Diamagnetic Levitation

Known since the 1930s, a simple technique for suspending objects magnetically is just now finding practical application

Engineering Physics Human Ecology

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September-October 2004

Volume 92, Number 5
Page 428

DOI: 10.1511/2004.49.428

The ability of magnets to exert forces on one another without touching intrigues most children—and more than a few adults. It is a short step from pondering this curious phenomenon to wondering whether the force from one magnet could be used to levitate another, seemingly in defiance of gravity.

Courtesy of Andre Geim, University of Manchester.

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