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Q:
Does the shape of a magnet affect its magnetic field?
- Anonymous
A:
Yes, the shape of a magnet will affect its external field. For example the shapes of the fields of horse-shoe shaped magnets and bar magnets are quite different. You can do an experiment at home using iron filings sprinkled over a sheet of paper and holding a magnet underneath. Various configurations of magnets are used in high energy accelerators to bend (dipole magnets) and to focus (quadrupole magnets) the circulating beams. See the web site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadrupole_magnet for an example.
LeeH
(published on 05/12/2009)
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