Investigatory Project

Title
Study of Magnetic Properties: Paramagnetism,
Diamagnetism and Ferromagnetism

Student Details
Name: ____________________

Class / Grade: ____________

School: ___________________

Roll No.: ________________

Guide / Teacher: __________

Submission Date: __________

Certificate
This is to certify that the investigatory project titled
“Study of Magnetic Properties: Paramagnetism,
Diamagnetism and Ferromagnetism” has been carried out
by (Student Name) under my guidance. The project is
original and completed satisfactorily.

Signature (Supervisor): ___________________

Date: __ / __ / ____
Acknowledgements
I express my sincere gratitude to my teacher/guide for
guidance and encouragement. I also thank my parents and
classmates for support and suggestions during this project.

Abstract (≈150–200 words)

This investigatory project explores three fundamental
types of magnetic behaviour exhibited by materials:
diamagnetism, paramagnetism, and ferromagnetism. The
project explains their physical origins, characteristic
features, and real-world examples. Simple, school-level
experiments are designed to qualitatively and quantitatively
distinguish materials belonging to each category using
readily available apparatus: bar magnets, compass, iron
filings, small permanent magnets, and a sensitive electronic
balance (or spring balance). Observations include
attraction/repulsion behaviour, strength measurement by
the number of paper clips a magnet can hold, and qualitative
susceptibility estimation. The experiments demonstrate how
ferromagnetic materials show strong, permanent
magnetism; paramagnetic materials show weak, positive
response to applied magnetic fields; and diamagnetic
materials show weak, negative response (a slight repulsion).
Data is recorded, analyzed and conclusions are drawn.
Safety precautions and improvements are suggested for
future work.

Index
1. Introduction
2. Aim
3. Materials Required
4. Theory
o Magnetic domains and origin of magnetism
o Diamagnetism
o Paramagnetism
o Ferromagnetism
5. Experiments (with procedure)
o Experiment 1: Qualitative identification using
compass and magnet
o Experiment 2: Paper-clip attraction test (relative
strength)
o Experiment 3: Deflection of a magnetic needle and
approximate susceptibility
o Experiment 4 (Optional): Magnetization curve
(hysteresis) for ferromagnet (demonstration)
6. Observations and Data
7. Calculations and Analysis
8. Results
9. Discussion
 10. Sources of Error & Precautions
11. Applications
12. Conclusion
13. References
14. Appendix (sample data tables, diagrams)

1. Introduction

Magnetism is a fundamental physical phenomenon arising

from moving electric charges and electron spin. Materials
respond to magnetic fields differently depending on their
electronic structure and internal alignment of magnetic
moments. Based on their response to an external magnetic
field, materials are classified into three broad categories:

 Diamagnetic: Weakly repelled by a magnetic field (no

permanent magnetic moment in absence of field).
 Paramagnetic: Weakly attracted by a magnetic field
(unpaired electrons produce magnetic moments but
thermal motion prevents permanent alignment in the
absence of field).
 Ferromagnetic: Strongly attracted and can retain
magnetization (domains of aligned moments produce
permanent magnetism).

This project aims to identify and compare these behaviours

using simple experiments suitable for a school laboratory.
2. Aim

To study and compare diamagnetism, paramagnetism and

ferromagnetism through simple experiments; to identify
unknown samples and understand practical differences
among them.

3. Materials Required
 Bar magnet(s) (small and medium strength)
 Small permanent magnets (disc or button magnets)
 Compass (magnetic needle)
 Iron filings (for demonstration only; handle carefully)
 Paper clips (many identical ones)
 Non-magnetic tweezers/plastic tray
 Samples of materials to test (labelled):
o Copper piece (diamagnetic)
o Bismuth sample or graphite (diamagnetic — if
available)
o Aluminium piece (paramagnetic at room
temperature)
o Platinum or manganese salts (paramagnetic —
often difficult to obtain; aluminium or oxygen
demonstration suggested instead)
 o Iron nail, cobalt piece, nickel piece
(ferromagnetic)
o Stainless steel sample (may be weakly
ferromagnetic or non-magnetic depending on alloy)
 Small pieces of jewelry metal or coins (for comparison)
 Thin thread and stand (to suspend samples)
 Electronic balance or spring balance (sensitive)
 Ruler / Vernier calipers
 Protractor (for measuring deflection angles)
 Notebook and pen for observations
Note: If certain materials (like bismuth or platinum)
are not available, use commonly available substitutes:
copper (diamagnetic but very weak), aluminium
(paramagnetic but weak), iron/nail (ferromagnetic).
For demonstration of paramagnetism, oxygen in liquid
form is not feasible at school — explain theoretically.

4. Theory
Magnetic moment & domains
Magnetism at the atomic level arises from electrons’ orbital
motion and intrinsic spin. In some materials, magnetic
moments of atoms tend to align over regions called domains.
Ferromagnetic materials have domains that can align even
without an applied field; paramagnetic materials have
unpaired electron moments that align only with an external
field and vanish once the field is removed; diamagnetic
materials produce induced magnetic moments opposite to
the applied field (due to Lenz’s law style response of
electron orbits) and are always repelled.

Diamagnetism
 Present in all materials but usually masked by stronger
effects.
 Caused by change in orbital motion of electrons under
applied field.
 Weak and negative susceptibility (χ < 0).
Paramagnetism
 Arises from unpaired electrons with magnetic
moments.
 Positive susceptibility (χ > 0) but small.
 Thermal agitation tends to randomize the moments;
alignment occurs only in presence of field.
Ferromagnetism
 Strong interaction between atomic moments (exchange
interaction) causes spontaneous alignment.
 Large positive susceptibility; can retain magnetization
(remanence).
 Shows hysteresis (B–H loop) in magnetization vs applied
field.
5. Experiments

Each experiment includes objective, apparatus, procedure,

observations to record and expected result.

Experiment 1 — Qualitative identification using compass and

magnet
Objective: Identify diamagnetic, paramagnetic and
ferromagnetic samples qualitatively using a compass and bar
magnet.

Apparatus: Bar magnet, compass, samples (labelled), non-

magnetic tray.

Procedure: 1. Place the compass on a flat table and note the

direction of the needle (north-south) without any sample
nearby. 2. Bring each sample (one at a time) close to the
compass (without touching) at a fixed distance (e.g., 2 cm)
and observe any deflection. 3. For a bar magnet, note strong
deviation and orientation. For ferromagnetic samples, the
compass will show clear attraction/alteration of field; for
paramagnetic and diamagnetic samples deflection will be
very small or negligible. 4. Repeat with the bar magnet near
each sample and the compass to observe induced changes.

Observations to record: Needle deflection angle for each

sample; qualitative notes (no change, slight deflection,
strong deflection).

Expected result: Ferromagnetic sample causes strong

deflection; paramagnetic slight attraction (may be hard to
notice); diamagnetic negligible or slight repulsion (very
small).

Experiment 2 — Paper-clip attraction test (relative

strength)
Objective: Compare relative magnetic attraction strength
of ferromagnetic samples by counting number of paper-clips
attracted.

Apparatus: Small permanent magnets or bar magnet,

identical paper clips (20–50), samples.

Procedure: 1. Use a small bar magnet or magnetize a steel

nail by stroking it with a magnet. 2. Place the magnet
vertically and start picking up paper clips one by one,
counting how many a magnet or magnetized sample can lift
in a chain before dropping. 3. Perform the test for
different ferromagnetic samples (e.g., magnetized nail,
small manufactured magnet) and record counts.

Observations to record: Number of paper clips held.

Expected result: Stronger magnets (or highly

ferromagnetic/magnetized samples) hold more paper clips.
Experiment 3 — Deflection measurement and approximate
susceptibility (school-level)
Objective: Measure deflection of a magnetic needle when a
sample is brought near and estimate relative susceptibility
qualitatively.

Apparatus: Compass needle mounted on a protractor scale

or a simple magnetic needle setup, ruler, samples.

Procedure: 1. Mark the zero direction of the needle. 2.

Bring each sample to the same fixed distance from the
needle (e.g., 2 cm) and measure the deflection angle. 3. Use
the angle as a comparative measure: larger deflection
corresponds to stronger magnetic response (positive for
attraction, negative/other direction possible for
diamagnetic response).

Observations to record: Deflection angle for each sample

at given distance.

Analysis idea: Although this is not a full quantitative

susceptibility measurement, the relative deflection can be
used to rank materials. For a more advanced project, one
could measure torque on a magnetized sample in a known
field and compute susceptibility, but this requires
calibrated equipment.
Experiment 4 (Optional demonstration) — Hysteresis loop
(qualitative)
Objective: Demonstrate ferromagnet hysteresis
qualitatively using a soft ferromagnetic core and coil (if
available) or show permanent magnetization of a steel rod
after magnetizing.

Apparatus (advanced): Solenoid, soft iron core, DC power

supply, voltmeter/gaussmeter (if available), or simply
magnetize and demagnetize a steel rod with a coil.

Procedure (simplified): 1. Pass current through coil around

the iron core to magnetize it; remove current and observe
residual magnetization using a compass or paper clip test. 2.
Reverse current direction to demagnetize or reduce
remanence and observe changes.

Observation: Presence of remanent magnetization indicates

ferromagnetic behaviour and hysteresis.

6. Observations and Data

Important: Record real measured values here. Below
are sample data table templates you should fill with
your own observations.
 Table 1 — Compass deflection (Experiment 1 & 3)

Type Distance from Deflection

Sample (expected) needle (cm) angle (°) Notes
Iron nail Ferromagneti 2 45 Strong
c attraction
Copper piece Diamagnetic 2 2 Very small
opposite
deflection
(hard to
notice)

Aluminium Paramagnetic 2 4 Slight

attraction
Stainless ? 2 15 Depends on
steel alloy

Table 2 — Paper-clip test (Experiment 2)

Sample / Number of
Magnet Magnetized? paper-clips held Notes
Bar magnet Yes 25 Strong
permanent
magnet
Magnetized Yes 8 Moderate
nail strength
Small fridge Yes 6 Weak but
magnet steady
Table 3 — Hysteresis / Remanence (Optional)
Current Observed magnetism
Step Direction (compass/paper clip)
Initial 0 None
After + Paper clips attach
magnetizing
After - Reduced attachment
reversing

7. Calculations and Analysis

Qualitative analysis: - Rank samples by deflection angle and

paper-clip count. - Assign each sample to diamagnetic,
paramagnetic or ferromagnetic class based on magnitude
and sign of response.

Simple calculation example (relative index): Define a

relative magnet-response index R as a weighted
combination:

[ R = (N_{clips}) + 5(/10) ]

where (N_{clips}) is the number of paper clips held and () is

deflection angle in degrees. This is only a heuristic to
combine both measurements.

Sample calculation (using the example table): - For bar

magnet: (R = 25 + 5(45/10) = 25 + 22.5 = 47.5) - For
magnetized nail: (R = 8 + 5(30/10) = 8 + 15 = 23)
Explain that higher R indicates stronger magnetic response.

8. Results

From the experiments (fill with your actual observations):

 Ferromagnetic samples (iron nail, magnet) showed

strong attraction, large deflection angles and high
paper-clip counts. They retained magnetization after
removing the external field (remanence).
 Paramagnetic samples (aluminium) showed small but
measurable attraction; deflection angles were small
and no remanence observed.
 Diamagnetic samples (copper / bismuth) showed
extremely weak repulsion or no obvious response in the
simple setup; more sensitive equipment is needed to
demonstrate this clearly.

9. Discussion
 Discuss why diamagnetism is weak and present in all
materials; why ferromagnetism is strong due to domain
alignment and exchange interaction.
 Explain limitations of school experiments: sensitivity,
background fields (Earth’s magnetic field), variability
in sample purity, and measurement accuracy.
  Propose improvements: use a Gaussmeter to measure
field, use more sensitive torsion balance to measure
susceptibility, perform experiments inside Helmholtz
coils to control applied field.

10. Sources of Error & Precautions

Sources of Error: - Inaccurate distance measurements. -

Hand vibration while taking readings. - Variation in magnet
strength across different magnets. - Nearby ferromagnetic
materials or metallic objects affecting readings. - Earth’s
magnetic field changing the baseline of compass.

Precautions: - Keep metallic objects away while taking

readings. - Use non-magnetic stands and supports. - Repeat
measurements several times and take average. - Handle iron
filings carefully and clean after use.

11. Applications
 Ferromagnetic materials: permanent magnets, electric
motors, transformers, magnetic storage.
 Paramagnetic materials: air-oxygen separation in
industry (liquid oxygen is paramagnetic), certain
sensors.
  Diamagnetic materials: levitation demonstrations
(bismuth, pyrolytic graphite), magnetic shielding
design.

12. Conclusion

This project provided hands-on experience distinguishing

diamagnetic, paramagnetic and ferromagnetic materials
using simple apparatus. Ferromagnetic materials show
strong, permanent magnetic behavior; paramagnetic
materials show weak attraction only in presence of field;
diamagnetic materials produce a weak repulsive response.
The experiments solidify conceptual understanding and
point to more advanced measurement techniques for
quantitative study.

13. References
 Textbook chapters on magnetism (class 11/12 physics
books).
 Recommended reading: modern physics/solid state
physics introductory texts for atomic origin of
magnetism.
 (Add any websites, articles or papers you consulted.)
14. Appendix
Diagrams
1. Diagram of compass and sample position.

2. Setup for paper-clip chain test.

3. Simple coil and core for optional hysteresis
demonstration.

Teacher’s Evaluation (to be filled by guide)

Originality: ________ / 10

Experimental skill: ________ / 10

Report presentation: ________ / 10

Viva / Understanding: ________ / 10

Total: ________ / 40

End of Project Document