Magnetism Flashcards
What is a magnet?
A magnet is an object that produces a magnetic field
Types of magnet
Permanent magnet
Temporary magnet
How many poles does a permanent magnet have?
2 poles. North and South
Like poles
Repel each other
Unlike poles
Attract each other
What happens when two magnets are pulled closer to each other?
The strength of the attraction or repulsion increases.
How do you test for a permanent magnet
It must be able to repel another permanent magnet (attraction only proves its a magnetic material)
What is known as the north seeking pole?
The North Pole on a bar magnet
What is known as the south seeking pole?
The South Pole of the bar magnet
What is a magnetic field?
This is the area around a magnet upon which magnetic forces act on other magnets or magnetic materials.
What are magnetic field lines?
These are lines used to represent magnetic field.
State the characteristics of magnetic field lines
- must start on North Pole and end on South Pole
- form closed loops
- cannot start and end in space
- cannot cross one another
- point in the direction of the force thay would be exerted on a free North pole
- are close together where the field is stronger
How do you trace magnetic field lines
Using a magnetic compass. The needle will point in the direction of the field at each point that it is placed on
What are magnetic materials?
These are materials that become affected when placed on a magnetic field
What are soft magnetic materials?
These are materials that are easily magnetised but also are easily demagnetised e.g iron
What are hard magnetic materials?
These are materials that are difficult to magnetise but once magnetised, are difficult to demagnetise e.g steel
What are electromagnets?
Consists of a soft iron core made into a magnet by the passing an electric current through a coil surrounding it.
Why is iron commonly used?
This is because it is a soft magnetic material
What happens when current is passed through the coils?
When current passes through the coil, the core magnetises creating a combined magnetic effect from the current and the strongly magnetised core.
What happens when the current is removed ?
The coil quickly demagnetises causing the electromagnet to get turned off.
Why should you not use hard mgnetic materials for electromagnets?
The electromagnet would take longer to turn on and off.
What happens when you place a pole of bar magnet near an unmagnetised material and why?
There is always attraction.
The bar magnet induces an opposite pole in the magnetic material.
i.e. holding a north pole near it will induce a south pole in it.
How is the induced magnetism used?
Induced magnetism is used to make permanent magnets by placing a hard magnetic field in a strong magnetic field such as a solenoid.
What happens when current flows in a wire?
It creates a magnetic field in the surrounding area.
*The magnetic field is due to the the beam of charged particles such as electrons or ions, rather than the wire itself. If they moved through a vacuum a magnetic field will also be created.
What happens to the magnetic field if the current is reversed?
Reverses the magnetic field.