Poles and the forces between them, permanent versus induced magnetism, drawing magnetic fields, and using a plotting compass.
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1.What are the two poles of a magnet called?
North seeking and south seeking, usually shortened to north and south.
2.What happens between two like poles?
They repel each other.
3.What happens between two unlike poles?
They attract each other.
4.Is magnetic force a contact or non-contact force?
A non-contact force, because the magnets do not need to touch.
5.What is a permanent magnet?
One that produces its own magnetic field all the time.
6.What is an induced magnet?
A magnetic material that becomes a magnet when it is placed in a magnetic field.
7.What happens to an induced magnet when the field is removed?
It loses most or all of its magnetism quickly.
8.Is the force between a magnet and an induced magnet attraction or repulsion?
Always attraction, because the induced poles form the opposite way round to the ones nearby.
9.Name four magnetic materials.
Iron, steel, cobalt and nickel.
10.What is a magnetic field?
The region around a magnet where a force acts on another magnet or on a magnetic material.
11.Where is a magnetic field strongest?
At the poles of the magnet.
12.What happens to field strength as you move away from the magnet?
It gets weaker.
13.Which direction do magnetic field lines point?
From the north pole of the magnet to the south pole.
14.What does the spacing of field lines show?
How strong the field is. Lines closer together mean a stronger field.
15.How can the shape of a magnetic field be found?
By placing a plotting compass at points around the magnet and marking the direction it points.
16.Why does a plotting compass work?
It contains a small bar magnet that is free to rotate and lines up with the field it is in.
17.Why does a compass point north?
It lines up with the magnetic field of the Earth.
18.What does the behaviour of a compass tell us about the Earth?
That the Earth has its own magnetic field, generated by its core.
19.How would you test whether a bar is a permanent magnet?
Bring it near a known magnet. A permanent magnet will repel one pole, whereas a magnetic material is only ever attracted.
20.Why is repulsion the only reliable test for a magnet?
Attraction happens with any magnetic material, but only another magnet can be repelled.
21.What happens to iron filings sprinkled around a magnet?
They become induced magnets and line up along the field lines, showing the shape of the field.
22.Describe the field between two unlike poles facing each other.
The field lines run directly from the north pole across to the south pole, and are closest together in the gap.
23.Why is steel used for permanent magnets rather than iron?
Steel keeps its magnetism, whereas iron loses it easily once the field is removed.
24.Why is iron used for the core of an electromagnet?
It becomes strongly magnetised in a field but loses that magnetism when the current stops, so the electromagnet can be switched off.
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