Magnetricity Discovered

Brian M. Santiago Busutil

A breakthrough in magnetism theories has been made by a team from the London Centre for Nanotechnology (LCN), and the Science and Technology Facility Council’s ISIS Neutron and Muon Source. The research has proven the existence of atom-sized ‘magnetic charges’, which is being called “magnetricity”. These magnetic charges react and interact the same way electric charges do in some materials. The team has published their findings on a British scientific journal called Nature.

This phenomenon called ‘magnetricity’ demonstrates a perfect symmetry between electricity and magnetism. To prove their discovery experimentally, the researchers mapped a theory established in 1934 by a Norwegian-American physical chemist named Lars Onsager, which consisted of the movement of ions in water onto magnetic currents in a material called spin-ice. Afterwards, they tested the theory by employing a magnetic field to a spin ice sample at a very low temperature. They examined the whole process at ISIS Neutron Source using mouns. A moun is an elementary particle similar to the electron, with negative electric charge and spin of 1/2. The experiment permitted the researchers to discover magnetic charges in the spin ice (Dy2Ti2O7). They were also able to measure their currents, and to determine the elementary unit of the material’s magnetic charge. The team observed that the monopoles arise as disturbances of the magnetic state of the spin ice and can only endure inside the material. One of the paper’s co-authors, Professor Steve Bramwell from LCN, mentioned that “Magnetic monopoles were first predicted to exist in 1931, but despite many searches, they have never yet been observed as freely roaming elementary particles. These monopoles do at least exist within the spin ice sample, but not outside”.

The Chief Executive of STFC, Professor Keith Mason said: “The unequivocal proof that magnetic charge is conducted in spin ice adds significantly to our understanding of electromagnetism. Whilst we will have to wait to see what applications magnetricity will find in technology, this research shows that curiosity driven research will always have the potential to make an impact on the way we live and work. Advanced materials research depends greatly on having access to central research labs like ISIS allowing the UK science community to flourish and make exciting discoveries like this.” Dr. Sean Giblin, the instrument scientist at ISIS and also co-author of the paper mentioned that the outcome of this experiment was “astounding”. By using muons they were able to confirm that magnetic charge can really be conducted through certain materials at some temperatures. He compared this behavior to the way ions conduct electricity in water.

While it is not common in the field of physics for researchers to prove a theory unmistakably, this discovery definitely proves that a little curiosity can have a big outcome on the way we live, like Prof. Mason mentioned. This breakthrough poses a huge leap towards establishing that a magnetic charge can flow like an electricity charge. These findings could reassess current magnetism theories and considerable technological advances. Who knows what applications will magnetricity be applied to in the future!