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Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that occur through a magnetic field, which allows objects to attract or repel each other.Because both electric currents and magnetic moments of elementary particles give rise to a magnetic field, magnetism is one of two aspects of electromagnetism.
Ancient people learned about magnetism from lodestones (or magnetite) which are naturally magnetized pieces of iron ore.The word magnet was adopted in Middle English from Latin magnetum "lodestone", ultimately from Greek μαγνῆτις [λίθος] (magnētis [lithos]) [1] meaning "[stone] from Magnesia", [2] a place in Anatolia where lodestones were found (today Manisa in modern-day Turkey).
A magnet's North pole is defined as the pole that is attracted by the Earth's North Magnetic Pole, in the arctic region, when the magnet is suspended so it can turn freely. Since opposite poles attract, the North Magnetic Pole of the Earth is really the south pole of its magnetic field (the place where the field is directed downward into the ...
A permanent magnet in such a field rotates so as to maintain its alignment with the external field. Magnetic torque is used to drive electric motors. In one simple motor design, a magnet is fixed to a freely rotating shaft and subjected to a magnetic field from an array of electromagnets. By continuously switching the electric current through ...
Cover of A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism. Electricity and magnetism were originally considered to be two separate forces. This view changed with the publication of James Clerk Maxwell's 1873 A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism [6] in which the interactions of positive and negative charges were shown to be mediated by one force ...
The second of Maxwell's equations is known as Gauss's law for magnetism and, similarly to the first Gauss's law, it describes flux, but instead of electric flux, it describes magnetic flux. According to Gauss's law for magnetism, the flow of magnetic field through a closed surface is always zero.
Magnetostatics is the study of magnetic fields in systems where the currents are steady (not changing with time). It is the magnetic analogue of electrostatics, where the charges are stationary.
Superconducting magnets are limited by the field strength at which the winding material ceases to be superconducting. Current designs are limited to 10–20 T, with the current (2017) record of 32 T. [22] [23] The necessary refrigeration equipment and cryostat make them much more expensive than ordinary electromagnets. However, in high power ...