝑣 × 𝐵,
acts as a centripetal force and produces a circular motion perpendicular to the
magnetic field. On the other hand, the electric field in y-direction imparts
acceleration in that direction. So, the particle acquires velocity in the y-direction
and resulting motion is a helical motion.
m𝑣 2
In this situation, the magnetic force supplies the centripetal force 𝐹𝐶 = 𝑟 .
Noting that the velocity is perpendicular to the magnetic field, the magnitude of the
magnetic force is reduced to 𝐹 = 𝑞𝑣𝐵. Because the magnetic force F supplies the
centripetal force, 𝐹𝐶, we will then have:

Eq. 8

Then, solving for r we get,

Eq. 9

Where 𝑟 is the radius of curvature of the path of a charged particle, 𝑚 is the

mass of the particle, 𝑞 is the charge of the particle, 𝑣 is the speed perpendicular to a
magnetic field, and 𝐵 is the magnetic field of strength. The time for the charged
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

particle to go around the circular path is defined as the period, which is the same
as the distance traveled (the circumference) divided by the speed. Based on this and
Equation 9, we can derive the period of motion as;

Eq. 10

The angular speed of the particle is given as:

Eq. 11

The frequency or number of revolutions per unit time is:

or Eq. 12

Sample Problem #4

A magnetron in a microwave oven emits electromagnetic waves with frequency f =

2450.0 MHz. What magnetic field strength is required for electrons to move in
circular paths with this frequency?

Given: Required:
f = 2450.0 MHz = 2.45 x 109 Hz Magnetic field strength (B) = ?
𝑞𝑒 − = 1.90 × 10−19 C
𝑚𝑒 − = 9.11 × 10−31 kg

Solution:
𝑞𝐵
𝑓= 𝑓(2𝜋𝑚) = 𝑞𝐵
2𝜋𝑚

𝑓(2𝜋𝑚) 𝑞𝐵
=
new formula 𝑞 𝑞
to solve for B
𝒇(𝟐𝝅𝒎)
𝑩=
𝒒

(2.45 × 109 𝐻𝑧)(2𝜋)(9.11 × 10−31 𝑘𝑔)

=
1.60 × 10−19 C

𝑩 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟖𝟕𝟔 𝐓 𝐨𝐫 𝟖. 𝟕𝟔 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟐 𝐓
For educational purposes only • SY 2022 - 2023 GPhys2: GENERAL PHYSICS 2

Sample Problem #5

A cyclotron used to accelerate α-particles (m = 6.64×10−27 kg, q = 3.20×10−19 C) has a

radius of 0.50 m and a magnetic field of 1.80 T. What is the period of revolution of
the α-particles?

Given: Required:
m = 6.64×10−27 kg Tα-particles = ?
q = 3.20×10−19 C
r = 0.50 m
B = 1.80 T

Solution:
2𝜋𝑚
𝑇=
𝑞𝐵

2𝜋(6.64 × 10−28 𝑘𝑔)

=
(3.20 × 10−19 𝐶)(1.80 𝑇)

𝑻 = 𝟕. 𝟐𝟒 × 𝟏𝟎−𝟖 𝒔