Magnetic Monopole
Most recent answer: 05/16/2013
Q:
can you ever have just a north pole of a magnet on its own????
please help me
- katie (age 11)
uk
- katie (age 11)
uk
A:
Katie,
Up to this point, there is no proof of a magnet with only a north or only a south pole. These are referred to as magnetic monopoles. In a simple case, if you have a rectangular magnet and you were able to cut it in half, you would find yourself with two regular bar magnets, each with a north and a south pole. There is a picture below (borrowed from ) representing what I mean. Certain theories predict monopoles' existence and the search for a magnetic monopole is one of today's challenges for researchers. Perhaps someday soon a magnetic monopole will be discovered. It would certainly have some interesting effects! -Zach
Up to this point, there is no proof of a magnet with only a north or only a south pole. These are referred to as magnetic monopoles. In a simple case, if you have a rectangular magnet and you were able to cut it in half, you would find yourself with two regular bar magnets, each with a north and a south pole. There is a picture below (borrowed from ) representing what I mean. Certain theories predict monopoles' existence and the search for a magnetic monopole is one of today's challenges for researchers. Perhaps someday soon a magnetic monopole will be discovered. It would certainly have some interesting effects! -Zach
(published on 05/16/2013)