Tel: +86-13817790968
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +86-13817790968
Email: [email protected]
What do you know about cobalt? Cobalt is a shiny bluish metal. They're also some very special type of metal: Almost everything of significance is made of it, including magnets! When you think of magnets, you think of the magnets that stick on your refrigerator, am I right? Those magnets are pretty fun and are good for holding up some pictures or notes. However, did you know that magnets play a central role in many others of the things we use in our everyday lives? They make our technology run smoother!
Cobalt is unique in that it is intrinsically magnetic. This means that cobalt can magnetically pull other metal on its own. It will adhere to items made of iron or nickel, for instance, without any added assistance. Isn't that cool? How can that be, you ask. Well, it's like magic but it's really science!
Atoms are little particles so small we can not see them with our eyes. They comprise the fundamental structure of everything, from metals such as cobalt. If we had a powerful microscope and studied cobalt, we would notice that its atoms are arranged in a structure known as a crystal lattice. That special arrangement produces an electric field around the cobalt—even though cobalt is not magnetic in itself, this electric field is what makes it magnetic.
For this reason cobalt is magnetic and thus incredibly useful with applications in many critical areas. And cobalt is primarily used to make permanent magnets. These magnets retain their magnetism for a long time and are found in various household objects; however, they are also more commonly found in the parts of motors, generators and speakers, which we use to listen to music. Smart devices would be much worse without cobalt magnets!
Cobalt is also crucial in medicine. For instance, MRI machines take pictures of the inside of our bodies with very strong magnets. These photos play a big help for doctors to understand what is going on inside us. By seeing these images, doctors can do a better job of understanding our health and making more important decisions about our care.
But if we take a cobalt magnet and split it in half, we are going to be surprised! Each will still have its own north pole and south pole! This is due to the fact that the atoms in cobalt are organized such that small northpoles and southpoles are scattered throughout the magnet. So, no matter how much we fracture the magnet, it retains its characteristics.
Electrons are small particles that move around the center, or nucleus, of an atom. In cobalt, some electrons can move freely. When they do that, an electric field forms around the atom. This electric field which makes cobalt magnetic is a big reason we can use cobalt in multiple ways.
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