Ferromagnets

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

  1. Materials that exhibit strong magnetic properties due to the alignment of their atomic magnetic moments resulting in spontaneous magnetization; substances that can be permanently magnetized and retain magnetic properties without an external magnetic field; materials typically composed of iron, cobalt, nickel, or their alloys, which are widely used in electrical devices and magnetic storage
  2. Substances characterized by the presence of magnetic domains that align parallel to produce a net magnetic field; materials capable of retaining magnetization after an applied magnetic field is removed; commonly composed of metallic elements such as iron and used in various technological applications involving magnetism
  3. Metals and alloys displaying spontaneous magnetic ordering because of exchange interactions among atomic spins; entities that maintain magnetism independently of outer magnetic influences; predominantly iron-based compounds essential for magnets, transformers, and electromagnetic equipment

Etymology: The plural "ferromagnets" simply pluralises "ferromagnet", a compound built from "ferro-", from Latin "ferrum" meaning iron, and "magnet". The iron half is the older one: "ferrum" is a Latin word for iron, and its prefix form "ferro-" entered English as a scientific combining element, so a ferromagnet is literally an iron-type magnet. The "magnet" half carries a much older and more mysterious story. Ancient Greek "mágnēs" named a kind of stone, lodestone, and the word is thought to come from the name of a region, Magnesia, in Asia Minor, though this link is uncertain. The Latin form "magnēs" passed through Old French "magnete" into Middle English, where "magnete" appears in the sense of the lodestone itself. The compound "ferromagnet" is a modern technical coinage built from these classical parts, formed to name materials, such as iron, cobalt and nickel, that stay magnetised after an outside field is removed. The plural form simply follows the ordinary English pattern of adding "-s".

Synonyms: ferromagnetic materials

Antonyms: diamagnetics, paramagnets