StumbleUpon Video. Video. StumbleUpon Video. StumbleUpon Video. Record breaking magnet operates at 500,000x Earth's magnetic field. As kids we all got to play with magnets in school and feel the force of them repelling or attracting each other. Ever wonder what would happen if you scaled those forces up with increasingly more powerful magnets? Scientists did, and the latest so-called split magnet operates at 25 tesla, or 500,000 times the Earth’s magnetic field. But that belies the true force at work here because it is concentrated in such a small area.
A split magnet is two very powerful magnets brought close together but are not allowed to touch. The problem with split magnets until now is the holes left in them for inserting equipment have been very small. If you are a technology geek this is great news as these experiments could now lead to advancements in semiconductors, or the production of higher efficiency solar cells. The team that developed the new split magnet at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory said they had to overcome a number of obstacles to create such a powerful device.