Types of Magnets and Their Functions

A magnet produces a magnetic field that is invisible but responsible for the majority of properties and characteristics of a magnet, such as a force that attracts other objects made of ferromagnetic material like many metals, including iron and cobalt, nickel, etc. As a magnet attracts ferromagnetic objects, it tends to repel other magnets because of having the same poles, such as north to north and south to south, since magnets have only two poles: north pole and south pole. Magnets have been in use for several decades, and their use only widens with time and new technologies. In magnetism, opposite poles attract and similar poles repel each other. This is a basic concept of how magnets work and why they attract or repel certain magnetised objects that serve as magnets. 

Facts about magnets

People that lived a millennium ago came to know about magnetism from a naturally occurring element called magnetite that exhibited the properties of a magnet. This meant that magnetite would attract metals like iron, steel, or any other ferromagnetic metal. Anatolia, China, and India had descriptions of magnets that dated back more than two thousand years ago, known to be the earliest surviving descriptions. This shows that people were aware of magnetic properties and used them for various purposes, like magnetic compasses that were known to have been in use since the middle-ages in several parts of Asia and Europe. 

Since not all magnets are made of the same elements or components, they can vary from one another, and their functions will also change based on these factors. 

Characteristics of magnets

The characteristics of magnets are the same for all the magnets, but a few things about them may vary depending on the magnet concerned. Regardless of the type of magnet, a magnet always has two poles – one is the north pole and the other is the south pole. Even if a magnet is broken into half or several pieces, this will not change. If done so, each piece will still have a north pole and a south pole, and a magnet that has been freely suspended will always point in the north-south direction. 

A magnet always attracts ferromagnetic materials like copper, iron, and cobalt, and its magnetic force is stronger at the ends, that is, at the north and south poles, compared to the middle portions. 

Magnets attract only those that have opposite poles. Similar poles will never attract each other; instead, they repel each other. The strength of a magnet to attract ferromagnetic materials reduces with the distance observed by certain experiments. 

What are the different types of magnets and their uses?

Based on the way a magnet has been made, in today’s time, there are three types of magnets: permanent magnet, temporary magnet, and electromagnets. All these types have their uses and ways of formation. 

• Temporary Magnets

Temporary magnets become magnetised when they are kept in a magnetic field, and when the magnetic field is withdrawn, or the magnet is removed from the magnet, it slowly loses its magnetism. Things like iron and iron alloys can exhibit the characteristics of a temporary magnet as well as other day-to-day materials like nails and paperclips. They are called temporary magnets because they are made of soft iron and are usually easily magnetised. However, just as it is easy to magnetise them, it is easy to demagnetise them by removing the magnetising source or cause. These are used for small purposes like paper clips and nails. 

• Permanent Magnets

Permanent magnets have their magnetic field generated by their internal structure, that is, the atom’s orbit around the nucleus generates the field. The particles of the magnet itself inhibit magnetic fields, which means that the sum of the magnetic field of a permanent magnet is of the electron spins, nuclear spins, and the orbit of the electrons. Unlike temporary magnets, permanent magnets are rather difficult to make, but once formed, they do not lose their magnetism easily. Permanent magnets do not need any external source, which makes them a suitable item for many devices like speakers, cars, hard drives, sensors, headphones or earphones, cell phones, etc.  

• Electromagnet

Electromagnets are made with an external source like electricity, and their strength and uses vary from temporary and permanent magnets. To make an electromagnet, we need three things – a ferromagnetic material such as iron, a copper wire to wrap the material into a magnet, and electricity to charge the wire that would generate the magnetic field. The strength of an electromagnet can be changed by controlling the amount of electricity supply. If it does not get an electric current supply, it loses its magnetic field. Common uses of this type of magnet include MRI machines, induction cookers, loudspeakers, mass spectrometers, magnetic locks, relays and valves, etc. 

Conclusion

In this article, we answered the question, “What are the different types of magnets and their uses?” There are three types of magnets: permanent magnets, temporary magnets, and electromagnets. All three types of magnets have their way of formation and strength, determined by the components and how they have been magnetised. However, they all have similar functions, that is, to attract or repel. The characteristics of magnets in a broader term are all the same and serve different purposes, from small to big. Magnetism was discovered millenniums ago and has been used for several purposes that led to its advancement throughout history.