Levitation with Magnets

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There are a few reasons why I did my science fair project on diamagnetism. The purpose of my experiment was to attempt to get two diamagnetic materials to levitate above an arrangement of magnets. I have seen many videos demonstrating diamagnetic levitation and wanted to find out if it was possible. I also saw several videos on diamagnetic levitation and wanted to see if it was actually possible and wanted to do my project on a topic that I was unfamiliar with. I decided to use pyrolytic graphite and bismuth because they are both known for their diamagnetic properties.
The discovery of magnets starts with the elderly Cretan shepherd named Magnes around 4,000 years ago. The account goes that as he was herding his sheep in an area of Greece called Magnesia when he suddenly discovered that the metal tip of his staff and the nails in his shoes became firmly stuck to the ground. He dug up the the dirt and discovered lodestones which contain magnetite. The rock magnetite was then named after either Magnes or Magnesia. The Greek philosopher Thales also mentioned the magnetic properties of lodestones in around 500 BC.
The history of magnetic levitation starts around 1842 when a British mathematician named Samuel Earnshaw proved that there was no possible way to levitate a magnet solely using other fixed magnets in his theory called Earnshaw’s Theorem. His theory does not, however, apply to diamagnetic materials. So with the addition of diamagnetic materials, however, makes levitation possible. His studies showed that while the suspended magnet was vertically stable, it was not horizontally stable, and would fall off one side.
All materials are diamagnetic, although most of the time they show this property so weakly that they are ...

... middle of paper ...

...aterials is possible and can be more prominently diamagnetic than others. I greatly enjoyed doing this experiment and hope that I can apply my new knowledge in my everyday life.

Bibliography
Comstock, R. Lawrence. Introduction to Magnetism and Magnetic Recording. New York: Wiley, 1999. Print
"Diamagnetism." Diamagnetism. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.
Gibbs, Philip. "Is Magnetic Levitation Possible?" Magnetic Levitation. N.p., Mar. 1997. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.
"Magnetism and Earnshaw's Theorem." Magnetism and Earnshaw's Theorem. MathPages, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.
Watkins, Thayer. "Diamagnetism." Diamagnetism. San Jose State University, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2013.

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