Gold, a precious metal that has been valued by civilizations throughout history, is often used in coins, jewelry, and various forms of decoration. But have you ever wondered if gold is magnetic? The simple answer is no, but there’s more to the story than just that. Let’s delve into the magnetism of this precious metal and explore why it behaves the way it does.
Can Gold Stick to a Magnet?
Pure gold, in its natural form, cannot stick to a magnet. However, if you have an alloy of gold, it could potentially stick to a magnet. For instance, if over 20% of the atoms in a gold item are replaced by iron, this alloy of gold may stick to a magnet, especially in very cold temperatures.
Gold jewelry of different karats, such as 18k gold, 14k gold, 10k gold, and even white gold, can be magnetic depending on the alloys, or metals combined with gold, used. If you suspect your gold coins or jewelry are pure gold, you can test them by seeing if they are magnetic. If they stick to another metal, there’s a good chance your gold item isn’t pure gold. Instead, it may have iron or nickel inside of it. However, keep in mind that even if an item isn’t magnetic, it still may not be pure gold. You may have a piece made of copper, lead, or aluminum with a gold coating.
Can You Make Gold Magnetic?
While pure gold is not inherently magnetic, it can become slightly magnetic when placed in a strong magnetic field. However, such strong magnetic fields are not typically encountered in our everyday lives, so it’s safe to say that pure gold is not magnetic under normal circumstances.
Why Do Jewelers Add Other Metals to Gold?
Pure gold is a soft and malleable metal. To make the jewelry more durable, harder, and less likely to bend and scratch, jewelers often mix other precious metals with it. They may also mix other metals such as platinum, copper, or nickel to give the piece of jewelry a different color.
What Kind of Metals Are Magnetic?
When certain metals are combined with gold, they may make the piece (gold jewelry or gold bullion/nugget) magnetic. These metals include cobalt, iron, nickel, neodymium, samarium, and gadolinium. These metals have various uses in industries ranging from aircraft engine parts, batteries, coloring for ceramics and glasses, to electronic components, magnets, and data storage disks.
What Kind of Metals Are Not Magnetic?
In their pure, natural forms, gold, silver, aluminum, copper, brass, and lead are not magnetic. These are considered weak metals. However, adding iron or steel to these metals can make them stronger and magnetic. These metals are often used in coins, jewelry, electronics, dentistry, aerospace, awards, kitchen utensils, foils, beer kegs, window frames, airplane parts, and even musical instruments.
How Do Metal Detectors Find Gold?
Since gold is not magnetic in its pure form, you may wonder how a metal detector finds it. Not every type of metal detector can find gold. If your metal detector runs at lower frequencies, it may not find gold due to its low conductivity. However, metal detectors with a high frequency may be able to find gold because gold has better conductivity with high-frequency waves. Multi-frequency and PI-type metal detectors, although quite expensive, are the best for finding gold.
How Do Magnets Work?
The science of magnets is a bit complicated, but to put it simply, a magnet is an object that attracts iron and other materials. A magnet can generate a magnetic field around itself. Magnets have two poles, referred to as the north and south poles. These two poles exert forces on each other. Poles that are the same repel each other, while poles that are different attract. When two metals stick together, this means they have different poles.
In conclusion, while pure gold is not magnetic, it can become slightly magnetic under certain conditions, and gold alloys can indeed be magnetic. This knowledge can be useful when trying to determine the purity of gold items. However, remember that a lack of magnetism does not necessarily mean an item is pure gold, as it could be another non-magnetic metal with a gold coating.