Most people understand that magnets are objects that attract other particles, yet they are mystified by this attraction. It’s difficult to explain this phenomenon without science, which is why at one time it was associated with magic. Here are important points to help clarify your understanding of magnetism and what magnets do.
Why opposites attract
Magnetism is all about opposing forces coming together such as when a negatively-charged object sticks to a positively-charged magnet. The easiest way to understand a magnet is that it has opposite poles like Earth. These north and south poles create the force of attraction known as magnetism. As everyone learned back in grade school, like poles repel while opposites attract. In other words, the north pole of one magnet will be attracted to the south pole of another magnet.
Magnetic particles exist in nature in metals such as iron and alloys, which are metals mixed together by humans. When a coiled wire is connected to a piece of metal, it creates an electromagnet, which moves electrons in a magnetic field to generate energy. This energy can be controlled with a switch that shuts power on and off.
The poles create a magnetic field around the magnetic source. Since the magnetic field is what pulls oppositely-charged objects toward the magnet, the objects do not have to touch the source to move toward it. Most objects and substances, though, are not made of magnetic materials due to equally-balanced electrons.
Magnets all around us
One of the most overlooked phenomena in everyday life is how much we surround ourselves with magnets and electromagnets. They can be found in rocks, on and inside refrigerator doors, vehicles, smartphones, TVs, headphones, stereo speakers and various other electronic equipment. Not only can magnets create tight physical seals between magnetic objects, they are the key to storing data in computers.
Magnets come in all sizes from microscopic components to the largest magnet on Earth in Switzerland called the Large Hadron Collider. It’s about 400 times stronger than the average refrigerator magnet. There are actually smaller yet more powerful magnets.
Demystifying the magnet
Everything about why magnets attract or repel each other can be explained with electrons, which carry positive or negative charges in atoms. Electrons surround the nucleus of an atom, as they each play the role of a miniature magnet, which creates electrical charges that cause motion. In other words, electricity is the result of moving electrons. What makes electrons move? Magnetic energy from opposite poles coming together.
Electrons usually come in pairs as the positive and negative electrons spin in opposite directions, cancelling out their magnetism. But unpaired electrons set up conditions for a magnetic field. That’s why the best materials for magnets are iron, cobalt, nickel and Gadolinium. It’s also possible to create a magnet with a specially-designed molecule. Whether a magnet is electronic or a strip of metal, its properties are based on electric charges.
Imbalances between positive and negative electrons in an atom facilitate magnetism. Materials that are considered poor conductors of electricity such as paper or cloth have balanced electrons. But with metals such as iron, most of the electrons move in one direction, creating a magnetic field capable of delivering a magnetic force.
Earth as a magnet
A magnet even bigger than the biggest magnet on Earth is Earth itself. Just like all magnets, Earth has a north and south pole. Scientists are still far from understanding how this magnetism works on a planetary level other than they believe Earth’s core of iron and nickel contributes to a large magnetic field that moves the poles. Over billions of years the poles have reversed several times, scientific records show. But it’s a safe bet Earth won’t do another flip-flop anytime soon.
