Cool Experiments with Magnets

This web site is devoted to magnetism and the cool experiments you can do with permanent magnets and electro-magnets.  Some of the experiments are very basic - things you've done since second grade.  Others are unique; perhaps you hadn't thought of doing some of these before, or had difficulty in trying to set them up.  Lists of the materials needed for the demonstrations, directions on how to assemble them, instructions on how to show them, and notes on how they work are all here for you.  Also shown are several cool magnetic toys you can buy.  Of course, there are also links to useful sites, sources and books on magnets.  The list below is an index into this site to help you quickly find what you are looking for.  In addition, there is a Pico Search at the end of this index for detailed searches of this site.

Have fun experimenting! 

Rick Hoadley
(For other cool toys and puzzles, check this out!)
This site is at  http://www.coolmagnetman.com
and at  http://my.execpc.com/~rhoadley/magindex.htm

Last updated:  14 Dec 2013.  More to come!   Here's what's new.
Wherever you see , that means that at the underlined link there is some kind of experiment you can buy or build which will help you learn about the world of magnetism.

• Safety Considerations   IMPORTANT!
• What is magnetism?
•     What is a magnet?
•     History
•     Ferromagnetism
•     Diamagnetism
•     Paramagnetism
•     What are magnets used for?
• Ten Facts About Magnetism
• What types of magnets are there?
•     Permanent magnets
•     Temporary magnets
•     Electromagnets
•     Materials used for permanent magnets
•     Shapes
•     How are magnets made?
•     What does the inside of a magnet look like?
•     Magnetization configurations
• What affects the strength of a magnet?
•     Material
•     Temperature
•     Demagnetizing fields
•     Physical impact
• The care and feeding of your magnet  
• What is near the Geographic North Pole, a Magnetic North or a Magnetic South?
•     Experiment
•     Flip-flopping poles
• Magnetism in space
•     Earth
•     Sun
•     Planets
•     Meteorite Dust
• How do magnets work?
•     Atomic Magnetism
•     Magnetic Domains
•     Magnetic Poles
• Is there free energy in magnets?

• What is attracted to magnets?
•     Metals
•     Minerals
•     Black Sand
•     Ferrofluids
•     Other Objects (vcr tapes, dollar bills, floppy disks, iron in cereal)
•     Problems with 2 and 3 unknown rods
• How strong are magnets?
•     Typical values
•     Measuring the strength of magnets
•         Hall effect devices
•         Magnetometer
•         Paper clips and BBs
•     Answers to the rod problems
• What is a magnetic field?
•     What creates the magnetic field?
•     What is the relationship between current flow and magnetic fields?
•         A word about conventions regarding the direction of current and field lines
•     What do we know about magnetic field lines?
•     What are magnetic fields made of?
• Visualizing magnetic fields  
•     How can I visualize a magnetic field?
•     Helmholtz coils
•     Halbach Array
•     Can I make one big North pole? 
• A gallery of magnetic fields  
• Magnets in Motion  Really Cool Animations!
• Magnetic Art 
• How can you shield a magnet?
•     A science fair project
• Magnet math
•     Terms and definitions
•     Conversions
•     Equations and calculations
•     Lenz's Law
•     Faraday's Law of Induction
•     Maxwell's Equations
•     Designing magnetic circuits
• Magnets and biology
•     Do magnetic fields affect biological organisms?
•     Navigating with magnets
• Cool magnetic toys you can buy 

• Donut magnets 
• Herky-Jerky 
• Levitating Train 
• Ball Bearing Launcher
• More cool magnetic toys you can buy 

• Types of conductors and their properties
• Pendulum 
• Aluminum Disk 
• Magnetic Plumb 
• Copper Pipes 
• Spinning Copper Plate 
• Superconductors 

• Electromagnets
•     What is an electromagnet?
•     Winding a coil
•     Transformers 
•     Jacob's Ladder
•     Battery Powered Electromagnet
•     The Plank
•     Audio Speakers 
•     Make A Speaker!
• AC Electromagnets 
• DC Electromagnets 
•     An Easy Electromagnet Experiment
•     A Pair of Electromagnets on a Yoke   NEW!
•     A DC Electromagnet   NEW!
• Solenoids 
•     Doorbells
• Floating Tube 
• Jumping Ring 
• Cool electromagnetic toys you can buy 

• How can you magnetically levitate objects?
• Donut magnets 
• Levitating Train 
• Spinning Copper Plate 
• Superconductors 
• Solenoids 
• Floating Tube 
• Floating Paper Clips 
• Floating Pie Pan 
• Suspended Objects 
• Home-Built Magnetic Levitator 
• Floating Ball 
• Floating Plate 
• Diamagnetic Levitation 

• Generators
•     What happens when a wire moves with respect to a magnetic field?
•     Tethers in space
• Motors
•     What happens when a wire carrying current is within a magnetic field?
•     Types of Motors
• DC Motors 
•     A DC Motor
•     A Simple DC Motor
•     Maxwell's Motor  
•      Homopolar Motor  
•     A Brushless DC Motor Kit
• AC Motors 
•     A Very Simple AC Motor
•     A 3-Phase AC Motor Demonstrator
•     Linear Motors

• Build your own Gaussmeter
•     An inexpensive Gaussmeter 
•     A slightly more expensive Gaussmeter 
•     Modifications to the Gaussmeter 
•     An inexpensive electronic North-South Pole Indicator
• Suspended Objects 
• Home-Built Magnetic Levitator 

• Catalog houses and stores for buying magnets and kits
•     Magnets and Kits
•     Hall Effect Devices
•     Hardware
•     Toys
•     Software

• What are some good books and videos on magnets?

• Who else has cool stuff on magnets?
•     Resources for Teachers
•     Have a Question?
•     Need a Consultant for a Special Project? NEW!
•     Magnetic Levitation
•     Magnet Demonstrations
•     Other Physics Demos
•     Virtual Physics Labs
•     Electricity and Magnetism
•     Magnets
•     Magnetic Chucks
•     The Science of Magnets, Magnetic Design
•     Discovering Electricity and Magnetism
•     Pioneers in Electromagnetism
•     Science Museums Worth Visiting

• Interested in having a live demonstration on "The World of Magnets"?
•     Outline of presentation
•     Professional background

• If you are a museum or school interested in building or purchasing a copy of an exhibit similar to one seen on this web site, please drop me a note!  I do not have ready made kits of these.

• Do you have any additions or suggestions for other ideas or experiments that should be mentioned here or linked here?  Let me know what you think.   Drop me a note!
  
• If you would like to reference any of the information contained in this Magnet Man web site, please add the following to your bibliography or list of credits:
  Hoadley, Rick.  "Magnet Man".  http://www.coolmagnetman.com  1998-2012

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Thank-you for being visitor number  since June, 1998. 

See a plot of the number of hits vs date since June, 1998.

Britannica.com has given this site a THREE STAR rating and is listed first in their Web's Best Sites under magnets!

SciLinks selected the pages on Copper Pipes and the Pendulum as resource links.

Schoolzone has again awarded this site "Highly Recommended for Educational Usefulness" in 2010.