Magnetic field strength affects charged particles passing through it, and can be used to power electric motors and analyze materials. The right-hand rule can determine the direction of the magnetic field. Magnetic fields can be used in the lab to identify materials and in particle accelerators for high-energy collisions.
Magnetic field strength is the effect that a magnetic field has or acts on a charged particle, such as a molecule, when it passes through that field. These forces exist whenever there is an electrically charged molecule near a magnet, or when electricity is passed through a wire or coil. Magnetic field strength can be used to power electric motors and to analyze the chemical structures of materials due to how particles respond to it.
When electric current is passed through a wire, the flow of electrons creates a magnetic field, creating a force that can act on other materials. A common example of magnetic field strength is an electric motor, which uses a moving rotor with wires wound around it, surrounded by a stator with additional coils. When an electric current is applied to the stator coils, they create a magnetic field, and the strength of that field creates a torque that moves the rotor.
The direction of the magnetic field strength can be described using the so-called right-hand rule. A person can point their thumb, forefinger, or forefinger and second finger in three different directions, often called the x, y, and z axes. Each finger and thumb should be 90 degrees apart, so if the person points their index finger up, the second finger points to the left and the thumb points directly at the person.
Using this finger arrangement, each finger will show the directions of electric flux (the index finger), magnetic field (the second finger), and resultant magnetic field strength (the thumb). When the four fingers of the hand are folded towards the palm, this shows the direction of the magnetic field with the thumb still indicating the direction of the force. Using the right hand rule is an easy way for students learning about magnetic fields to see the effects of current and the resulting forces.
Magnetic fields can be very useful in the laboratory for materials analysis. If a material needs to be identified or broken down into its molecular components, the sample can be ionized, turning the material into a gas with positive or negative electrical charges. This ionized gas is then passed through a strong magnetic field and out into a collection area.
The mass or weight of each ionized particle of the test sample responds differently to the magnetic field strength, and the particles are bent slightly from a straight direction. A collection device records where each particle hits the detector, and computer software can identify the molecule by how it interacts with the field. One type of device that uses this technology is called a mass spectrometer and is widely used to help identify unknown substances.
Another use of magnetic fields to cause changes in ionized materials is a particle accelerator. At the end of the 20th century, the largest particle accelerator built at the time was located on the border between Switzerland and France, with 17 miles (27 kilometers) of the accelerator deep underground in a large loop. The equipment used the strength of the magnetic field to rapidly accelerate charged particles in the loop, where the additional fields continued to accelerate or accelerate the charged particles.
As the high-speed particles circled the large collector, they were handled by other magnetic field controls and sent into collisions with other materials. This equipment was built to test high-energy collisions similar to those seen in the sun or other stars and during nuclear reactions. The underground location was used to prevent particles from outer space from interfering with the test results, as the rock layers above the accelerator absorbed energy and ions at high speeds.
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