Magnets have always attracted the attention of people across the world, irrespective of the fact if they are connected to the world of science or not.The force field produced by a magnet is known as the magnetic field. A magnetic field is something that is not visible, rather it is a type of force that attracts a specific category of metals towards itself; these metals are called ferromagnetic metals.A magnet has two poles, positive and negative. The opposite forces attract each other, while the same ones cause repulsion. Ferromagnetic materials are the ones that are used to make permanent magnets. Permanent magnets are the type of magnets that are made from magnetized materials that create their own magnetic field. These ferromagnetic metals include iron, cobalt, nickel, and steel, which is an alloy that includes iron within its mixture.Depending on the attractive force of metals towards a magnet, there are three magnetic metals. These are ferromagnetic metals – the ones who are attracted to magnets, and can be converted to magnets by certain methods; paramagnetic metals – the ones who have a weak attraction towards magnets and lastly; diamagnetic metals – the ones who repel magnets albeit weakly.After reading about the magnetic properties of each of the three magnetic material types, also check interesting facts about 3 types of magnets and how are magnets made?What metals do magnets attract?As we already know, a magnet is an object which creates a magnetic field of its own. The magnetic behavior of any element depends on the electron configuration of that particular material. A magnetic field is created from the spinning of electrons inside an atom.This field gets canceled out because of the spinning of other electrons which create an opposing magnetic field.That is what repelling magnetic force is. On the other hand, sometimes these electrons align together with the neighboring electrons to create a movement that makes a magnetic field. When the electrons align themselves in motion, an attraction is created, i.e. the attraction of two opposite poles. This also helps in making the magnetic field stronger and spread across a wider area.Ferromagnetic metals are the ones that have an electron configuration where the electrons align easily to generate magnetic force. These ferromagnetic materials include iron, cobalt, and nickel, generally all the metals which are predominantly used for making permanent magnets.There are several ways in which a magnetic force can be created. Magnetism is defined as a magnetic field that is produced in response to an applied magnetic field. For example, a bar of iron that is connected to a magnet is also a magnet and attracts other ferromagnetic metals. Another technique used is an electromagnet. A magnet created by passing electricity through any ferromagnetic metal or a magnet to increase its magnetic field or magnetic force is known as an electromagnet.Which metal is the most magnetic?As explained above, there are three magnetic metals depending upon their magnetic strength and attraction towards magnets. These are ferromagnetic materials, paramagnetic metals, and diamagnetic metals.Out of these, the common metals which are most magnetic come under the category of ferromagnetic materials, which include the following metals:Iron: Iron is the strongest ferromagnetic metal, which is also used in generating electromagnetic energy. The core of the Earth is primarily made of iron, which makes the Earth a magnet as well, having two poles, the north and south. Any iron alloy, like stainless steel, is also considered a magnetic material, as it can attract a magnet although the force is a lot weaker than pure iron. Iron has all the properties which can help create a strong magnet with the ability to attract other magnetized materials.Nickel: Nickel is a strong magnetic metal, but weak compared to iron. Nickel is also found in the core of the Earth in huge quantities. Previously, nickel was used to make coins but not any more. Today, nickel is used in batteries, tools, transport, and phones. Alnico magnets are made from an alloy of aluminum, nickel, and cobalt.Cobalt: Cobalt is mainly used for producing hard as well as soft magnets, and it is also a part of many alloys. Today, the use of cobalt can be seen in various machinery like hard disks, MRI machines, wind turbines, motors, and sensors.There are several more metals that can be added to this list like gadolinium, dysprosium, neodymium, samarium, and alloys of iron, cobalt, and nickel which are also strong magnetic metals. These magnetic metals are also used to create permanent magnets. Permanent magnets are the types that stay stable against other demagnetizing forces and maintain their electron alignment.Least Magnetic MetalsThe metals which come under the list of nonmagnetic or less magnetic are categorized as paramagnetic metals and diamagnetic metals. Paramagnetic metals are the ones that are weakly attracted to the magnetic force.These non-magnetic metals do not exhibit magnetic properties such as magnetic force. This force is almost a million times weaker compared to ferromagnetic materials, hence they create a very weak magnetic field which is only visible under sensitive scientific equipment. As much magnetic materials are not attracted to these metals.The list of paramagnetic metals or non-magnetic metals includes platinum, tungsten, magnesium, tantalum, molybdenum, aluminum, cesium, uranium, sodium, and lithium.Diamagnetic metals are the ones that are the least magnetic metals. These metals repel magnets, although the force is so weak that it is unnoticeable to anyone unless being measured on some scientific equipment. The magnetic movements of the magnet act in opposition to the field applied, creating a force that repels these metals from the magnet. These non-magnetic metals include mercury, gold, silver, and lead. These diamagnetic materials make up for the least magnetic metals on this list.Who discovered magnets?There is a lot of undiscovered history to the science of magnets and how it was discovered. There are several stories all around the world which describe their own story of the discovery of magnets and magnetic metals.One of the very first historical references to magnet dates back about 4,000 years ago from Greece. It is said that a shepherd named Magnes was herding his sheep in a place called Magnesia when he came across a peculiar rock, which made the nails of his slippers stick to it. This rock greatly stole his attention, which was known as lodestone and later converted to a magnet. Hence, the word magnet is said to have been derived from the shepherd boy, or the place where he was living, Magnesia.Regarding the scientific study of the properties of a magnet, a French scholar named Petrus Peregrinus was the first to record the scientific properties of a magnet and magnetic materials, in the 1200s.In the 1600s, a British physician named Robert Gilbert was the first person to forge magnets from iron and create the pure magnets which we see today. He was also the one who discovered the magnetic properties which our earth held at its core, which affected a lot of things not just on land, but in space as well.Hans Christian Oersted is a very famous name in the field of electromagnetic science, as he was the founder of it. He discovered in 1820 that if electricity is passed through a wire, it can attract the needle of a compass. This led him to discover that some metals create a magnetic field when the electric current is passed through them, which he named an electromagnet.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for three magnetic metals: fun facts for the budding scientist in you then why not take a look at different types of metal, or are alkali metals found in nature?
Magnets have always attracted the attention of people across the world, irrespective of the fact if they are connected to the world of science or not.
