Name:___________________________ Date: _______________________ Block: _________
IP614
Magnet Mania: Observe, Discuss, and Analyze.
In this lab we will be investigating magnets and their properties by observing, discussing, and
analyzing.
Observe: YOU (no lab partners) are responsible for performing each experiment and
summarizing what was done and observed at each station. You may complete the stations in any
order. Just be sure that you complete all stations.
Station 1: Levitation
 String the ring magnets on the stand and make them levitate!
 What is necessary in order to levitate one magnet above another? Does it matter which
way the magnets are oriented?
 How many can you get to levitate at once? __________________________
 Draw a picture of the levitating magnets:
Station 2: Love-Hate
 Using the bar magnets, find out which sides (poles) are attracted to or repelled by each other.
 North pole and North pole: ____________________________________
 North pole and South pole: ____________________________________
 South pole and South pole: ____________________________________
Station 3: Attractiveness
 For TEN of the materials in the bags, PREDICT (before you do anything!!) which can be
picked up with the magnet. Record your predictions.
 Then try to pick them up with the magnet. YOU DO NOT NEED TO REMOVE THEM
FROM THE BAG. Record the results.
Material
Prediction
Results
Station 4: Make-a-Compass
 Make A Compass.
 Fill a cup with water.
 Rub one pin 50 times in one direction with a magnet.
 Place a wooden coffee stirrer in the water so that it floats on the surface.
 Balance pin on wood. (The pin must be perpendicular to the wood.)
 Record observations about the compasses you made, as well as the actual compass. Note the
direction in the room that the pin points. Compare this to an actual compass pointing north.
Station 5: Magnetic Field Lines
BE CAREFUL NOT TO GET THE IRON FILINGS IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE
MAGNETS!!!
 Take a plastic sheet protector with iron filings in it. Place the large bar magnet beneath
the clear, plastic sheet. Now gently tap the sheet until you can see the filings form some
field lines. You will probably have to concentrate on one piece of the bar magnet at a
time.
 Draw and record your observations.
N
S
Station 6: Building an Electromagnet
At this station you will find a nail, a coil of wire, a coil of wire with a nail at its center, and a
battery.
 Is a nail wrapped in a coil of wire magnetic?
 Test it by trying to pick up paper clips: YES / NO
 Is the coil of wire alone magnetic?
 Test it and see: YES / NO
 Is the coil of wire connected to the battery magnetic?
 Test it, and see: YES / NO
 How many paper clips are you able to pick up? _______________
 Is the nail wrapped in a coil of wire and connected to the battery magnetic?
 Test it, and see: YES / NO
 How many paper clips are you able to pick up? ____________
 While the paperclips are stuck to the electromagnet, disconnect one of the wires that is
connected to the battery What happens to the paperclips when the coil is disconnected?
Record your observations below:
Station 7: Motor
At this station you will find a motor. Draw the set-up and write down what you observe.
Discuss
What is a Magnet?
Magnetism: a force of attraction or repulsion by magnetic materials.
 Copper, plastic, and glass _______________________
attracted to magnets.
Are not
are
 Steel, iron, and nickel, colbalt _____________________
attracted to magnets.
o These materials are said to be ___________________________________.
Magnetic materials
Pole: the ends of a magnet where the forces are strongest.
 Every magnet has 2
____ poles: a north
_______________ pole and a ______________
south
pole.
 If a magnet is broken into pieces, each piece will still have 2
_______ poles.
Poles behave similarly to electric charges.
repel
 Opposites attract
___________________ and likes _____________________.
 A north and a south will _______________________.
 Two north poles will _________________________.
 Two south poles will _________________________.
Why are they called North and South Poles?
If a bar magnet is suspended by a piece of string, it will act like a compass.
compass
 The _____________________________
used this to assist in navigating ships in the twelfth
century.
Magnetic Field Lines
Magnetic Field Lines: the region of magnetic force around a magnet. It causes attraction between
the magnet and another object.
Lines for forces (vector)
 A magnetic field is made up of ________________________________.
 These lines of force will show the ________________________
of a magnetic field.
strength
 Magnetic lines of force begin at the ______north__________ and end at the
south
__________________
pole.
 They are closest together at the poles
______________________, where the field is the
___________________________.
strongest
N
S
N
S
 Magnetic lines of force from the South and North poles will bend
______________________________
each other.
towards
 Magnetic lines of force from two South poles or two North poles will bend
___________________________ from each other.
away
N
S
S
N
What causes magnetism?
electricity
 Magnetism is related to ________________________.
o A charge which is at rest is surrounded by and electrical
______________________ field
(as well as a gravitational field).
o A moving charge is surround by both an electric
___________________________ and a
____________________________ field.
magnetic
 So, moving charges cause magnetic fields.
Where are the moving charges in a bar magnet?
atoms
 Bar magnets are made of ___________________________.
Atoms are made of charged
particles.
o The electrons
__________________________ in an atom are always moving and form a
tiny current.
o Electrons spin
_______________________ on their own axis (like a top). This is
more important than the magnetic field due to orbital motion.
o Most materials cannot be magnets. In most materials, the electrons spin in
different
_________________________
directions.
Magnetic Domains: groups of atoms whose magnetic poles line up in the same direction.
 When materials are magnetized, the magnetic domains point in the
________________________
direction
same
 When materials are NOT magnetized, the domains point in different
_______________________
directions.
Not
Magnetized
Magnetized
How Can You Make A Magnet?
Magnetic Induction: the process by which a material can be made into a magnet.
 Materials can be magnetized by being rubbed in _____________
direction with a magnet.
same
 Materials become magnetized when the domain
________________ point in the same direction.
 Not all materials respond in the same way to the magnetic field.
Natural Magnets: magnets that occur in nature
________________________
Temporary Magnets: Magnets that are magnetized easily but lose the magnetism easily as well.
Permanent Magnets: Magnets that are difficult to magnetize but they keep the magnetism well.
 All magnets can lose
__________________ their magnetism.
 Dropping, hitting or heating the magnet can demagnetize it because the domains become
unaligned.
How is Earth like a Magnet?
A British scientist named Wilbert Gilbert suggested that Earth is a magnet when he observed a
magnet hanging from a string will align its north and south poles with the north and south poles
of the Earth.
The Earth’s Magnetic Poles
 Earth has _____________ magnetic poles.
 Magnetic poles are _________________, but not
______________ the geographic poles.
 The Magnetosphere: the magnetic field around the Earth.
 The magnetosphere traps some charged particles from the
sun that interact with other particles in the atmosphere, causing the air
above Earth to glow. This is called an aurora.
How are electricity and magnetism related?
Oersted’s Discovery
 The relationship between electricity and magnetism is called
electromagnetism
____________________________.
 Hans Christian Oersted noticed that when current flowed through a wire, a nearby compass
moves
pointer _______________________.
He discovered that an electric current produces a
magnetic
_______________________
field.
Electromagnetic Induction: Does a magnetic field produce an electric current?
 Michael Faraday brought a strong magnet near a still wire.
Doesn’t
o If the magnet remains stationary, then current _____________________
flow
through the wire.
o If the magnet moves toward or away from the wire continuously, then current
starts
______________________
flow through the wire.
o If a coil of wire moves toward or away from a magnet, then current
starts
______________________
flow through the wire.
 The process by which an electric current is produced in a wire when the wire is exposed to a
Electromagnetic induction
changing magnetic field is called _______________________________________________.
o The changing magnetic field is often changing due to relative movement. The
wire and the magnet need to move relative to each other.
What is an electromagnet?
 A wire carrying an electric current always has a magnetic
____________________ field around it.
Mangetic
o The ______________________
field around a straight wire is very
weak
________________.
o However, if the wire is wound into a coil, the magnetic field becomes much
stronger
__________________________.
 An electromagnet is a temporary
____________________ magnet made by wrapping a current-carrying
wire around a metal core
________________. It is called temporary because when the current is
turned off, there is no longer a magnetic field.
 Increasing the strength of the electromagnet: There are three major ways to increase the
strength of the electromagnet:
o
coils
Increase the number of __________________
.
voltage
o Increase the amount of ___________________.
o Adding a metal core
_________________.
What is an electric motor?
electromagnetic energy into
 An electric motor converts ________________________
mechanical
____________________________
energy.
 Rotation is created by alternating between attraction and repulsion between a current carrying
wire and a permanent magnet.
Analyze: Please use the notes from our class discussion and your book in order to explain
all of your observations. YOU MUST USE COMPLETE SENTENCES.
Station 1: Levitation
 Explain, using what you have learned about magnets, how we can levitate one magnet above
another. Be sure to include a comparison of the strength of the necessary magnetic force with
the strength of the gravitational force.
Station 2: Love-Hate
 A north pole is attracted to a ___________________ pole.
 A south pole is attracted to a ___________________ pole.
 A north pole repels a ______________________ pole.
 A south pole repels a ______________________ pole.
Station 3: Attractiveness
 Are all metals attracted to a magnet? _______________
 List three materials that are attracted to a magnet:
o _____________________
o _____________________
o _____________________
Station 4: Make-a-Compass
 Explain in a few sentences, using your own words, how you were able to magnetize the pin
in order to make your compass.
 Explain in a few sentences, using your own words, how you can use a compass to find your
way.
 Can a compass be used in the Southern Hemisphere? If yes, how? If no, why not?
Station 6: Building an Electromagnet
 Fill in the Blanks:
o The current carrying coil is surrounded by a strong _____________________
field.
o The strong magnetic field aligns the ___________________ in the nail.
o The nail is now a _______________________.