Question

What are Paramagnetic substances?

Answer 1

Paramagnetic substances

1. Metals with a weak magnetic attraction are known as paramagnetic substances.
2. Paramagnetic materials have some unpaired electrons due to which the net magnetic moment of all electrons in an atom is not added up to zero. As a result, an atomic dipole exists in this scenario. When an external magnetic field is applied, the atomic dipole aligns in the direction of the external magnetic field. Paramagnetic materials are therefore weakly magnetized in the direction of the magnetizing field.
3. Paramagnetism is inversely proportional to temperature, i.e., lower temperatures cause stronger magnetic fields.
4. Curie's law governs the amount of paramagnetism, which states that the higher the temperature, the lower the magnetization.

An illustrative diagram of the paramagnetic substance is shown below.

The formula of Curie's law:

$M=C\times \frac{B}{T}$

Where, $M$ is the Magnetization, $B$ is the Magnetic field, $T$ is the Temperature, $C$ is a material-specific Curie constant.

An illustrative diagram of magnetic field lines through the paramagnetic substance is shown below.

Properties of paramagnetic substances

Some properties of paramagnetic materials are provided below.

1. Paramagnetic substances have a minor magnetic dipole moment that seems to be parallel to the magnetizing field.
2. Paramagnets only show magnetic properties when placed inside a magnetic field.
3. Inside paramagnetic substances, magnetic fields get denser.
4. Some paramagnetic materials become magnetic under all circumstances, whilst others require a specific temperature to exhibit magnetic characteristics.