• Question: Are all electromagnets different?

    Asked by lucylocket to Daniel, Freya, James, Miranda, Usman on 17 Jun 2015.
    • Photo: Usman Bashir

      Usman Bashir answered on 17 Jun 2015:

      There are two main types : resistive and superconducting. Superconducting electromagnets are my favourites, are used in modern PET/MRI machines, and theoretically require zero electricity because they run at such cold temperatures! They’re pretty costly though

    • Photo: Freya Wilson

      Freya Wilson answered on 19 Jun 2015:

      Electromagnets are all based on the same principle. However the amount of energy they have and the actual materials they are made from and the design of them can be very varied. So in that sense yes!

    • Photo: James Gilbert

      James Gilbert answered on 24 Jun 2015:

      Hi Lucy,

      They all work due to the same electromagnetic forces produced on a tiny scale, but in ‘real world’ terms they can look very different and behave differently, yes. They might be different sizes, made of different materials, and therefore have different strengths 🙂

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