Magnetism is the force of attraction or repulsion between substances, caused by the movement of charged particles. Magnets have north and south poles that attract or repel objects. Ferromagnetic materials like iron are strongly attracted to magnets, while paramagnetic materials like platinum are weakly attracted and diamagnetic materials like copper are weakly repelled. Ferromagnetic objects can be permanently magnetized, while paramagnetic objects require an external magnetic field to exhibit magnetism and diamagnetic objects are repelled by magnets.
The term magnetism describes the force of repulsion and attraction between different substances, such as iron and other metals. In magnetism, the movement of charged particles is ultimately responsible for the attraction or repulsion between substances. Objects that are attracted to each other illustrate the magnetic principles of ferromagnetism and paramagnetism, while diamagnetism describes the repulsion of magnetic fields.
An object commonly associated with magnetism is called a magnet, which produces a static magnetic field. Some of the more common types of magnets, such as the refrigerator variety, are considered permanent due to their ability to create their own magnetic field. Magnets have two poles: a north pole (N) and a south pole (S). The poles attract or repel objects using a magnetic force.
When two magnets with opposite poles are close to each other, the magnetic force attracts them towards each other. The opposite is true when the opposite poles are in close proximity. Magnets can also attract various magnetized objects. The behavior of magnetized objects towards the magnet is determined by the material of the object.
Materials such as iron, nickel and cobalt are strongly attracted to magnets due to their ferromagnetic properties. Substances such as platinum, aluminum and oxygen are considered paramagnetic and are weakly attracted to a magnet. Diamagnetic materials, including copper, water, and plastics, are weakly repelled by magnets.
Ferromagnetic objects have the strongest magnetic force of the three magnetic types. Refrigerator magnets are a good example of a ferromagnetic object magnetized by an external magnetic field. After the field is removed, the magnet remains magnetized. Objects that remain magnetized are called permanent magnets.
Unlike ferromagnetism, paramagnetism occurs only when an external magnetic field is applied to an object. Paramagnetic objects tend to have an incomplete internal electron shell that causes the unpaired electrons to spin and orbit in a specific way. To explain in more detail: Electron shells describe the concept of a field around the nucleus of an atom. Each shell or orbit can hold only a specific amount of electrons. These incomplete electron shells tend to randomly align and strengthen an applied field, which is why paramagnetism can only occur when a magnetic field is present.
Another difference between the two is that a paramagnetic object retains no magnetization when the external magnetizing entity is removed. The reason is that paramagnetic objects are hundreds of thousands of times weaker than ferromagnetic material. Conversely, diamagnetic objects are repelled by the north and south poles of a magnet. Diamagnetic materials create a magnetic field opposite to the applied external magnetic field, resulting in a repulsive effect.
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