Question

Why do like poles of a magnet repel each other? What is the name of this particular force? What makes metals attract themselves to the magnet?

Answer 1

Explanation:

1. When the like pole of two magnets comes close they repel each other because the direction of the line of force is opposite and when the opposite pole comes together they attract each other because the line of force points in the same direction.
2. The force that causes the attraction or repulsion between magnets is known as the magnetic force.
3. Ferromagnetic materials such as iron, nickel, etc are drawn to magnets because their electrons spin, and the resulting "magnetic moments" easily align and stay aligned even in the absence of an external magnetic field.
4. In most substances, equal numbers of electrons spin in opposite directions, which cancels out their magnetism. That is why materials such as cloth or paper are said to be weakly magnetic. In substances such as iron, cobalt, and nickel, most of the electrons spin in the same direction. This makes the atoms in these substances strongly magnetic but they are not yet magnets.
5. To become magnetized, another strongly magnetic substance must enter the magnetic field of an existing magnet. The magnetic field is the area around a magnet that has a magnetic force.

An illustrative diagram below shows the magnetic force of attraction between the unlike poles.

An illustrative diagram below shows the magnetic force of repulsion between the like poles.