http://www.super-life.net Technology, Gadgets, the Online World Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:58:26 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 http://www.super-life.net/magnetic-monopoles-created-in-spin-ice-42 http://www.super-life.net/magnetic-monopoles-created-in-spin-ice-42#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:09:35 +0000 Charlotte http://www.super-life.net/?p=42 Physicists have created magnetic monopoles in spin ice for the first time. Let’s break this down into what it means. We are all familiar with magnets. They have two poles which we call North and South and we know that when you break a magnet you form two separate magnets each with its own North and South pole. It doesn’t matter how many times you break the magnet you will always get a North and South pole. A magnetic monopole would occur if you were to break the magnet in two and find that one of the pieces was a North pole and the other piece was a South pole. So far, a single magnetic monopole that floats around has not been found but in an esoteric material known as spin ice researchers have shown that, when this is cooled close to absolute zero, the spin structure can be made equivalent to a magentic monopole and that these quantised to form magnetic monopole and that these monopoles can flow like electricity.
Magnetic monopoles would be the magnetic equivalent of charge and as aways with new material properties brings about exciting new developments in physics and technology. It is hoped that the discovery will allow scientists to create experiments to test the properties of magnetic monopoles.

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