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TheFeynmanLecturesonPhysicsVol.IICh.34:TheMagnetismofMatter

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SUMMARY

34TheMagnetismofMatter
(LectureSummariesforVols.II&IIIwillbepostedatafuturedate.)
Review: Section151,Vol.II,Theforcesonacurrentloopenergyofadipole.

341Diamagnetismandparamagnetism
Inthischapterwearegoingtotalkaboutthemagneticpropertiesofmaterials.Thematerialwhichhasthemost
strikingmagneticpropertiesis,ofcourse,iron.Similarmagneticpropertiesaresharedalsobytheelementsnickel,
cobalt,andatsufficientlylowtemperatures(below16 C)bygadolinium,aswellasbyanumberofpeculiar
alloys.Thatkindofmagnetism,calledferromagnetism,issufficientlystrikingandcomplicatedthatwewilldiscussit
inaspecialchapter.However,allordinarysubstancesdoshowsomemagneticeffects,althoughverysmallonesa
thousandtoamilliontimeslessthantheeffectsinferromagneticmaterials.Herewearegoingtodescribeordinary
magnetism,thatistosay,themagnetismofsubstancesotherthantheferromagneticones.

Thissmallmagnetismisoftwokinds.Somematerialsareattractedtowardmagneticfieldsothersarerepelled.
Unliketheelectricaleffectinmatter,whichalwayscausesdielectricstobeattracted,therearetwosignstothe
magneticeffect.Thesetwosignscanbeeasilyshownwiththehelpofastrongelectromagnetwhichhasonesharply
pointedpolepieceandoneflatpolepiece,asdrawninFig.341.Themagneticfieldismuchstrongernearthe
pointedpolethanneartheflatpole.Ifasmallpieceofmaterialisfastenedtoalongstringandsuspendedbetween
thepoles,therewill,ingeneral,beasmallforceonit.Thissmallforcecanbeseenbytheslightdisplacementofthe
hangingmaterialwhenthemagnetisturnedon.Thefewferromagneticmaterialsareattractedverystronglytoward
thepointedpoleallothermaterialsfeelonlyaveryweakforce.Someareweaklyattractedtothepointedpoleand
someareweaklyrepelled.

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Fig.341.Asmallcylinderofbismuthisweaklyrepelledbythesharppoleapieceofaluminumisattracted.
Theeffectismosteasilyseenwithasmallcylinderofbismuth,whichisrepelledfromthehighfieldregion.
Substanceswhicharerepelledinthiswayarecalleddiamagnetic.Bismuthisoneofthestrongestdiamagnetic
materials,butevenwithit,theeffectisstillquiteweak.Diamagnetismisalwaysveryweak.Ifasmallpieceof
aluminumissuspendedbetweenthepoles,thereisalsoaweakforce,buttowardthepointedpole.Substanceslike
aluminumarecalledparamagnetic.(Insuchanexperiment,eddycurrentforcesarisewhenthemagnetisturnedon
andoff,andthesecangiveoffstrongimpulses.Youmustbecarefultolookforthenetdisplacementafterthehanging
objectsettlesdown.)
Wewantnowtodescribebrieflythemechanismsofthesetwoeffects.First,inmanysubstancestheatomshaveno
permanentmagneticmoments,orrather,allthemagnetswithineachatombalanceoutsothatthenetmomentofthe
atomiszero.Theelectronspinsandorbitalmotionsallexactlybalanceout,sothatanyparticularatomhasno
averagemagneticmoment.Inthesecircumstances,whenyouturnonamagneticfieldlittleextracurrentsare
generatedinsidetheatombyinduction.AccordingtoLenzslaw,thesecurrentsareinsuchadirectionastooppose
theincreasingfield.Sotheinducedmagneticmomentsoftheatomsaredirectedoppositetothemagneticfield.This
isthemechanismofdiamagnetism.
Thentherearesomesubstancesforwhichtheatomsdohaveapermanentmagneticmomentinwhichtheelectron
spinsandorbitshaveanetcirculatingcurrentthatisnotzero.Sobesidesthediamagneticeffect(whichisalways
present),thereisalsothepossibilityoflininguptheindividualatomicmagneticmoments.Inthiscase,themomentstry
tolineupwiththemagneticfield(inthewaythepermanentdipolesofadielectricarelinedupbytheelectricfield),
andtheinducedmagnetismtendstoenhancethemagneticfield.Thesearetheparamagneticsubstances.
Paramagnetismisgenerallyfairlyweakbecausetheliningupforcesarerelativelysmallcomparedwiththeforces
fromthethermalmotionswhichtrytoderangetheorder.Italsofollowsthatparamagnetismisusuallysensitivetothe
temperature.(Theparamagnetismarisingfromthespinsoftheelectronsresponsibleforconductioninametal
constitutesanexception.Wewillnotbediscussingthisphenomenonhere.)Forordinaryparamagnetism,thelower
thetemperature,thestrongertheeffect.Thereismoreliningupatlowtemperatureswhenthederangingeffectsofthe
collisionsareless.Diamagnetism,ontheotherhand,ismoreorlessindependentofthetemperature.Inanysubstance
withbuiltinmagneticmomentsthereisadiamagneticaswellasaparamagneticeffect,buttheparamagneticeffect
usuallydominates.
InChapter11wedescribedaferroelectricmaterial,inwhichalltheelectricdipolesgetlinedupbytheirownmutual
electricfields.Itisalsopossibletoimaginethemagneticanalogofferroelectricity,inwhichalltheatomicmoments
wouldlineupandlocktogether.Ifyoumakecalculationsofhowthisshouldhappen,youwillfindthatbecausethe
magneticforcesaresomuchsmallerthantheelectricforces,thermalmotionsshouldknockoutthisalignmentevenat
temperaturesaslowasafewtenthsofadegreeKelvin.Soitwouldbeimpossibleatroomtemperaturetohaveany
permanentliningupofthemagnets.
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Ontheotherhand,thisisexactlywhatdoeshappeninironitdoesgetlinedup.Thereisaneffectiveforcebetween
themagneticmomentsofthedifferentatomsofironwhichismuch,muchgreaterthanthedirectmagnetic
interaction.Itisanindirecteffectwhichcanbeexplainedonlybyquantummechanics.Itisabouttenthousandtimes
strongerthanthedirectmagneticinteraction,andiswhatlinesupthemomentsinferromagneticmaterials.Wediscuss
thisspecialinteractioninalaterchapter.
Nowthatwehavetriedtogiveyouaqualitativeexplanationofdiamagnetismandparamagnetism,wemustcorrect
ourselvesandsaythatitisnotpossibletounderstandthemagneticeffectsofmaterialsinanyhonestwayfromthe
pointofviewofclassicalphysics.Suchmagneticeffectsareacompletelyquantummechanicalphenomenon.Itis,
however,possibletomakesomephoneyclassicalargumentsandtogetsomeideaofwhatisgoingon.Wemightput
itthisway.Youcanmakesomeclassicalargumentsandgetguessesastothebehaviorofthematerial,butthese
argumentsarenotlegalinanysensebecauseitisabsolutelyessentialthatquantummechanicsbeinvolvedinevery
oneofthesemagneticphenomena.Ontheotherhand,therearesituations,suchasinaplasmaoraregionofspace
withmanyfreeelectrons,wheretheelectronsdoobeythelawsofclassicalmechanics.Andinthosecircumstances,
someofthetheoremsfromclassicalmagnetismareworthwhile.Also,theclassicalargumentsareofsomevaluefor
historicalreasons.Thefirstfewtimesthatpeoplewereabletoguessatthemeaningandbehaviorofmagnetic
materials,theyusedclassicalarguments.Finally,aswehavealreadyillustrated,classicalmechanicscangiveussome
usefulguessesastowhatmighthappeneventhoughthereallyhonestwaytostudythissubjectwouldbetolearn
quantummechanicsfirstandthentounderstandthemagnetismintermsofquantummechanics.
Ontheotherhand,wedontwanttowaituntilwelearnquantummechanicsinsideouttounderstandasimplething
likediamagnetism.Wewillhavetoleanontheclassicalmechanicsaskindofhalfshowingwhathappens,realizing,
however,thattheargumentsarereallynotcorrect.Wethereforemakeaseriesoftheoremsaboutclassical
magnetismthatwillconfuseyoubecausetheywillprovedifferentthings.Exceptforthelasttheorem,everyoneof
themwillbewrong.Furthermore,theywillallbewrongasadescriptionofthephysicalworld,becausequantum
mechanicsisleftout.

342Magneticmomentsandangularmomentum
Thefirsttheoremwewanttoprovefromclassicalmechanicsisthefollowing:Ifanelectronismovinginacircular
orbit(forexample,revolvingaroundanucleusundertheinfluenceofacentralforce),thereisadefiniteratiobetween
themagneticmomentandtheangularmomentum.LetscallJ theangularmomentumandthemagneticmomentof
theelectronintheorbit.Themagnitudeoftheangularmomentumisthemassoftheelectrontimesthevelocitytimes
theradius.(SeeFig.342.)Itisdirectedperpendiculartotheplaneoftheorbit.
J = mvr.

(34.1)

(Thisis,ofcourse,anonrelativisticformula,butitisagoodapproximationforatoms,becausefortheelectrons
involvedv/c isgenerallyoftheorderofe /c 1/137,orabout1percent.)
2

Fig.342.Foranycircularorbitthemagneticmomentisq/2m timestheangularmomentumJ .

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Themagneticmomentofthesameorbitisthecurrenttimesthearea.(SeeSection145.)Thecurrentisthecharge
perunittimewhichpassesanypointontheorbit,namely,thechargeqtimesthefrequencyofrotation.Thefrequency
isthevelocitydividedbythecircumferenceoftheorbitso
v
I = q

.
2r

Theareaisr ,sothemagneticmomentis
2

qvr
=

(34.2)

Itisalsodirectedperpendiculartotheplaneoftheorbit.SoJ andareinthesamedirection:
q
=

J (orbit).

(34.3)

2m

Theirratiodependsneitheronthevelocitynorontheradius.Foranyparticlemovinginacircularorbitthemagnetic
momentisequaltoq/2mtimestheangularmomentum.Foranelectron,thechargeisnegativewecancallitq
soforanelectron
e

qe

J (electron orbit).

(34.4)

2m

Thatswhatwewouldexpectclassicallyand,miraculouslyenough,itisalsotruequantummechanically.Itsoneof
thosethings.However,ifyoukeepgoingwiththeclassicalphysics,youfindotherplaceswhereitgivesthewrong
answers,anditisagreatgametotrytorememberwhichthingsarerightandwhichthingsarewrong.Wemightas
wellgiveyouimmediatelywhatistrueingeneralinquantummechanics.First,Eq.(34.4)istruefororbitalmotion,
butthatsnottheonlymagnetismthatexists.Theelectronalsohasaspinrotationaboutitsownaxis(somethinglike
theearthrotatingonitsaxis),andasaresultofthatspinithasbothanangularmomentumandamagneticmoment.
ButforreasonsthatarepurelyquantummechanicalthereisnoclassicalexplanationtheratiooftoJ forthe
electronspinistwiceaslargeasitisfororbitalmotionofthespinningelectron:
=

qe

J (electron spin).

(34.5)

Inanyatomthereare,generallyspeaking,severalelectronsandsomecombinationofspinandorbitrotationswhich
buildsupatotalangularmomentumandatotalmagneticmoment.Althoughthereisnoclassicalreasonwhyitshould
beso,itisalwaystrueinquantummechanicsthat(foranisolatedatom)thedirectionofthemagneticmomentis
exactlyoppositetothedirectionoftheangularmomentum.Theratioofthetwoisnotnecessarilyeitherq /mor
q /2m,butsomewhereinbetween,becausethereisamixtureofthecontributionsfromtheorbitsandthespins.
Wecanwrite
e

= g(

qe

)J ,

(34.6)

2m

wheregisafactorwhichischaracteristicofthestateoftheatom.Itwouldbe1forapureorbitalmoment,or2for
apurespinmoment,orsomeothernumberinbetweenforacomplicatedsystemlikeanatom.Thisformuladoesnot,
ofcourse,tellusverymuch.Itsaysthatthemagneticmomentisparalleltotheangularmomentum,butcanhaveany
magnitude.TheformofEq.(34.6)isconvenient,however,becausegcalledtheLandgfactorisa
dimensionlessconstantwhosemagnitudeisoftheorderofone.Itisoneofthejobsofquantummechanicstopredict
thegfactorforanyparticularatomicstate.
Youmightalsobeinterestedinwhathappensinnuclei.Innucleithereareprotonsandneutronswhichmaymove
aroundinsomekindoforbitandatthesametime,likeanelectron,haveanintrinsicspin.Againthemagneticmoment
isparalleltotheangularmomentum.Onlynowtheorderofmagnitudeoftheratioofthetwoiswhatyouwould
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expectforaprotongoingaroundinacircle,withminEq.(34.3)equaltotheprotonmass.Thereforeitisusualto
writefornuclei
= g(

qe

)J ,

(34.7)

2mp

wherem isthemassoftheproton,andgcalledthenucleargfactorisanumbernearone,tobedetermined
foreachnucleus.
p

Anotherimportantdifferenceforanucleusisthatthespinmagneticmomentoftheprotondoesnothaveagfactor
of2,astheelectrondoes.Foraproton,g = 2 (2.79).Surprisinglyenough,theneutronalsohasaspinmagnetic
moment,anditsmagneticmomentrelativetoitsangularmomentumis2 (1.91).Theneutron,inotherwords,is
notexactlyneutralinthemagneticsense.Itislikealittlemagnet,andithasthekindofmagneticmomentthata
rotatingnegativechargewouldhave.

343Theprecessionofatomicmagnets
Oneoftheconsequencesofhavingthemagneticmomentproportionaltotheangularmomentumisthatanatomic
magnetplacedinamagneticfieldwillprecess.Firstwewillargueclassically.Supposethatwehavethemagnetic
momentsuspendedfreelyinauniformmagneticfield.Itwillfeelatorque ,equalto B,whichtriestobring
itinlinewiththefielddirection.ButtheatomicmagnetisagyroscopeithastheangularmomentumJ .Therefore
thetorqueduetothemagneticfieldwillnotcausethemagnettolineup.Instead,themagnetwillprecess,aswesaw
whenweanalyzedagyroscopeinChapter20ofVolumeI.Theangularmomentumandwithitthemagnetic
momentprecessesaboutanaxisparalleltothemagneticfield.Wecanfindtherateofprecessionbythesame
methodweusedinChapter20ofthefirstvolume.

Fig.343.AnobjectwithangularmomentumJ andaparallelmagneticmomentplacedinamagneticfieldB
precesseswiththeangularvelocityp .
SupposethatinasmalltimettheangularmomentumchangesfromJ toJ ,asdrawninFig.343,stayingalways
atthesameanglewithrespecttothedirectionofthemagneticfieldB.Letscall theangularvelocityofthe
precession,sothatinthetimettheangleofprecessionis t.Fromthegeometryofthefigure,weseethat
thechangeofangularmomentuminthetimetis

J = (J sin )(p t).

Sotherateofchangeoftheangularmomentumis
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dJ

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dJ
dt

= p J sin ,

(34.8)

whichmustbeequaltothetorque:
= B sin .

(34.9)

Theangularvelocityofprecessionisthen

p =

B.

(34.10)

Substituting/J fromEq.(34.6),weseethatforanatomicsystem
p = g

qe B

(34.11)

2m

theprecessionfrequencyisproportionaltoB.Itishandytorememberthatforanatom(orelectron)
fp =

= (1.4megacycles/gauss)gB,

(34.12)

= (0.76kilocycles/gauss)gB.

(34.13)

andthatforanucleus
p
fp =

(Theformulasforatomsandnucleiaredifferentonlybecauseofthedifferentconventionsforgforthetwocases.)
Accordingtotheclassicaltheory,then,theelectronorbitsandspinsinanatomshouldprecessinamagnetic
field.Isitalsotruequantummechanically?Itisessentiallytrue,butthemeaningoftheprecessionisdifferent.In
quantummechanicsonecannottalkaboutthedirectionoftheangularmomentuminthesamesenseasonedoes
classicallynevertheless,thereisaverycloseanalogysoclosethatwecontinuetocallitprecession.Wewill
discussitlaterwhenwetalkaboutthequantummechanicalpointofview.

344Diamagnetism

Fig.344.Theinducedelectricforcesontheelectronsinanatom.
Nextwewanttolookatdiamagnetismfromtheclassicalpointofview.Itcanbeworkedoutinseveralways,but
oneofthenicewaysisthefollowing.Supposethatweslowlyturnonamagneticfieldinthevicinityofanatom.As
themagneticfieldchangesanelectricfieldisgeneratedbymagneticinduction.FromFaradayslaw,thelineintegral
ofEaroundanyclosedpathistherateofchangeofthemagneticfluxthroughthepath.Supposewepickapath
whichisacircleofradiusrconcentricwiththecenteroftheatom,asshowninFig.344.Theaveragetangential
electricfieldE aroundthispathisgivenby
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d

E2r =

(Br ),
dt

andthereisacirculatingelectricfieldwhosestrengthis
r

dB

dt

E =

Theinducedelectricfieldactingonanelectronintheatomproducesatorqueequaltoq
rateofchangeoftheangularmomentumdJ /dt:
dJ

qe r

=
dt

,whichmustequalthe

e Er

dB
.

(34.14)

dt

Integratingwithrespecttotimefromzerofield,wefindthatthechangeinangularmomentumduetoturningonthe
fieldis
J =

qe r

B.

(34.15)

Thisistheextraangularmomentumfromthetwistgiventotheelectronsasthefieldisturnedon.
Thisaddedangularmomentummakesanextramagneticmomentwhich,becauseitisanorbitalmotion,isjust
q /2mtimestheangularmomentum.Theinduceddiamagneticmomentis
e

qe

J =

2m

qe r

B.

(34.16)

4m

Theminussign(asyoucanseeisrightbyusingLenzslaw)meansthattheaddedmomentisoppositetothe
magneticfield.
WewouldliketowriteEq.(34.16)alittledifferently.Ther whichappearsistheradiusfromanaxisthroughthe
atomparalleltoB,soifBisalongthezdirection,itisx + y .Ifweconsidersphericallysymmetricatoms(or
averageoveratomswiththeirnaturalaxesinalldirections)theaverageofx + y is2/3oftheaverageofthe
squareofthetrueradialdistancefromthecenterpointoftheatom.Itisthereforeusuallymoreconvenienttowrite
Eq.(34.16)as
2

qe

6m

r
2

av B.

(34.17)

Inanycase,wehavefoundaninducedatomicmomentproportionaltothemagneticfieldBandopposingit.Thisis
diamagnetismofmatter.Itisthismagneticeffectthatisresponsibleforthesmallforceonapieceofbismuthina
nonuniformmagneticfield.(Youcouldcomputetheforcebyworkingouttheenergyoftheinducedmomentsinthe
fieldandseeinghowtheenergychangesasthematerialismovedintooroutofthehighfieldregion.)
Wearestillleftwiththeproblem:Whatisthemeansquareradius,r ?Classicalmechanicscannotsupplyan
answer.Wemustgobackandstartoverwithquantummechanics.Inanatomwecannotreallysaywhereanelectron
is,butonlyknowtheprobabilitythatitwillbeatsomeplace.Ifweinterpretr tomeantheaverageofthe
squareofthedistancefromthecenterfortheprobabilitydistribution,thediamagneticmomentgivenbyquantum
mechanicsisjustthesameasformula(34.17).Thisequation,ofcourse,isthemomentforoneelectron.Thetotal
momentisgivenbythesumoveralltheelectronsintheatom.Thesurprisingthingisthattheclassicalargumentand
quantummechanicsgivethesameanswer,although,asweshallsee,theclassicalargumentthatgivesEq.(34.17)is
notreallyvalidinclassicalmechanics.
2

av

av

Thesamediamagneticeffectoccursevenwhenanatomalreadyhasapermanentmoment.Thenthesystemwill
precessinthemagneticfield.Asthewholeatomprecesses,ittakesupanadditionalsmallangularvelocity,andthat
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slowturninggivesasmallcurrentwhichrepresentsacorrectiontothemagneticmoment.Thisisjustthediamagnetic
effectrepresentedinanotherway.Butwedontreallyhavetoworryaboutthatwhenwetalkaboutparamagnetism.
Ifthediamagneticeffectisfirstcomputed,aswehavedonehere,wedonthavetoworryaboutthefactthatthereis
anextralittlecurrentfromtheprecession.Thathasalreadybeenincludedinthediamagneticterm.

345Larmorstheorem
Wecanalreadyconcludesomethingfromourresultssofar.Firstofall,intheclassicaltheorythemomentwas
alwaysproportionaltoJ ,withagivenconstantofproportionalityforaparticularatom.Therewasntanyspinofthe
electrons,andtheconstantofproportionalitywasalwaysq /2mthatistosay,inEq.(34.6)weshouldset
g = 1.TheratiooftoJ wasindependentoftheinternalmotionoftheelectrons.Thus,accordingtotheclassical
theory,allsystemsofelectronswouldprecesswiththesameangularvelocity.(Thisisnottrueinquantum
mechanics.)Thisresultisrelatedtoatheoreminclassicalmechanicsthatwewouldnowliketoprove.Supposewe
haveagroupofelectronswhichareallheldtogetherbyattractiontowardacentralpointastheelectronsare
attractedbyanucleus.Theelectronswillalsobeinteractingwitheachother,andcan,ingeneral,havecomplicated
motions.Supposeyouhavesolvedforthemotionswithnomagneticfieldandthenwanttoknowwhatthemotions
wouldbewithaweakmagneticfield.Thetheoremsaysthatthemotionwithaweakmagneticfieldisalwaysoneof
thenofieldsolutionswithanaddedrotation,abouttheaxisofthefield,withtheangularvelocity = q B/2m.
(Thisisthesameas ,ifg = 1.)Thereare,ofcourse,manypossiblemotions.Thepointisthatforeverymotion
withoutthemagneticfieldthereisacorrespondingmotioninthefield,whichistheoriginalmotionplusauniform
rotation.ThisiscalledLarmorstheorem,and iscalledtheLarmorfrequency.
e

Wewouldliketoshowhowthetheoremcanbeproved,butwewillletyouworkoutthedetails.Take,first,one
electroninacentralforcefield.TheforceonitisjustF (r) ,directedtowardthecenter.Ifwenowturnonauniform
magneticfield,thereisanadditionalforce,qv Bsothetotalforceis
F (r) + qv B.

(34.18)

Nowletslookatthesamesystemfromacoordinatesystemrotatingwithangularvelocityaboutanaxisthrough
thecenterofforceandparalleltoB.Thisisnolongeraninertialsystem,sowehavetoputintheproperpseudo
forcesthecentrifugalandCoriolisforceswetalkedaboutinChapter19ofVolumeI.Wefoundtherethatina
framerotatingwithangularvelocity,thereisanapparenttangentialforceproportionaltov ,theradialcomponent
ofvelocity:
r

Ft = 2mv r .

(34.19)

Andthereisanapparentradialforcewhichisgivenby
2

Fr = m r + 2mv t ,

(34.20)

wherev isthetangentialcomponentofthevelocity,measuredintherotatingframe.(Theradialcomponentv for

rotatingandinertialframesisthesame.)
t

Nowforsmallenoughangularvelocities(thatis,ifr v ),wecanneglectthefirstterm(centrifugal)in
Eq.(34.20)incomparisonwiththesecond(Coriolis).ThenEqs.(34.19)and(34.20)canbewrittentogetheras
t

F = 2m v.

(34.21)

Ifwenowcombinearotationandamagneticfield,wemustaddtheforceinEq.(34.21)tothatinEq.(34.18).The
totalforceis
F (r) + qv B + 2mv

(34.22)

[wereversethecrossproductandthesignofEq.(34.21)togetthelastterm].Lookingatourresult,weseethatif
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2m = qB

thetwotermsontherightcancel,andinthemovingframetheonlyforceisF (r) .Themotionoftheelectronisjust

thesameaswithnomagneticfieldand,ofcourse,norotation.WehaveprovedLarmorstheoremforone
electron.Sincetheproofassumesasmall,italsomeansthatthetheoremistrueonlyforweakmagneticfields.The
onlythingwecouldaskyoutoimproveonistotakethecaseofmanyelectronsmutuallyinteractingwitheachother,
butallinthesamecentralfield,andprovethesametheorem.Sonomatterhowcomplexanatomis,ifithasacentral
fieldthetheoremistrue.Butthatstheendoftheclassicalmechanics,becauseitisnttrueinfactthatthemotions
precessinthatway.Theprecessionfrequency ofEq.(34.11)isonlyequalto ifghappenstobeequalto1.
p

346Classicalphysicsgivesneitherdiamagnetismnorparamagnetism
Nowwewouldliketodemonstratethataccordingtoclassicalmechanicstherecanbenodiamagnetismandno
paramagnetismatall.Itsoundscrazyfirst,wehaveprovedthatthereareparamagnetism,diamagnetism,precessing
orbits,andsoon,andnowwearegoingtoprovethatitisallwrong.Yes!Wearegoingtoprovethatifyoufollow
theclassicalmechanicsfarenough,therearenosuchmagneticeffectstheyallcancelout.Ifyoustartaclassical
argumentinacertainplaceanddontgofarenough,youcangetanyansweryouwant.Buttheonlylegitimateand
correctproofshowsthatthereisnomagneticeffectwhatever.
Itisaconsequenceofclassicalmechanicsthatifyouhaveanykindofsystemagaswithelectrons,protons,and
whateverkeptinaboxsothatthewholethingcantturn,therewillbenomagneticeffect.Itispossibletohavea
magneticeffectifyouhaveanisolatedsystem,likeastarheldtogetherbyitself,whichcanstartrotatingwhenyouput
onthemagneticfield.Butifyouhaveapieceofmaterialthatisheldinplacesothatitcantstartspinning,thenthere
willbenomagneticeffects.Whatwemeanbyholdingdownthespinissummarizedthisway:Atagiventemperature
wesupposethatthereisonlyonestateofthermalequilibrium.Thetheoremthensaysthatifyouturnonamagnetic
fieldandwaitforthesystemtogetintothermalequilibrium,therewillbenoparamagnetismordiamagnetismthere
willbenoinducedmagneticmoment.Proof:Accordingtostatisticalmechanics,theprobabilitythatasystemwillhave
anygivenstateofmotionisproportionaltoe
,whereU istheenergyofthatmotion.Nowwhatistheenergy
ofmotion?Foraparticlemovinginaconstantmagneticfield,theenergyistheordinarypotentialenergyplus
mv /2,withnothingadditionalforthemagneticfield.[Youknowthattheforcesfromelectromagneticfieldsare
q(E + v B) ,andthattherateofworkF visjustqE v ,whichisnotaffectedbythemagneticfield.]Sothe
energyofasystem,whetheritisinamagneticfieldornot,isalwaysgivenbythekineticenergyplusthepotential
energy.Sincetheprobabilityofanymotiondependsonlyontheenergythatis,onthevelocityandpositionitis
thesamewhetherornotthereisamagneticfield.Forthermalequilibrium,therefore,themagneticfieldhasnoeffect.
Ifwehaveonesysteminabox,andthenhaveanothersysteminasecondbox,thistimewithamagneticfield,the
probabilityofanyparticularvelocityatanypointinthefirstboxisthesameasinthesecond.Ifthefirstboxhasno
averagecirculatingcurrent(whichitwillnothaveifitisinequilibriumwiththestationarywalls),thereisnoaverage
magneticmoment.Sinceinthesecondboxallthemotionsarethesame,thereisnoaveragemagneticmomentthere
either.Hence,ifthetemperatureiskeptconstantandthermalequilibriumisreestablishedafterthefieldisturnedon,
therecanbenomagneticmomentinducedbythefieldaccordingtoclassicalmechanics.Wecanonlygeta
satisfactoryunderstandingofmagneticphenomenafromquantummechanics.
U/kT

Unfortunately,wecannotassumethatyouhaveathoroughunderstandingofquantummechanics,sothisishardlythe
placetodiscussthematter.Ontheotherhand,wedontalwayshavetolearnsomethingfirstbylearningtheexact
rulesandthenbylearninghowtheyareappliedindifferentcases.Almosteverysubjectthatwehavetakenupinthis
coursehasbeentreatedinadifferentway.Inthecaseofelectricity,wewrotetheMaxwellequationsonPageOne
andthendeducedalltheconsequences.Thatsoneway.ButwewillnotnowtrytobeginanewPageOne,writing
theequationsofquantummechanicsanddeducingeverythingfromthem.Wewilljusthavetotellyousomeofthe
consequencesofquantummechanics,beforeyoulearnwheretheycomefrom.Soherewego.

347Angularmomentuminquantummechanics
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Wehavealreadygivenyouarelationbetweenthemagneticmomentandtheangularmomentum.Thatspleasant.But
whatdothemagneticmomentandtheangularmomentummeaninquantummechanics?Inquantummechanicsit
turnsouttobebesttodefinethingslikemagneticmomentsintermsoftheotherconceptssuchasenergy,inorderto
makesurethatoneknowswhatitmeans.Now,itiseasytodefineamagneticmomentintermsofenergy,because
theenergyofamomentinamagneticfieldis,intheclassicaltheory, B.Therefore,thefollowingdefinitionhas
beentakeninquantummechanics:Ifwecalculatetheenergyofasysteminamagneticfieldandwefindthatitis
proportionaltothefieldstrength(forsmallfield),thecoefficientiscalledthecomponentofmagneticmomentinthe
directionofthefield.(Wedonthavetogetsoelegantforourworknowwecanstillthinkofthemagneticmomentin
theordinary,tosomeextentclassical,sense.)
Nowwewouldliketodiscusstheideaofangularmomentuminquantummechanicsorrather,thecharacteristicsof
what,inquantummechanics,iscalledangularmomentum.Yousee,whenyougotonewkindsoflaws,youcantjust
assumethateachwordisgoingtomeanexactlythesamething.Youmaythink,say,Oh,Iknowwhatangular
momentumis.Itsthatthingthatischangedbyatorque.Butwhatsatorque?Inquantummechanicswehaveto
havenewdefinitionsofoldquantities.Itwould,therefore,belegallybesttocallitbysomeothernamesuchas
quantangularmomentum,orsomethinglikethat,becauseitistheangularmomentumasdefinedinquantum
mechanics.Butifwecanfindaquantityinquantummechanicswhichisidenticaltoouroldideaofangularmomentum
whenthesystembecomeslargeenough,thereisnouseininventinganextraword.Wemightaswelljustcallit
angularmomentum.Withthatunderstanding,thisoddthingthatweareabouttodescribeisangularmomentum.Itis
thethingwhichinalargesystemwerecognizeasangularmomentuminclassicalmechanics.
First,wetakeasysteminwhichangularmomentumisconserved,suchasanatomallbyitselfinemptyspace.Now
suchathing(liketheearthspinningonitsaxis)could,intheordinarysense,bespinningaroundanyaxisonewished
tochoose.Andforagivenspin,therecouldbemanydifferentstates,allofthesameenergy,eachstate
correspondingtoaparticulardirectionoftheaxisoftheangularmomentum.Sointheclassicaltheory,withagiven
angularmomentum,thereisaninfinitenumberofpossiblestates,allofthesameenergy.
Itturnsoutinquantummechanics,however,thatseveralstrangethingshappen.First,thenumberofstatesinwhich
suchasystemcanexistislimitedthereisonlyafinitenumber.Ifthesystemissmall,thefinitenumberisverysmall,
andifthesystemislarge,thefinitenumbergetsvery,verylarge.Second,wecannotdescribeastatebygivingthe
directionofitsangularmomentum,butonlybygivingthecomponentoftheangularmomentumalongsomedirection
sayinthezdirection.Classically,anobjectwithagiventotalangularmomentumJ couldhave,foritsz
component,anyvaluefrom+J toJ .Butquantummechanically,thezcomponentofangularmomentumcan
haveonlycertaindiscretevalues.Anygivensystemaparticularatom,oranucleus,oranythingwithagiven
energy,hasacharacteristicnumberj,anditszcomponentofangularmomentumcanonlybeoneofthefollowing
setofvalues:
j
(j 1)
(j 2)

(34.23)

(j 2)
(j 1)
j

Thelargestzcomponentisjtimes thenextsmallerisoneunitof less,andsoondowntoj.Thenumberj

iscalledthespinofthesystem.(Somepeoplecallitthetotalangularmomentumquantumnumberbutwellcallit
thespin.)
Youmaybeworriedthatwhatwearesayingcanonlybetrueforsomespecialzaxis.Butthatisnotso.Fora
systemwhosespinisj,thecomponentofangularmomentumalonganyaxiscanhaveonlyoneofthevalues
in(34.23).Althoughitisquitemysterious,weaskyoujusttoacceptitforthemoment.Wewillcomebackand
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discussthepointlater.Youmayatleastbepleasedtohearthatthezcomponentgoesfromsomenumbertominus
thesamenumber,sothatweatleastdonthavetodecidewhichistheplusdirectionofthezaxis.(Certainly,ifwe
saidthatitwentfrom+jtominusadifferentamount,thatwouldbeinfinitelymysterious,becausewewouldnthave
beenabletodefinethezaxis,pointingtheotherway.)
Nowifthezcomponentofangularmomentummustgodownbyintegersfrom+jtoj,thenjmustbeaninteger.
No!Notquitetwicejmustbeaninteger.Itisonlythedifferencebetween+jandjthatmustbeaninteger.So,
ingeneral,thespinjiseitheranintegerorahalfinteger,dependingonwhether2jisevenorodd.Take,for
instance,anucleuslikelithium,whichhasaspinofthreehalves,j = 3/2.Thentheangularmomentumaroundthe
zaxis,inunitsof ,isoneofthefollowing:
+3/2
+1/2
1/2
3/2.

Therearefourpossiblestates,eachofthesameenergy,ifthenucleusisinemptyspacewithnoexternalfields.Ifwe
haveasystemwhosespinistwo,thenthezcomponentofangularmomentumhasonlythevalues,inunitsof ,
2
1
0
1
2.

Ifyoucounthowmanystatesthereareforagivenj,thereare(2j + 1)possibilities.Inotherwords,ifyoutellme
theenergyandalsothespinj,itturnsoutthatthereareexactly(2j + 1)stateswiththatenergy,eachstate
correspondingtooneofthedifferentpossiblevaluesofthezcomponentoftheangularmomentum.
Wewouldliketoaddoneotherfact.Ifyoupickoutanyatomofknownjatrandomandmeasurethezcomponent
oftheangularmomentum,thenyoumaygetanyoneofthepossiblevalues,andeachofthevaluesisequallylikely.
Allofthestatesareinfactsinglestates,andeachisjustasgoodasanyother.Eachonehasthesameweightinthe
world.(Weareassumingthatnothinghasbeendonetosortoutaspecialsample.)Thisfacthas,incidentally,asimple
classicalanalog.Ifyouaskthesamequestionclassically:Whatisthelikelihoodofaparticularzcomponentof
angularmomentumifyoutakearandomsampleofsystems,allwiththesametotalangularmomentum?theanswer
isthatallvaluesfromthemaximumtotheminimumareequallylikely.(Youcaneasilyworkthatout.)Theclassical
resultcorrespondstotheequalprobabilityofthe(2j + 1)possibilitiesinquantummechanics.
Fromwhatwehavesofar,wecangetanotherinterestingandsomewhatsurprisingconclusion.Incertainclassical
calculationsthequantitythatappearsinthefinalresultisthesquareofthemagnitudeoftheangularmomentumJ in
otherwords,J J .Itturnsoutthatitisoftenpossibletoguessatthecorrectquantummechanicalformulabyusing
theclassicalcalculationandthefollowingsimplerule:ReplaceJ = J J byj(j + 1) .Thisruleiscommonly
used,andusuallygivesthecorrectresult,butnotalways.Wecangivethefollowingargumenttoshowwhyyoumight
expectthisruletowork.
2

ThescalarproductJ

canbewrittenas
2

J J = Jx + Jy + Jz .

Sinceitisascalar,itshouldbethesameforanyorientationofthespin.Supposewepicksamplesofanygiven
atomicsystematrandomandmakemeasurementsofJ ,orJ ,orJ ,theaveragevalueshouldbethesamefor
2
x

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2
y

2
z

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each.(Thereisnospecialdistinctionforanyoneofthedirections.)Therefore,theaverageofJ
threetimestheaverageofanycomponentsquared,sayofJ

isjustequalto

2
z

ButsinceJ

av

= 3 Jz

av .

isthesameforallorientations,itsaverageis,ofcourse,justitsconstantvaluewehave

J J = 3 Jz

av .

(34.24)

Ifwenowsaythatwewillusethesameequationforquantummechanics,wecaneasilyfindJ .Wejusthave
totakethesumofthe(2j + 1)possiblevaluesofJ ,anddividebythetotalnumber
2
z

av

2
z

J
2
z

+ (j 1)

+ + (j + 1)

+ (j)

av

(34.25)

2j + 1

Forasystemwithaspinof3/2,itgoeslikethis:

2
Jz

(3/2)
av

+ (1/2)

+ (1/2)

+ (3/2)

5
=

.
4

Weconcludethat

J J = 3 Jz

av

= 3

5
4

3
2

3
2

+ 1) .

WewillleaveitforyoutoshowthatEq.(34.25),togetherwithEq.(34.24),givesthegeneralresult
2

J J = j(j + 1) .

(34.26)

AlthoughwewouldthinkclassicallythatthelargestpossiblevalueofthezcomponentofJ isjustthemagnitudeof

J namely, J J quantummechanicallythemaximumofJ isalwaysalittlelessthanthat,becausej is

alwayslessthanj(j + 1) .Theangularmomentumisnevercompletelyalongthezdirection.
z

348Themagneticenergyofatoms
Nowwewanttotalkagainaboutthemagneticmoment.Wehavesaidthatinquantummechanicsthemagnetic
momentofaparticularatomicsystemcanbewrittenintermsoftheangularmomentumbyEq.(34.6)
= g(

qe

)J ,

(34.27)

2m

whereq andmarethechargeandmassoftheelectron.
e

Anatomicmagnetplacedinanexternalmagneticfieldwillhaveanextramagneticenergywhichdependsonthe
componentofitsmagneticmomentalongthefielddirection.Weknowthat
Umag = B.

(34.28)

Umag = z B.

(34.29)

ChoosingourzaxisalongthedirectionofB,

UsingEq.(34.27),wehavethat
Umag = g(

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qe
2m

)Jz B.

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QuantummechanicssaysthatJ canhaveonlycertainvalues:j ,(j 1),,j.Therefore,themagnetic

energyofanatomicsystemisnotarbitraryitcanhaveonlycertainvalues.Itsmaximumvalue,forinstance,is
z

g(

qe

)jB.

2m

Thequantityq

isusuallygiventhenametheBohrmagnetonandwritten :

e /2m

B =

qe

2m

Thepossiblevaluesofthemagneticenergyare
Umag = g B B

whereJ

z /

Jz

takesonthepossiblevaluesj,(j 1),(j 2),,(j + 1) ,j.

Inotherwords,theenergyofanatomicsystemischangedwhenitisputinamagneticfieldbyanamountthatis
proportionaltothefield,andproportionaltoJ .Wesaythattheenergyofanatomicsystemissplitinto
2j + 1 levelsbyamagneticfield.Forinstance,anatomwhoseenergyisU outsideamagneticfieldandwhosej
is3/2,willhavefourpossibleenergieswhenplacedinafield.Wecanshowtheseenergiesbyanenergylevel
diagramlikethatdrawninFig.345.Anyparticularatomcanhaveonlyoneofthefourpossibleenergiesinanygiven
fieldB.Thatiswhatquantummechanicssaysaboutthebehaviorofanatomicsysteminamagneticfield.
z

Fig.345.Thepossiblemagneticenergiesofanatomicsystemwithaspinof3/2 inamagneticfiledB.
Thesimplestatomicsystemisasingleelectron.Thespinofanelectronis1/2,sotherearetwopossiblestates:
J = /2andJ = /2 .Foranelectron,atrest(noorbitalmotion),thespinmagneticmomenthasagvalue
of2,sothemagneticenergycanbeeither B.ThepossibleenergiesinamagneticfieldareshowninFig.346.
Speakinglooselywesaythattheelectroneitherhasitsspinup(alongthefield)ordown(oppositethefield).
z

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Fig.346.ThetwopossibleenergystatesofanelectroninamagneticfieldB.
Forsystemswithhigherspins,therearemorestates.Wecanthinkthatthespinisupordownorcockedatsome
angleinbetween,dependingonthevalueofJ .
z

Wewillusethesequantummechanicalresultstodiscussthemagneticpropertiesofmaterialsinthenextchapter.
Copyright1964,2006,2013bytheCaliforniaInstituteofTechnology,
MichaelA.Gottlieb,andRudolfPfeiffer

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