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Colors and Magnetism

Colors and Magnetism

Color in Coordination Complexes
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human eye.

Magnetism

Magnetism

Magnets are commonly found in everyday objects, such as toys, hangers, elevators, doorbells, and computer devices. Experimentation on these magnets shows that all magnets have two poles: one is labeled north (N) and the other south (S). Magnetic poles repel if they are alike and attract if unlike. Moreover, both poles of a magnet attract unmagnetized pieces of iron.
An individual magnetic pole cannot be isolated. No matter how small, every piece of a magnet contains a north pole and a south...

Magnetic Fields

Magnetic Fields

A moving charge or a current creates a magnetic field in the surrounding space, in addition to its electric field. The magnetic field exerts a force on any other moving charge or current that is present in the field. Like an electric field, the magnetic field is also a vector field. At any position, the direction of the magnetic field is defined as the direction in which the north pole of a compass needle points.
A magnetic field is defined by the force that a charged particle experiences...

Diamagnetism

Diamagnetism

Materials consisting of paired electrons have zero net magnetic moments. However, when these materials are placed under an external magnetic field, the moments opposite to the field are induced. Such materials are called diamagnets. Diamagnetism is the response of the diamagnets when placed in an external magnetic field.
Diamagnetism was discovered by Anton Brugmans in 1778 when he observed that bismuth gets repelled by magnetic fields, thus theorizing that diamagnets get repelled by magnets.

Ferromagnetism

Ferromagnetism

Materials like iron, nickel, and cobalt consist of magnetic domains, within which the magnetic dipoles are arranged parallel to each other. The magnetic dipoles are rigidly aligned in the same direction within a domain by quantum mechanical coupling among the atoms. This coupling is so strong that even thermal agitation at room temperature cannot break it. The result is that each domain has a net dipole moment. However, some materials have weaker coupling, and are ferromagnetic at lower...

Magnetic Flux

Magnetic Flux

The magnetic flux measures the number of magnetic field lines passing through a given surface area. The SI unit for magnetic flux is the weber (Wb). Magnetic flux is a scalar quantity. It depends on three factors: the strength of the magnetic field B, the area through which the field lines pass, and the relative orientation of the field with the surface area.
Suppose a surface is divided into elements of area dA. For each element, the component of the magnetic field that is normal to the...

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Metamagnetics with rainbow colors.

Wenshan Cai, Uday K Chettiar, Hsiao-Kuan Yuan

|June 18, 2009

Summary

Researchers developed coupled nanostrips showing rainbow magnetism, a controllable optical magnetic response across the visible spectrum. This breakthrough offers a universal building block for practical optical magnetism applications.

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Area of Science:

* Nanophotonics and metamaterials science.
* Optics and magnetism.
* Materials science and engineering.

Background:

* Controlling optical magnetism is crucial for advanced photonic devices.
* Previous methods often lack broadband tunability or are complex to fabricate.
* Nanostructured materials offer unique electromagnetic properties.

Purpose of the Study:

* To demonstrate a family of coupled nanostrips with tunable optical magnetic responses.
* To achieve broadband optical magnetism across the visible spectrum.
* To provide a universal design for controllable optical magnetism.

Main Methods:

* Fabrication and experimental characterization of coupled nanostrip arrays with varying dimensions.
* Analytical modeling and simulation of optical magnetic responses.
* Spectroscopic analysis across the visible light range.

Main Results:

* Demonstrated optical magnetic responses spanning the entire visible spectrum (red to blue).
* Observed a phenomenon termed 'rainbow magnetism' due to the broadband response.
* Validated the tunability of magnetic responses by varying nanostrip dimensions.

Conclusions:

* Coupled nanostrips serve as a versatile platform for achieving broadband optical magnetism.
* The study provides a universal building block and a general recipe for designing optical magnetic materials.
* The findings pave the way for practical implementations in tunable photonic devices.