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Physics LibreTexts

17.3: The Magnetic Field on the Equator of a Magnet

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By the “equator” of a magnet I mean a plane normal to its magnetic moment vector, passing through the mid-point of the magnet.

The magnetic field at a point at a distance r on the equator of a magnet may be expressed as a series of terms of successively higher powers of 1/r (the first term in the series being a term in r3), and the higher powers decrease rapidly with increasing distance. At large distances, the higher powers become negligible, so that, at a large distance from a small magnet, the magnitude of the magnetic field produced by the magnet is given approximately by

B=μ04πpr3.

For example, if the surface magnetic field on the equator of a planet has been measured, and the magnetic properties of the planet are being modelled in terms of a small magnet at the centre of the planet, the dipole moment can be calculated by multiplying the surface equatorial magnetic field by μ0/(4π) times the cube of the radius of the planet. If B, μ0 and r are expressed respectively in T, H m1 and m, the magnetic moment will be in N m T1.


This page titled 17.3: The Magnetic Field on the Equator of a Magnet is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Jeremy Tatum via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

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