Calculating the froce between two magnets

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The discussion centers on understanding the formula for calculating the magnetic force between two magnets, specifically the meaning of "mu," which represents the permeability of the medium, typically air. The permeability value for air is approximately 1.26 x 10^-4 Henry/meter. It is emphasized that magnetic monopoles have not been observed, and calculations should focus on magnetic dipoles instead, leading to a more complex formula that does not follow an inverse square relationship. Additionally, the magnetic force is not influenced by the mass of the magnets, as it is more closely related to charge and velocity, similar to electric forces. Overall, the Wikipedia formula provides a foundational understanding but does not fully account for real-life applications involving magnetic dipoles.
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chui said:
I have a formula, taken from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnet#Calculating_the_Magnetic_Force"
But I didnt get the meaning of "mu" in this formula..
can anyone explain?
\mu is the permeability of the medium between the magnets, in your case this is probably air, the value of \mu_{air} \approx \mu_0 = 1.26 x 10^{-4} \frac {Henry} {meter} [/tex].
 
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Another thing that's worth pointing out is that magnetic poles (aka monopoles) have never been observed to exist, though theoretically they may have existed at very early times in the formation of the universe.

So if you want to calculate the force between a pair of real magnets like the kind you'll be likely to find on your refrigeratior, you'll need to work out the force between dipoles, not magnetic poles (aka monoples). This will lead to a much more complex formula, and a non-inverse square relationship for the force.

Modeling a magnetic dipole as a pair of magnetic poles some distance will be very useful in calculating the force between real magnets, but as far as real-life applicaitons go, the wikipedia formula has only done half the job.
 
no mass?

Well, Does this force not effected by the magnet Mass?! (unlike gravity etc.)
why is that?
 
The electric force between two charges depends on the charge, not the mass. The magnetic force is basically a relativistic correction to the electric force, so it depends on charge and velocity (i.e. current).
 
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