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Magne
tism
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Legal,
Wikipedia.

magnetism,
force force,
commonly, a "push" or "pull," more properly defined in physics
as a quantity that changes the motion, size, or shape of a body.
Force is a vector quantity, having both magnitude and direction.
..... Click the link for more information. of attraction or
repulsion between various substances, especially those made of
iron and certain other metals; ultimately it is due to the motion
of electric charges.

Magnetic Poles, Forces, and Fields

Any object that exhibits magnetic properties is called a magnet.
Every magnet has two points, or poles, where most of its
strength is concentrated; these are designated as a north-seeking
pole, or north pole, and a south-seeking pole, or south pole,
because a suspended magnet tends to orient itself along a northsouth line. Since a magnet has two poles, it is sometimes called

a magnetic dipole, being analogous to an electric dipole,

composed of two opposite charges. The like poles of different
magnets repel each other, and the unlike poles attract each other.
One remarkable property of magnets is that whenever a magnet
is broken, a north pole will appear at one of the broken faces and
a south pole at the other, such that each piece has its own north
and south poles. It is impossible to isolate a single magnetic
pole, regardless of how many times a magnet is broken or how
small the fragments become. (The theoretical question as to the
possible existence in any state of a single magnetic pole, called a
monopole, is still considered open by physicists; experiments to
date have failed to detect one.)
From his study of magnetism, C. A. Coulomb in the 18th cent.
found that the magnetic forces between two poles followed an
inverse-square law of the same form as that describing the forces
between electric charges. The law states that the force of
attraction or repulsion between two magnetic poles is directly
proportional to the product of the strengths of the poles and
inversely proportional to the square of the distance between
them.
As with electric charges, the effect of this magnetic force acting
at a distance is expressed in terms of a field field,
in physics, region throughout which a force may be exerted;
examples are the gravitational, electric, and magnetic fields that
surround, respectively, masses, electric charges, and magnets.
The field concept was developed by M.
..... Click the link for more information. of force. A magnetic
pole sets up a field in the space around it that exerts a force on
magnetic materials. The field can be visualized in terms of lines
of induction (similar to the lines of force of an electric field).

These imaginary lines indicate the direction of the field in a

given region. By convention they originate at the north pole of a
magnet and form loops that end at the south pole either of the
same magnet or of some other nearby magnet (see also flux,
magnetic flux, magnetic,
in physics, term used to describe the total amount of magnetic
field in a given region. The term flux was chosen because the
power of a magnet seems to "flow" out of the magnet at one
pole and return at the other pole in a circulating pattern, as
suggested
..... Click the link for more information. ). The lines are spaced
so that the number per unit area is proportional to the field
strength in a given area. Thus, the lines converge near the poles,
where the field is strong, and spread out as their distance from
the poles increases.
A picture of these lines of induction can be made by sprinkling
iron filings on a piece of paper placed over a magnet. The
individual pieces of iron become magnetized by entering a
magnetic field, i.e., they act like tiny magnets, lining themselves
up along the lines of induction. By using variously shaped
magnets and various combinations of more than one magnet,
representations of the field in these different situations can be
obtained.

Magnetic Materials
The term magnetism is derived from Magnesia, the name of a
region in Asia Minor where lodestone, a naturally magnetic iron
ore, was found in ancient times. Iron is not the only material that
is easily magnetized when placed in a magnetic field; others
include nickel and cobalt. Carbon steel was long the material

commonly used for permanent magnets, but more recently other

materials have been developed that are much more efficient as
permanent magnets, including certain ferroceramics and Alnico,
an alloy containing iron, aluminum, nickel, cobalt, and copper.
Materials that respond strongly to a magnetic field are called
ferromagnetic [Lat. ferrum = iron]. The ability of a material to
be magnetized or to strengthen the magnetic field in its vicinity
is expressed by its magnetic permeability. Ferromagnetic
materials have permeabilities of as much as 1,000 or more times
that of free space (a vacuum). A number of materials are very
weakly attracted by a magnetic field, having permeabilities
slightly greater than that of free space; these materials are called
paramagnetic. A few materials, such as bismuth and antimony,
are repelled by a magnetic field, having permeabilities less than
that of free space; these materials are called diamagnetic.

The Basis of Magnetism

The electrical basis for the magnetic properties of matter has
been verified down to the atomic level. Because the electron
electron,
elementary particle carrying a unit charge of negative electricity.
Ordinary electric current is the flow of electrons through a wire
conductor (see electricity). The electron is one of the basic
constituents of matter.
..... Click the link for more information. has both an electric
charge and a spin, it can be called a charge in motion. This
charge in motion gives rise to a tiny magnetic field. In the case
of many atoms, all the electrons are paired within energy levels,
according to the exclusion principle exclusion principle,
physical principle enunciated by Wolfgang Pauli in 1925 stating

that no two electrons in an atom can occupy the same energy

state simultaneously. The energy states, or levels, in an atom are
described in the quantum theory by various values of four
different
..... Click the link for more information. , so that the electrons in
each pair have opposite (antiparallel) spins and their magnetic
fields cancel. In some atoms, however, there are more electrons
with spins in one direction than in the other, resulting in a net
magnetic field for the atom as a whole; this situation exists in a
paramagnetic substance. If such a material is placed in an
external field, e.g., the field created by an electromagnet, the
individual atoms will tend to align their fields with the external
one. The alignment will not be complete, due to the disruptive
effect of thermal vibrations. Because of this, a paramagnetic
substance is only weakly attracted by a magnet.
In a ferromagnetic substance, there are also more electrons with
spins in one direction than in the other. The individual magnetic
fields of the atoms in a given region tend to line up in the same
direction, so that they reinforce one another. Such a region is
called a domain. In an unmagnetized sample, the domains are of
different sizes and have different orientations. When an external
magnetic field is applied, domains whose orientations are in the
same general direction as the external field will grow at the
expense of domains with other orientations. When the domains
in all other directions have vanished, the remaining domains are
rotated so that their direction is exactly the same as that of the
external field. After this rotation is complete, no further
magnetization can take place, no matter how strong the external
field; a saturation point is said to have been reached. If the

external field is then reduced to zero, it is found that the sample

still retains some of its magnetism; this is known as hysteresis.

Evolution of Electromagnetic Theory

The connections between magnetism and electricity were
discovered in the early part of the 19th cent. In 1820 H. C.
Oersted found that a wire carrying an electrical current deflects
the needle of a magnetic compass because a magnetic field is
created by the moving electric charges constituting the current.
It was found that the lines of induction of the magnetic field
surrounding the wire (or any other conductor) are circular. If the
wire is bent into a coil, called a solenoid, the magnetic fields of
the individual loops combine to produce a strong field through
the core of the coil. This field can be increased manyfold by
inserting a piece of soft iron or other ferromagnetic material into
the core; the resulting arrangement constitutes an electromagnet
electromagnet,
device in which magnetism is produced by an electric current.
Any electric current produces a magnetic field, but the field near
an ordinary straight conductor is rarely strong enough to be of
practical use.
..... Click the link for more information. .
Following Oersted's discovery the various magnetic effects of an
electric current were extensively investigated by J. B. Biot, Flix
Savart, and A. M. Ampre. Ampre showed in 1825 that not
only does a current-carrying conductor exert a force on a magnet
but magnets also exert forces on current-carrying conductors. In
1831 Michael Faraday and Joseph Henry independently
discovered that it is possible to produce a current in a conductor
by changing the magnetic field about it. The discovery of this

effect, called electromagnetic induction, together with the

discovery that an electric current produces a magnetic field, laid
the foundation for the modern age of electricity. Both the
electric generator generator,
in electricity, machine used to change mechanical energy into
electrical energy. It operates on the principle of electromagnetic
induction, discovered (1831) by Michael Faraday.
..... Click the link for more information. , which makes
electricity widely available, and the electric motor motor,
electric,
machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy.
When an electric current is passed through a wire loop that is in
a magnetic field, the loop will rotate and the rotating motion is
transmitted to a shaft, providing useful mechanical work.
..... Click the link for more information. , which converts
electricity to useful mechanical work, are based on these effects.
Another relationship between electricity and magnetism is that a
regularly changing electric current in a conductor will create a
changing magnetic field in the space about the conductor, which
in turn gives rise to a changing electrical field. In this way
regularly oscillating electric and magnetic fields can generate
each other. These fields can be visualized as a single wave that
is propagating through space. The formal theory underlying this
electromagnetic radiation electromagnetic radiation,
energy radiated in the form of a wave as a result of the motion of
electric charges. A moving charge gives rise to a magnetic field,
and if the motion is changing (accelerated), then the magnetic
field varies and in turn produces an electric field.
..... Click the link for more information. was developed by
James Clerk Maxwell in the middle of the 19th cent. Maxwell

showed that the speed of propagation of electromagnetic

radiation is identical with that of light light,
visible electromagnetic radiation. Of the entire electromagnetic
spectrum, the human eye is sensitive to only a tiny part, the part
that is called light. The wavelengths of visible light range from
about 350 or 400 nm to about 750 or 800 nm.
..... Click the link for more information. , thus revealing that
light is intimately connected with electricity and magnetism.

Bibliography
See D. Wagner, Introduction to the Theory of Magnetism (1972);
D. J. Griffiths, Introduction to Electrodynamics (1981); R. T.
Merritt, Our Magnetic Earth (2010).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright 2013,
Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University
Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/

magnetism
1. the property of attraction displayed by magnets
2. any of a class of phenomena in which a field of force is
caused by a moving electric charge
3. the branch of physics concerned with magnetic phenomena
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition HarperCollins
Publishers 2005

magnetism
[magntizm]

(physics)
Phenomena involving magnetic fields and their effects upon
materials.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E,
Copyright 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Magnetism
The branch of science that describes the effects of the
interactions between charges due to their motion and spin. These
interactions may appear in various forms, including electric
currents and permanent magnets. They are described in terms of
the magnetic field, although the field hypothesis cannot be tested
independently of the electrokinetic effects by which it is defined.
The magnetic field complements the concept of the electrostatic
field used to describe the potential energy between charges due
to their relative positions. Special relativity theory relates the
two, showing that magnetism is a relativistic modification of the
electrostatic forces. The two together form the electromagnetic
interactions which are propagated as electromagnetic waves,
including light. They control the structure of materials at
distances between the long-range gravitational actions and the
short-range strong and weak forces most evident within the
atomic nucleus. See Electromagnetic radiation, Relativity
The magnetic field can be visualized as a set of lines (Fig. 1)
illustrated by iron filings scattered on a suitable surface. The
intensity of the field is indicated by the line spacing, and the
direction by arrows pointing along the lines. The sign
convention is chosen so that the Earth's magnetic field is
directed from the north magnetic pole toward the south magnetic

pole. The field can be defined and measured in various ways,

including the forces on the equivalent magnetic poles, and on
currents or moving charges. Bringing a coil of wire into the
field, or removing it, induces an electromotive force (emf)
which depends on the rate at which the number of field lines,
referred to as lines of magnetic flux, linking the coil changes in
time. This provides a definition of flux, &PHgr;, in terms of the
emf, e, given by Eq. (1)
(1)
for a coil of N turns wound sufficiently closely to make the
number of lines linking each the same. The International System
(SI) unit of &PHgr;, the weber (Wb), is defined accordingly as
the volt-second. The symbol B is used to denote the flux, or line,
density, as in Eq. (2),
(2)
when the area of the coil is sufficiently small to sample
conditions at a point, and the coil is oriented so that the induced
emf is a maximum. The SI unit of B, the tesla (T), is the Wb/m2.
The sign of the emf, e, is measured positively in the direction of
a right-hand screw pointing in the direction of the flux lines. It is
often convenient, particularly when calculating induced emfs, to
describe the field in terms of a magnetic vector potential
function instead of flux.

Magnetic lines of a bar magnet

Magnetic circuits
The magnetic circuit provides a useful method of analyzing
devices with ferromagnetic parts, and introduces various
quantities used in magnetism. It describes the use of
ferromagnetic materials to control the flux paths in a manner
analogous to the role of conductors in carrying currents around
electrical circuits. For example, pieces of iron may be used to
guide the flux which is produced by a magnet along a path
which includes an air gap (Fig. 2), giving an increase in the flux
density, B, if the cross-sectional area of the gap is less than that
of the magnet. See Magnet, Magnetic materials

Magnetic circuit with an air gap

The magnet may be replaced by a coil of N turns carrying a
current, i, wound over a piece of iron, or ferromagnetic material,
in the form of a ring of uniform cross section. The flux linking
each turn of the coil, and each turn of a secondary coil wound
separately from the first, is then approximately the same, giving
the same induced emf per turn [according to Eq. (1)] when the
supply current, i, and hence the flux, &PHgr;, changes in time.
The arrangement is typical of many different devices. It
provides, for example, an electrical transformer whose input and
output voltages are directly proportional to the numbers of turns
in the windings. Emf's also appear within the iron, and tend to
produce circulating currents and losses. These are commonly
reduced by dividing the material into thin laminations. See Eddy
current

The amount of flux produced by a given supply current is

reduced by the presence of any air gaps which may be
introduced to contribute constructional convenience or to allow
a part to move. The effects of the gaps, and of different magnetic
materials, can be predicted by utilizing the analogy between
flux, &PHgr;, and the flow of electric current through a circuit
consisting of resistors connected in series (Fig. 3). Since &PHgr;
depends on the product, iN, of the winding current and number
(3)
of turns, as in Eq. (3), the ratio between them, termed the
reluctance, , is the analog of electrical resistance. It may be
constant or may vary with &PHgr;. The quantity iN is the
magnetomotive force (mmf), analogous to voltage or emf in the
equivalent electrical circuit. The relationship between the two
exchanges the potental and flow quantities, since the magnetic
mmf depends on current, i, and the electrical emf on
d&PHgr;/dt. Electric and magnetic equivalent circuits are
referred to as duals. See Reluctance

Circuit analogy
Any part of the magnetic circuit of length l, in which the cross
section, a, and flux density, B, are uniform has a reluctance
given by Eq. (4). This equation parallels Eq. (5)

(4)
(5)
for the resistance, R, of a conduct of the same dimensions. The
permeability, , is the magnetic equivalent of the conductivity,
&sgr;, of the conducting material. Using a magnet as a flux
source (Fig. 2) gives an mmf which varies with the air gap
reluctance. In the absence of any magnetizable materials, as in
the air gaps, the permeability is given by Eq. (6)
(6)
in SI units (Wb/A-m). The quantity 0 is sometimes referred to
as the permeability of free space. Material properties are
described by the relative permeability, r in accordance with Eq.
(7).
(7)
The materials which are important in magnetic circuits are the
ferromagnetics and ferrites characterized by large value of r,
sometimes in excess of 10,000 at low flux densities.

Magnetic field strength

It is convenient to introduce two different measures of the
magnetic field: the flux density, B, and the field strength, or field
intensity, H. The field strength, H, can be defined as the mmf per
meter. It provides a measure of the currents and other magnetic
field sources, excluding those representing polarizable materials.
It may also be defined in terms of the force on a unit pole.
A straight wire carrying a current I sets up a field (Fig. 4) whose
intensity at a point at distance r is given by Eq. (8).
(8)
The field strength, H, like B, is a vector quantity pointing in the
direction of rotation of a right-hand screw advancing in the

direction of current flow. The intensity of the field is shown by

the number of field lines intersecting a unit area. The straight
wire provides one example of the circuital law, known as
Ampre's law, given by Eq. (9).
(9)
Here, is the angle between H and the element dl of any closed
path of summation, or integration, and I is the current which
links this path. Choosing a circular path, centered on a straight
wire, reduces the integral to H (2&pgr;r).

Magnetic field of a straight wire

A long, straight, uniformly wound coil (Fig. 5), for example,
produces a field which is uniform in the interior and zero
outside. The interior magnetic field, H, points in the direction
parallel to the coil axis. Applying Eq. (14) to the rectangle pqrs
of unit length in the axial direction shows that the only
contribution is from pq, giving Eq. (10),
(10)
where n is the number of turns, per unit length, carrying the
current, I. The magnetic field strength, H, remains the same, by
definition, whether the interior of the coil is empty or is filled
with ferromagnetic material of uniform properties. The interior
forms part of a magnetic circuit in which In is the mmf per unit
length, where mmf is the magnetic analog of electric voltage, or
scalar potential, in an electric circuit. The magnetic field

strength, H, is the analog of the electric field vector, E, as a

measure of potential gradient, pointing down the gradient. The
flux density, B, describes the effect of the field, in the sense of
the voltage which is induced in a search coil by changes in time
[Eq. (1)]. The ratio of H to B is the reluctance of a volume
element of unit length and unit cross section in which the field is
uniform, so that, from Eq. (4), the two quantities are related by
Eq. (11).
(11)
The permeability, , is defined by Eq. (11). The relative
permeability, r, of polarizable materials is measured
accordingly by subjecting a sample to a uniform field inside a
long coil such as that shown in Fig. 5 and using the emf induced
in a search coil wound around the specimen to observe the flux
in it.

Cross section of part of a long, straight uniformly wound coil

Magnetic flux and flux density

Magnetic flux is defined in terms of the forces exerted by the
magnetic field on electric charge. The forces can be described in
terms of changes in flux with time [Eq. (1)], caused either by
motion relative to the source or by changes in the source current,
describing the effect of charge acceleration.
Since the magnetic, or electrokinetic, energy of current flowing
in parallel wires depends on their spacing, the wires are subject

to forces tending to change the configuration. The force, dF, on

an element of wire carrying a current, i, is given by Eq.
(12)
(12), and this provides a definition of the flux density, B, due to
the wires which exert the force. The SI unit of B, called the tesla,
or Wb/m2, is the N/A-m. The flux density, B, equals 0 H in
empty space, or in any material which is not magnetizable [Eq.
(11)]. An example is the force, F, per meter (length) which is
exerted by a long straight wire on another which is parallel to it,
at distance r. From Eq. (8), this force is given by Eq. (13),
(13)
when the wires carry currents I and i. The force, F, is accounted
for by the electrokinetic interactions between the conduction
charges, and describes the relativistic modification of the
electric forces between them due to their relative motion.
In general, any charge, q, moving at velocity u is subject to a
force given by Eq. (14),
(14)
where u B denotes the cross-product between vector
quantities. That is, the magnitude of f depends on the sine of the
angle between the vectors u and B , of magnitudes u and B,
according to Eq. (15).
(15)
The force on a positive charge is at right angles to the plane
containing u and B and points in the direction of a right-hand
screw turned from u to B .
The same force also acts in the axial direction on the conduction
electrons in a wire moving in a magnetic field, and this force
generates an emf in the wire. The emf in an element of wire of
length dl is greatest when the wire is at right angles to the B

vector, and the motion is at right angles to both. The emf is then
given by Eq. (16).
(16)
More generally, u is the component of velocity normal to B , and
the emf depends on the sine of the angle between dl and the
plane containing the velocity and the B vectors. The sign is
given by the right-hand screw rule, as applied to Eq. (15).

Magnetic flux linkage

The magnetic flux linking any closed path is obtained by
counting the number of flux lines passing through any surface, s,
which is bounded by the path. Stated more formally, the linkage
(17)
depends on the sum given in Eq. (17), where Bn denotes the
component of B in the direction normal to the area element, ds.
The rate of change of linkage gives the emf induced in any
conducting wire which follows the path [Eq. (1)].
The flux linkage with a coil (Fig. 6) is usually calculated by
assuming that each turn of the coil closes on itself, giving a flux
pattern which likewise consists of a large number of separate
closed loops. Each links some of the turns, so that the two
cannot be separated without breaking, or tearing, either the
loop or the turn. The total linkage with the coil is then obtained
by adding the contributions from each turn.

B (magnetic flux) field of a short coil

The inductance, L, is a property of a circuit defined by the emf
which is induced by changes of current in time, as
(18)
in Eq. (18). The SI unit of inductance is the henry (H), or V-s/A.
The negative sign shows that e opposes an increase in current
(Lenz's law). From Eq. (1) the inductance of a coil of N turns,
each linking the same flux, &PHgr;, is given by Eq. (19),
(19)
so that the henry is also the Wb/A. When different turns, or
different parts of a circuit, do not link the same flux, the product
N&PHgr; is replaced by the total flux linkage, &PHgr;, with the
circuit as a whole.
The mutual inductance, M, between any two coils, or circuit
parts, is defined by emf which is induced in one by a change of
current in the other. Using 1 and 2 to distinguish between them,
the emf induced in coil 1 is given by Eq. (20a),
(20{\em a})
(20{\em b})
where the sign convention is consistent with that used for L,
referred to as the self-inductance. Likewise, the emf induced in

coil 2 when the roles of the windings are reversed is given by

Eq. (20b). The interaction satisfies the reciprocity condition of
Eq. (21), so that the suffixes may be omitted.
(21)

Magnetostatics
The term magnetostatics is usually interpreted as the magnet
equivalent of the electrostatic interactions between electric
charges. The equivalence is described most directly in terms of
the magnetic pole, since the forces between poles, like those
between charges, vary inversely with the square of the
separation distance. Although no isolated poles, or monopoles,
have yet been observed, the forces which act on both magnets
and on coils are consistent with the assumption that the end
surfaces are equivalent to magnetic poles.

Magnetic moment
The magnetic moment of a small current loop, or magnet, can be
defined in terms of the torque which acts on it when placed in a
magnetic flux density, B, which is sufficiently uniform in the
region of the loop. For a rectangular loop with dimensions a and
b and with N turns, carrying a current, i, equal but opposite
forces act on the opposite sides of length a (Fig. 7). The force is
iNBa [Eq. (12)], and the torque, given by
(22)
Eq. (22), depends on the effective distance, b sin , between the
wires. It is proportional to the area ab, and is a maximum when
the angle between B and the axis of the loop is 90. A current
loop of any other shape can be replaced by a set of smaller
rectangles placed edge to edge, and the torques of these added to
give the total on the loop. The magnetic moment of any loop of

area s is defined as the ratio of the maximum torque to the flux

density, so
(23)
its magnitude is given by Eq. 23). It is a vector quantity pointing
in the direction of a right-hand screw turned in the direction of
current flow. It is expressed in vector cross-product notation by
Eq. (24).
(24)
See Torque

Cross section of a rectangular current loop placed in magnetic

flux density B
An electron orbiting at frequency f is the equivalent of a current
i = q f, giving
(25)
Eq. (25) for the moment, where s is the area of the orbit. The
permissible values are determined by the quantum energy levels.
The electron spin is a quantum state which can likewise be
visualized as a small current loop. Atomic nuclei also possess
magnetic moments. See Electron spin, Magneton, Nuclear
moments

Magnetic polarization
Materials are described as magnetic when their response to the
magnetic field controls the ratio of B to H. The behavior is
accounted for by the magnetic moments produced mainly by the

electron spins and orbital motions. These respond to the field

and contribute to it in a process referred to as magnetic
polarization. The effects are greatest in ferromagnetics and in
ferrites, in which the action is described as ferrimagnetic. See
Ferrimagnetism, Ferromagnetism
The sources are the equivalent of miniature Amprean
currents whose sum, in any volume element, is equivalent to a
loop of current flowing along the surface of the element. The
flux density, B, depends on the field intensity, H, which is
defined so that its value inside a long ferromagnetic rod of
uniform cross section placed inside a long coil (Fig. 5) is the
same as in the annular gap between the rod and the coil, in
accordance with Eq. (10). If the field is not sufficiently uniform,
H can be measured by using a search coil to observe the flux
density, 0 H, in the gap. The flux density inside the rod is given
by Eq. (26),
(26)
where B0 denotes 0H, and r is the relative permeability [Eqs.
(7) and (11)]. The same flux, B, is obtained by replacing the
material by a coil in which the current in amperes per unit length
(27)
is given by Eq. (27). The magnetic moment, dm, of a volume
element of length dz is due to the current flowing over the
surface enclosing the area, dydz; from Eq. (23), it is given by Eq.
(28). The moment per unit volume defines the magnetic
polarization, as
(28)
(29)
in Eq. (29). The polarization, M , is a vector pointing in the
direction of dm with magnitude Js. The surface current produces

an H -like, or B /0, field which is entirely different from H in

the material. Substituting from Eq. (27) gives Eq. (30).
(30)
This model of the material accounts for the flux field, B , as
observed by the voltage induced in a search coil wound around
the specimen, and H , becomes an auxiliary quantity
representing the sum of the polarization, M , and the
magnetizing field, B 0, to which M responds. The polarization,
M , also makes the largest contribution to that field, since the
equivalent surface current is in the same direction as the current
in the magnetizing coil.

Magnetic hysteresis
The relationship between the flux density, B, and the field
intensity, H, in ferromagnetic materials depends on the past
history of magnetization. The effect is known as hysteresis. It is
demonstrated by subjecting the material to a symmetrical cycle
of change during which H is varied continuously between the
positive and negative limits +Hm and -Hm (Fig. 8). The path that
is traced by repeating the cycle a sufficient number of times is
the hysteresis loop. The sequence is counterclockwise, so that B
is larger when H is diminishing than when it is increasing, in the
region of positive H. The flux density, Br, which is left when H
falls to zero is called the remanence, or retentivity. The
magnetically hard materials used for permanent magnets are
characterised by a high Br, together with a high value of the field
strength, -Hc, which is needed to reduce B to zero. The field
strength, Hc, is known as the coercive force, or coercivity.
Cycling the material over a reduced range in H gives the path in
Fig. 8 traced by the broken line, lying inside the larger loop. The
locus of the tips of such loops is known as the normal

magnetization curve. The initial magnetization curve is the B-H

relationship which is followed when H is progressively
increased in one direction after the material has first been
demagnetized (B = H = 0).

Hysteresis behavior of a ferromagnetic material

McGraw-Hill Concise Encyclopedia of Physics. 2002 by The
McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Warning! The following article is from The Great Soviet
Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically
biased.

Magnetism
a phenomenon manifested on a macroscopic scale as interaction
between electric currents, between currents and magnets (that is,
bodies having a magnetic moment), and between magnets. In its
most general form, magnetism may be defined as a special type
of the physical interactions that arise between moving
electrically charged particles. The transfer of magnetic
interaction, which forms a bond between spatially separated

bodies, is accomplished by a special material carrier, the

magnetic field. It, together with the electric field, is a
manifestation of the electromagnetic form of the motion of
matter. Full symmetry between the magnetic and electric fields
does not exist. The sources of the electric field are the electric
charges of elementary particles, such as electrons, protons, and
mesons. Analogous magnetic charges have not yet been
observed in nature, although hypotheses of their existence have
been set forth.
A moving electric chargethat is, an electric currentis the
source of a magnetic field. On the atomic scale there are two
types of microscopic currents for electrons and nucleons
(protons and neutrons): orbital currents, which are associated
with the translatory motion of the center of gravity of the
particles, and spin currents, which are associated with the
internal degrees of freedom of their motion.
The orbital and spin magnetic moments of particles (designated
as M) are the quantitative characteristic of their magnetism.
Since all microscopic structural elements of matter (electrons,
protons, and neutrons) have magnetic moments, any
combinations of them (atomic nuclei and electron shells) and
combinations of their combinations, or atoms, molecules, and
macroscopic bodies, may in principle be magnetic sources.
Thus, the magnetism of substances is universal.
Two basic effects of the action of an external magnetic field on
substances are known. The first is the diamagnetic effect, which
is a consequence of Faradays law of electromagnetic induction:
an external magnetic field always creates in a substance an
induction current whose magnetic field is directed against the
original field (Lenzs law). Therefore, the diamagnetic moment

of a substance that is generated by an external field is always

negative with respect to the field.
Second, if an atom has a nonzero magnetic moment (spin or
orbital moment, or both), an external field will tend to orient it
along its own direction. A positive moment that is parallel to the
field, called the paramagnetic moment, arises as a result.
Internal interactions of an electrical and magnetic nature
between atomic magnetic moments may also significantly
influence the magnetic properties of a substance. In some cases,
as a result of these interactions the existence in the substance of
a spontaneous atomic magnetic order that is independent of the
external field becomes more advantageous in terms of energy.
Substances in which the atomic magnetic moments are parallel
to each other are called ferromagnets; substances in which
neighboring atomic moments are antiparallel are called
antiferromagnets. The complexity of the atomic structure of
substances constructed from an extremely large number of
atoms leads to the virtually inexhaustible diversity of their
magnetic properties. The general term magnets is used in
examining the magnetic properties of substances. The
interrelation between the magnetic properties of substances and
their nonmagnetic properties (such as electrical, mechanical, and
optical properties) very often makes possible the use of research
on magnetic properties as a source of information on the internal
structure of microscopic particles and macroscopic bodies. As a
result of the broad range of magnetic phenomena, which extends
from the magnetism of elementary particles to the magnetism of
celestial objects (such as the earth, sun, and stars), magnetism
plays a major role in natural phenomena, science, and
technology.

The macroscopic description of the magnetic properties of

substances is usually given within the framework of
electromagnetic field theory, thermodynamics, and statistical
physics. The magnetization vector J (the total magnetic moment
per unit volume of a magnet) is one of the principal macroscopic
characteristics of a magnet that determine its thermodynamic
state. Experiments show that the vector J is a function of the
magnetic field intensity H. The relation J(H) is represented
graphically by the magnetization curve, which has a different
form for different magnets. The linear relation J = KH, where K
is the magnetic susceptibility (in diamagnets K < 0; in
paramagnets K > 0), exists in a number of substances. In
ferromagnets K has a nonlinear relation to H; for them the
susceptibility is dependent not only on the temperature T and the
properties of the substance but also on the field H.
The magnetization J of a magnet is defined thermodynamically
in terms of the thermodynamic potential = (H, T, p ) according
to the formula J = -(/H)T,P, where is the pressure. The
calculation of (H, T, p ), in turn, is based on the GibbsBoguslavskii equation = kT ln Z(H, T) where k is the
Boltzmann constant and Z(H, T) is the statistical sum.
It follows from the general postulates of classical statistical
physics that electron systems (disregarding their quantum
properties) cannot have a thermodynamically stable magnetic
moment (the Bohr-Van Leeuwen-Terletskii theorem), but this
contradicts experiment. Quantum mechanics, which explained
the stability of the atom, also gave an explanation of the
magnetism of atoms and macroscopic bodies.
The magnetism of atoms and molecules results from the spin
magnetic moments of their electrons, the motion of electrons in

the shells of atoms and molecules (the orbital magnetism), and

the spin and orbital magnetism of the nucleons. In manyelectron atoms the orbital and spin magnetic moments are added
according to the rules of spatial quantization: the resultant
magnetic moment is determined by the total angular quantum
number j and is equal to
where gj is the Lande
factor and B is the Bohr magneton.
The magnetic properties of substances are determined by the
nature of the atomic carriers of magnetism and by the character
of their interactions. In particular, comparison of the magnetic
properties of isolated atoms of various elements indicates the
significant influence exerted by these interactions on magnetic
properties. For example, in atoms of the inert gases, such as
helium, argon, and neon, the electron shells are magnetically
neutral (their total magnetic moment is equal to zero). In an
external magnetic field inert gases exhibit diamagnetic
properties. The electron shell of the atoms of alkali metals (such
as lithium, sodium, and potassium) have only the spin magnetic
moment of the valence electron, and the orbital moment of such
atoms is equal to zero. The vapor of an alkali metal is
paramagnetic. Large spin and orbital magnetic moments caused
by the unfilled d- and f-layers of their electron cloud are usually
observed in the atoms of the transition metals (such as iron,
cobalt, and nickel).
The strong dependence of the magnetism of substances on the
character of the bonds among microscopic particles (the carriers
of magnetic moment) accounts for the fact that a substance of
given chemical composition may have different magnetic
properties, depending on the external conditions and the crystal
or phase structure (such as the degree of order of the atoms in

alloys). For example, below a certain temperature (the Curie

point) iron, cobalt, and nickel in the crystalline state have ferromagnetic properties. Above the Curie point they lose those
properties.
In quantitative terms the interaction between the atomic carriers
of magnetism in a substance may be characterized by the
amount of energy int of the interaction, referred to a pair of
particles that are carriers of magnetic moment. The energy int,
which results from the electric and magnetic interaction of
microscopic particles and depends on their magnetic moments,
may be compared with the energy values of other atomic
interactions, such as the energy of the magnetic moment B in
some effective magnetic field Heff (that is, with H = BHeff), and
the average energy of thermal motion of the particles at some
effective critical temperature Tc (that is, with T = kTc). For
values of the external field intensity H < Heff or at temperatures
T < Tc, the magnetic properties of a substance caused by int
the internal interactions of the atomic carriers of magnetism (the
strong magnetism of substances)will be manifested
strongly. Conversely, external factors such as the temperature or
field, which suppress the effect of internal interaction (the
weak magnetism of substances), will dominate in regions
where H Heff or T Tc. This classification is formal, since it
does not reveal the physical nature of Heff and Tc.
For a full explanation of the physical nature of the magnetic
properties of a substance, it is necessary to know not only the
amount of energy int in comparison with TOr H but also its
physical origin and the nature of the magnetic moment of its
carriers (whether of the orbital or spin type). If the case of
nuclear magnetism (in which the effect of nuclear interactions is

manifested) is excluded, then two types of forceselectric and

magneticoperate in the electron shells of atoms and molecules
and in the electron systems of condensed substances (liquids or
crystals). The electrostatic energy e1 of two electrons separated
by the atomic distance (a = 10-8 cm), el ~ e2/a ~ 10-12 erg (where
e is the charge of an electron), may be a measure of electrical
interaction. The binding energy of two microscopic particles
with magnetic moments B, separated by a distance a (that is,
mag B2/a3 ~ 1016 erg), is the measure of magnetic interaction.
Thus, el exceeds the energy mag by at least three orders of
magnitude.
In connection with this, the retention of magnetization by
ferromagnets (Fe, Co, and Ni) to temperatures T ~ 1000K may
be due solely to electrical interaction, since at an energy mag ~
1016 erg thermal motion would destroy the orienting action of
magnetic forces even at 1K. On the basis of quantum
mechanics, it has been demonstrated that a purely quantum
electrostatic exchange interaction that depends on the relative
orientation of the magnetic moments of electrons exists, in
addition to the Coulomb electrostatic interaction of charged
particles. Thus, this part of an interaction that is electric in
nature has a significant effect on the magnetic state of electron
systems. In particular, the interaction promotes the ordered
orientation of the magnetic moments of the atomic carriers of
magnetism. The upper limit of the energy of the exchange
interaction is ex ~ 10-13 erg.
A value ex > 0 corresponds to parallel orientation of atomic
magnetic momentsthat is, to spontaneous magnetization of the
bodies (ferromagnets). When ex < 0 there is a tendency toward
antiparallel orientation of neighboring magnetic moments that is

characteristic of the atomic magnetic structure of

antiferromagnets. This makes possible the following physical
classification of the magnetism of substances.
Magnetism of weakly interacting particles (int BH or int
kT). PREDOMINANCE OF DIAMAGNETISM. Among the substances that
have diamagnetic properties are the following.
(1) All inert gases, as well as gases whose atoms or molecules
do not have an intrinsic net magnetic moment. Their magnetic
susceptibility is negative and very small in magnitude [molar
susceptibility x ~ (10-7-10-5)]; it is virtually independent of
temperature.
(2) Organic compounds with a nonpolar bond, in which the
molecules or radicals either have no magnetic moment or the
paramagnetic effect is suppressed by the diamagnetic effect. In
such compounds x ~ -10-6 and also is virtually independent of
temperature but does have noticeable anisotropy.
(3) Substances in condensed (liquid or crystalline) phasesfor
example, certain metals (such as zinc, gold, and mercury),
solutions, alloys, and chemical compounds (such as the halides)
in which the diamagnetism of ion cores (ions similar to the
atoms of inert gases such as Li+, Be2+, Al3+ , and Cl-)
predominates. The magnetism of this group of substances is
similar to the magnetism of classical diamagnetic gases.
PREDOMINANCE OF PARAMAGNETISM.

Predominance of
paramagnetism is characteristic of the following groups.
(1) Free atoms, ions, and molecules that have a net magnetic
moment. The gases O2 and NO and the vapors of the transition
and alkali metals are paramagnetic. Their susceptibility, x > 0, is
small in magnitude (~ 10 3-10-5) and, at temperatures that are not

very low and in magnetic fields that are not very strong (BH/kT
1), is independent of the field but strongly dependent on the
temperature. Here Curies law, x = C/T, is valid for x, where C is
the Curie constant.
(2) Ions of the transition elements in liquid solutions, and also in
crystals, provided that the magnetically active ions interact
weakly with each other and that their immediate environment in
the condensed phase has a weak influence on their
paramagnetism. When BH/KT 1, the susceptibility x is
independent of H but dependent on T, and the Curie-Weiss law,
x = C/(T - ), is valid, where C and are constants of the
substance.
(3) Ferromagnets and antiferromagnets above the Curie point .
Magnetism of conduction electrons in metals and
semiconductors. PARAMAGNETISM OF CONDUCTION ELECTRONS IN
METALS. Paramagnetism of conduction electrons in metals (spin
paramagnetism) is observed in the alkali metals (such as lithium,
potassium, and sodium), the alkaline earths (calcium, strontium,
barium, and radium), the transition metals (palladium and
platinum), and scandium, titanium, and vanadium. Their
susceptibility is low (x ~ 10-5) and independent of field, and it
changes slightly with temperature. In several metals (such as
copper, silver, and gold), the paramagnetism is concealed by the
stronger diamagnetism of the ion cores.
DIAMAGNETISM OF CONDUCTION ELECTRONS IN METALS.

Diamagnetism of conduction electrons in metals (Landau

diamagnetism) is inherent in all metals but is usually concealed
by stronger spin electron paramagnetism or by the diamagnetism
or paramagnetism of the ion cores.

PARAMAGNETISM AND DIAMAGNETISM OF CONDUCTION

ELECTRONS IN SEMICONDUCTORS. In comparison with metals,

semiconductors have few conduction electrons, but their number

increases with temperature; in this case x is also dependent on T.
MAGNETISM OF SUPERCONDUCTORS.

The magnetism of
superconductors is due to electric currents flowing in a surface
layer with a thickness of the order of 10-5 cm. The currents
shield the body of the superconductor from external magnetic
fields; therefore, in a massive superconductor the magnetic field
is equal to zero when T < Tc (the Meissner effect).
Magnetism of substances with atomic magnetic order (int B
or int kT). FERROMAGNETISM. Ferromagnetism exists in
substances that have a positive exchange energy (ex > 0):
crystals of iron, cobalt, and nickel and a number of rare earths
(gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium,
and ytterbium) and alloys and compounds of these elements, as
well as alloys of chromium and manganese and compounds of
uranium. Spontaneous magnetization at temperatures below the
Curie point is characteristic of ferromagnetism, and when T >
ferromagnets pass into the paramagnetic or antiferromagnetic
state (the latter case is observed, for example, in some rare
earths). However, experiments have shown that ferromagnetic
solids have no net magnetization in the absence of an external
field (if the secondary phenomenon of residual magnetization is
disregarded); this is because when H = 0 a ferromagnet breaks
down into a large number of microscopic, spontaneously
magnetized regions (domains). The magnetization vectors of the
individual domains are oriented in such a way that the total
magnetization of the ferromagnet is equal to zero. In an external

field the domain structure changes, and the ferromagnet acquires

net magnetization.
ANTIFERROMAGNETISM.

Antiferromagnetism exists in substances

that have a negative exchange energy (ex < 0): crystals of
chromium and manganese, a number of rare earths (cesium,
praseodymium, neodymium, samarium, and europium), and
numerous compounds and alloys in which elements of transition
groups are found. In magnetic terms the crystal lattice of such
substances breaks down into magnetic sublattices, whose
spontaneous magnetization vectors Jki, are either antiparallel
(collinear antiferromagnetic bond) or are opposed to each other
at angles that differ from 0 and 180 (noncollinear bond). If the
total moment of all magnetic sublattices in an antiferromagnet is
equal to zero, then compensated antiferromagnetism is present,
but uncompensated antiferromagnetism, or ferrimagnetism,
which is found chiefly in crystals of metal oxides with a crystal
lattice of the spinel type, such as garnet and perovskite (called
ferrites), is observed in the case of nonzero differential
spontaneous magnetization. These solids (usually
semiconductors and insulators) are similar in magnetic
properties to ordinary ferromagnets. When the compensation for
magnetic moments is disturbed in antiferromagnets because of
the weak interaction between the atomic carriers of magnetism,
very slight spontaneous magnetization of the substances takes
place (of the order of 0.1 percent of the ordinary values for
ferromagnets and ferrimagnets). Such substances are called
weak ferromagnets; examples are hematite, a-Fe2O3, and the
carbonates of a number of metals and orthoferrites.
The magnetic state of a ferromagnet or antiferromagnet in an
external magnetic field H is determined by the previous state of

the magnet (the magnetic prehistory of the sample), in addition

to the field strength. This phenomenon is called hysteresis.
Magnetic hysteresis is manifested in the indeterminacy of the
dependence of J on H (in the presence of a hysteresis loop).
Because of hysteresis, elimination of the external field is
insufficient for demagnetization of a specimen, since when H =
0 the specimen will retain its residual magnetization Jr. An
opposite magnetic field Hc, which is called the coercive force,
must be applied. A distinction is made between soft-magnetic
materials (Hc < 800 amperes per meter [A/m], or 10 oersteds)
and hard-magnetic, or high-coercivity, materials (Hc > 4 kA/m,
or 50 oersteds), depending on the value of Hc. The quantities Jr
and Hc are dependent on temperature and generally decline as
the temperature increases, tending toward zero as T approaches
.
In addition to the magnetism of atomic particles and substances,
the current study of magnetic phenomena includes the
magnetism of celestial bodies and outer space.
Magnetism in science and technology. Among the primary
problems of the current study of magnetism are the elucidation
of the nature of exchange interaction and the interactions
responsible for anisotropy in various types of magnetically
ordered crystals and the determination of the spectra of
elementary magnetic excitations (magnons) and of the
mechanisms of their interaction with each other and with
phonons (quanta of lattice vibrations). The development of a
theory of the transition from the paramagnetic state to the
ferromagnetic state remains an important problem. Research on
the magnetism of substances is used extensively in various fields
of science as a means of studying the chemical bonds and

structure of molecules (magneto-chemistry). The study of the

diamagnetic and paramagnetic properties of gases, liquids,
solutions, and compounds in the solid phase makes possible an
understanding of the details of the physical and chemical
processes that take place within the substances, and also of their
structure. The study of magnetic dynamic characteristics
(paramagnetic, diamagnetic, and ferromagnetic resonance;
electron and nuclear resonances and relaxations) aids in
understanding the kinetics of many physical and
physicochemical processes in various substances.
Magnetobiology is developing rapidly.
The elucidation of the origin of the magnetic fields of the earth,
planets, sun, stars (in particular pulsars), and extragalactic radio
sources (such as radio galaxies and quasars) and of the role of
magnetic fields in cosmic processes are among the most
important problems of the magnetism of cosmic bodies.
The main technical applications of magnetism are in electrical
engineering, radio engineering, electronics, instrument-making,
electronic computers, and maritime, air, and space navigation, as
well as geophysical methods of prospecting and automatic and
remote-control equipment. Magnetic flaw detection and
magnetic inspection techniques are also widely used. Magnetic
materials are used to manufacture the magnetic circuits of
generators, motors, transformers, relays, magnetic amplifiers,
magnetic memory components, compass pointers, and magnetic
tapes.
History of the study of magnetism. The first written references
to magnetism (from China) are more than 2,000 years old. The
use of natural permanent magnets as compasses is mentioned in
the references. The attraction and repulsion of natural magnets

and magnetization of iron filings in the presence of a magnet are

mentioned in works of ancient Greek and Roman scholars (for
example, in Lucretius narrative poem On the Nature of Things,
first century B.C.). In the Middle Ages (beginning in the 12th
century) the magnetic compass became widely used in Europe,
and attempts at the experimental study of the interaction of
magnets of different shapes were made (Petrus Peregrinus de
Maricourt, 1269). The results of studies of magnetism during the
Renaissance were summarized in W. Gilberts work On the
Magnet, Magnetic Bodies, and a Large Magnet, the Earth
(1600). In particular, Gilbert showed that the earth is a magnetic
dipole and proved the impossibility of separating the two poles
of a magnet. The study of magnetism was further developed in
the works of R. Descartes, F. Aepinus, and C. Coulomb.
Descartes originated the first detailed metaphysical theory of
magnetism and geomagnetism (Principles of Philosophy, part 4,
1644); he postulated the existence of a special magnetic
substance that by its presence and motion accounted for the
magnetism of bodies.
In the treatise Experiment in the Theory of Electricity and
Magnetism (1759), Aepinus underscored the close analogy
between electrical and magnetic phenomena. As Coulomb
showed (1785-89), the analogy has a specific quantitative
expression: the interaction of point magnetic poles conforms to
the same law as does the interaction of point electric charges
(Coulombs law). In 1820, C. Oersted discovered the magnetic
field of an electric current. In the same year A. Ampere
established the laws governing the magnetic interaction of
currents and the equivalence of the magnetic properties of a ring
current and a thin flat magnet; he explained magnetism in terms

of the existence of molecular currents. In the 1830s, K. Gauss

and W. Weber developed the mathematical theory of
geomagnetism and worked out methods of magnetic
measurements.
A new stage in the study of magnetism began with the work of
M. Faraday, who gave a consistent interpretation of magnetic
phenomena on the basis of his ideas that the electromagnetic
field actually exists. The groundwork for the modern
macroscopic theory of magnetism was laid by a number of the
most important discoveries in the field of electromagnetism
(electromagnetic induction, Faraday, 1831; Lenzs law, E. H.
Lenz, 1833), by the summary of known electromagnetic
phenomena in the works of J. C. Maxwell (1872), and by the
systematic study of the properties of ferromagnets and
paramagnets (A. G. Stoletov, 1872; P. Curie, 1895).
The microscopic approach to the study of magnetism became
possible after the discovery of the electron-nuclear structure of
atoms. In 1905, P. Langevin constructed, on the basis of H. A.
Lorentzs classical electron theory, the theory of diamagnetism
(he also developed the quasiclassical theory of paramagnetism).
B. L. Rozing in 1892 and P. Weiss in 1907 expressed the idea of
the existence of an internal molecular field that accounts for the
properties of ferromagnets. The discovery of electron spin and
its magnetism (S. Goudsmit and G. E. Uhlenbeck, 1925) and the
creation of a consistent theory of microscopic phenomena
quantum mechanicsled to the development of the quantum
theory of diamagnetism, paramagnetism, and ferromagnetism. In
1926, on the basis of quantum mechanical concepts (space
quantization), L. Brillouin found the dependence of the
magnetization of paramagnets on an external magnetic field and

temperature. In 1927, F. Hund made a comparison of the

experimental and theoretical values of the effective magnetic
moments of ions in various paramagnetic salts. This led to
elucidation of the influence of the electric fields of a
paramagnetic crystal on the quenching of the orbital angular
moments of ionsas was established, the magnetization of a
crystal is determined almost exclusively by spin moments (W.
G. Penney and R. Schlapp; J. H. Van Vleck, 1932). In the 1930s
the quantum mechanical theory of the magnetic properties of
free electrons was constructed (Pauli paramagnetism, 1927;
Landau diamagnetism, 1930). The phenomenon of electron
paramagnetic resonance (EPR), predicted by Ia. G. Dorfman
(1923) and later discovered by E. K. Zavoiskii (1944), was of
great significance to the further development of the theory of
paramagnetism.
The works of the German physicist E. Ising (1925; the twodimensional model of ferromagnets) and of Dorfman (1927;
proof of the nonmagnetic nature of the molecular field), W.
Heisenberg (1926; the quantum mechanical calculation of the
helium atom), and W. Heitler and F. London (1927; calculation
of the hydrogen molecule) preceded the creation of the quantum
theory of ferromagnetism. In the last two works the effect of the
exchange (electrostatic) interaction of electrons (P. Dirac, 1926)
in the shells of atoms and molecules, which was discovered in
quantum mechanics, was used and its relation to the magnetic
properties of electron systems that obey Fermi-Dirac statistics
(the Pauli exclusion principle) was established. The quantum
theory of ferromagnetism originated in the works of Ia. I.
Frenkel (1928; the collectivized model) and Heisenberg (1928;
the model of localized spins). Consideration of ferromagnetism

as a quantum cooperative phenomenon (F. Bloch and J. Slater,

1930) led to the discovery of spin waves. In 1932-33, L. Neel
and L. D. Landau predicted the existence of antiferromagnetism.
This study of the new classes of magnetic substances
antiferromagnets and ferritesmade possible a more thorough
understanding of the nature of magnetism. The role of
magnetoelastic energy in the origin of the energy of magnetic
anisotropy was elucidated, the theory of domain structure was
constructed, and the methods for its experimental study were
mastered.
The creation of new experimental methods of studying
substances contributed greatly to the development of magnetism.
Neutron-diffraction methods made possible determination of the
types of atomic magnetic structures. Ferromagnetic resonance,
which was originally discovered and investigated in the works
of V. K. Arkadev (1913) and later J. H. E. Griffiths (1946), and
antiferromagnetic resonance (C. J. Gorter and others, 1951)
made possible the beginning of experimental studies of the
processes of magnetic relaxation and provided an independent
method of determining the effective fields of anisotropy in
ferromagnets and antiferromagnets.
Nuclear magnetic resonance (E. Purcell and others, 1946) and
the Mssbauer effect (1958) greatly extended knowledge of the
distribution of spin density in matter, especially in metal
ferromagnets> Observation of neutron and light scattering made
possible determination of the spin-wave spectra for a number of
substances. Simultaneously with these experimental works
various aspects of the theory of magnetism also were developed:
the theory of the magnetic symmetry of crystals, the
ferromagnetism of collectivized electrons, the theory of second-

order phase transitions and critical phenomena, and models of

one- and two-dimensional ferromagnets and antiferromagnets.
The development of the physics of magnetic phenomena has led
to the synthesis of promising new magnetic materials: ferrites
for high-frequency and superhigh-frequency devices, highcoercivity compounds such as SmCos, and transparent
ferromagnets.

REFERENCES
Tamm, I. E. Osnovy teorii elektrichestva, 7th ed. Moscow, 1957.
Landau, L. D., and E. M. Lifshits. Elektrodinamika sploshnykh
sred. Moscow, 1959.
Vonsovskii, S. V. Magnetizm. Moscow, 1971.
Peierls, R. E. Kvantovaia teoriia tverdykh tel Moscow, 1956.
(Translated from English.)
Dorfman, Ia. G. Magnitnye svoistva i stroenie veshchestva.
Moscow, 1955.
Kittel, C. Vvedenie v fiziku tverdogo tela, 2nd ed. Moscow,
1962. (Translated from English.)
Vonsovskii, S. V., and Ia. S. Shur. Ferromagnetizm. MoscowLeningrad, 1948.
Polivanov, K. M. Ferromagnetiki. Moscow-Leningrad, 1957.
Bozorth, R. Ferromagnetizm. Moscow, 1956. (Translated from
English.)
Mattis, D. Teoriia magnetizma: Vvedenie v izuchenie
kooperativnykh iavlenii. Moscow, 1967. (Translated from
English.)
Turov, E. A. Fizicheskie svoistva magnitouporiadochennykh
kristallov. Moscow, 1963.
Van Vleck, J. H. The Theory of Electric and Magnetic
Susceptibilities. Oxford, 1932.

Becker, R., and W. Doring. Ferromagnetismus. Berlin, 1939.

Magnetism, vol. 1; vol. 2, parts A-B; vol. 3; vol. 4. Edited by G.
T. Rado and H. Suhl. New York, 1963-66.
Goodenough, J. Magnetism and the Chemical Bond. New YorkLondon, 1963.
S. V. VONSOVSKII
The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979).
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References in classic literature?

Perhaps there was really a magnetism about the mesmerist;
perhaps there was even more magnetism about the man
mesmerized.
The Man Who Knew Too Much by Chesterton, Gilbert K. View
in context
But as ever before, the pagan harpooneers remained almost
wholly unimpressed; or if impressed, it was only with a certain
magnetism shot into their congenial hearts from inflexible
Ahab's.
Moby Dick LXVIII-CXXXIV by Melville, Herman View in
context
Meanwhile too I had made the acquaintance of the charming
lady Obstacle,--as it proved so unfair to call her,--and by some
process of natural magnetism we had immediately won each
other's hearts, so that on the moonlight night on which I took the
river path with my brown-paper parcel there was no misgiving
in my heart,--nothing but harping and singing, and blessings on
the river that seemed all silver with the backs of magic trout.
The Quest of the Golden Girl by le Gallienne, Richard View in
context

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Magnetic Thermometry

Magnetic Thin Film

magnetic track

magnetic transducer

Magnetic Transfer

Magnetic Traps

Magnetic Treatment of Water Systems

magnetic tunnel junction

magnetic variation

Magnetic Variations

magnetic vector

magnetic vector potential

Magnetic Viscosity

magnetic wave

magnetic wave device

magnetic well

magnetic wind direction

magnetic wire

magnetic x-ray scattering

magnetically focused tube

magnetically hard alloy

magnetically soft alloy

magnetic-ink character recognition

magnetics

magnetic-tape core

Magnetism

Magnetite

Magnetization

Magnetization Curve

magnetization intensity

Magnetization, Residual

magnetizing current

magnetizing force

Magneto

magneto anemometer

magneto ignition system

magneto telephone set

magnetoacoustics

magnetoaerodynamics

Magnetobiology

Magnetocaloric Effect

magnetocardiograph

Magnetochemistry

Magnetodielectrics

Magnetodynamics

magnetoelastic coupling

Magnetoelastic Transducer

magnetoelasticity

Magnetoelectric Effect

magnetoelectric generator

Magnetoelectric Machine

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Magneticism

Magneticness

magnetics

magnetics

magnetics

magnetics

Magnetics Automated Information System

Magnetics Environmental Filter

Magnetics on Film

Magnetiese Resonansie-Skandering

Magnetiese Resonansspektro-Skopie

Magnetiferous

magnetisable

magnetisation

magnetisation

magnetisation

magnetisation dipole

magnetisation transfer ratio

magnetisation vector

magnetisations

Magnetischer Eigenschutz

magnetise

magnetise

magnetise

magnetised

magnetiser

magnetiser

magnetisers

magnetises

magnetising
Magnetism

Magnetism and Magnetic Materials

Magnetist

magnetite

magnetite

magnetite

magnetite

magnetizable

magnetization

magnetization

magnetization

Magnetization current

Magnetization current

Magnetization current

magnetization curve

Magnetization Exchange

Magnetization Grid Rotating Frame Imaging

magnetization intensity

Magnetization Prepared Rapid Acquisition Gradient Echo

Magnetization Transfer Ratio

Magnetization Transfer Spin-Echo

Magnetization, Residual

magnetizations

magnetizations

magnetizations

magnetize

magnetize

magnetize

magnetize

magnetized

Magnetized Target Fusion

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