Lesson 14.
Magnetic Properties
of Atoms Based on
Electron
Configuration
General Chemistry 1
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Scientists have
discovered that
different objects
possess magnetic
properties and this
discovery allowed
them to study
interactions of
materials.
2
What are the magnetic
properties of different
materials?
3
Learning Competency
At the end of the lesson, you should be
able to:
● Determine the magnetic property of the
atom based on its electronic
configuration (STEM_GC11ES-IIa-b-57).
4
Learning Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be
able to:
● Differentiate between ferromagnetism,
paramagnetism, and diamagnetism.
● Predict the magnetic property of an atom
based on its electron configuration.
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Magnetic Properties
Magnetic field is responsible for the forces in
magnets.
The alignment of magnetic fields will dictate whether
two magnets are attracted to or repelled from one
another.
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Magnetic Properties
● When opposite poles of a
magnet line up, the result is
attraction.
● When two similar poles of a
magnet line up, the result is
repulsion.
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Magnetic Properties
Magnetic moment is a measure of the strength
and orientation of magnetic field.
● For spinning charges that generate a magnetic
field, the magnetic moment is usually referred to
as the magnetic dipole moment.
● Therefore, the spinning of an electron in an
orbital generates an electron magnetic dipole
moment.
8
Magnetic Properties
● The magnetic properties of substances can be
classified as diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and
ferromagnetic.
● Atoms, since they contain electrons, have their
own magnetic moment.
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Magnetic Properties
The magnetic moment of an atom is determined by
the sum of all magnetic moments of electrons, which
may lead to two possibilities:
10
Magnetic Properties
● The magnetic moments of all electrons are
oriented in such a way that they cancel out each
other, leaving no magnetic moment which results
to diamagnetism.
● The magnetic moments of electrons do not cancel
which can lead to paramagnetism or
ferromagnetism.
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Magnetic Properties
Diamagnetism
Atoms with fully filled energy levels and sublevels
usually have highly oriented moments that cancel
each other out. This usually occurs in elements with
even number of electrons.
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Magnetic Properties
Diamagnetism
When two electrons have opposite spins, they
generate opposite moments that when added
together cancel each other out. This results to
diamagnetism.
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Magnetic Properties
Diamagnetism
● Without magnetic
field, the atom has no
net magnetic moment,
so there is no
movement.
● With magnetic field,
the movement of the
atom aligns with the
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Magnetic Properties
Paramagnetism
● An atom goes to a state of paramagnetism
when partially-filled orbitals generate a net
magnetic moment due to the existence of an
unpaired electron.
● The magnetic moment of electrons with the
same spin will add up, producing a net magnetic
moment that can be affected by a magnetic
field.
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Magnetic Properties
Take oxygen as an example. The orbital diagram of
oxygen is
Oxygen has two unpaired electrons with parallel
spins. These electrons will generate a net moment
that is strong enough to align with a strong
magnetic field. This will cause oxygen to be
attracted to magnets.
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Magnetic Properties
Paramagnetism
● Paramagnetic atoms
generally have a net
moment directed in
different directions.
● When magnetic field is
applied, the magnetic
moments will align
themselves in the
direction of the magnetic 17
How can you predict the
magnetic property of a
material from its electron
configuration?
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Magnetic Properties
Ferromagnetism
● Ferromagnetism is a special case of
paramagnetism
● Elements that exhibit ferromagnetism have their
magnetic fields.
● Examples of ferromagnets include iron, copper,
and nickel
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Magnetic Properties
Ferromagnetism
● Electrons in ferromagnetic element have atoms
are grouped into small domains that have the
same charge.
● In the absence of magnetic field, these domains
are oriented randomly which results to a net
magnetic moment of zero.
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Magnetic Properties
Ferromagnetism
● However, strong magnetic field orients these
domains in the same direction as the magnetic
field.
● Repeated and long exposures of these
substances to strong external magnetic fields
allow them to retain the alignment even if the
external magnetic field is removed resulting in
the substance to possess a permanent magnetic
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Magnetic Properties
In order to determine if an atom is diamagnetic or
paramagnetic, follow the following steps:
● Determine the electron configuration.
● Draw the orbital diagram.
● Identify if there are any unpaired electrons.
● Identify if the material is paramagnetic or
diamagnetic.
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Check Your
Understanding
Identify the following:
1. The strength and orientation of a magnetic field
can be measured by its _________________________.
2. The behavior of an atom where it exhibits no net
magnetic moment and is repelled in the presence
of an external magnetic field.
3. A special magnetic behavior where long and
frequent exposures to strong magnetic fields create
a permanent magnetic moment. 23
Check Your
Understanding
Fill up the table by writing its electron
configuration, drawing its orbital diagram, and
determining if it is diamagnetic or
paramagnetic.
electron
configuration
V orbital
diagram
magnetism
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Let’s Sum It Up!
● Each electron in an atom that spins on its axis
creates a magnetic moment in an atom.
The sum of the magnetic moment of each
electron gives the total magnetic moment of
an atom, which defines the magnetic
properties of that atom.
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Let’s Sum It Up!
● Diamagnetism is a behavior of an atom
where it generates no magnetic moment
because all the orbitals inside the atom are
completely filled. In the presence of an
external magnetic field, magnetic moments
don’t align resulting in a weak repulsion.
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Let’s Sum It Up!
● Paramagnetism is a behavior of an atom
where it has a net magnetic moment due to
the presence of orbitals with unpaired
electrons. The net magnetic moment of the
atom aligns with an external magnetic field
resulting in a weak attraction.
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Let’s Sum It Up!
● Ferromagnetism is a special case of
paramagnetism where there is a large net
moment. Long exposures of ferromagnetic
substances to strong external magnetic fields
can generate a permanent magnet.
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Challenge Yourself
Copper is a diamagnetic element
even though it has one unpaired
electron. Explain.
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Photo Credit Bibliography
Brown, Theodore L., John H. Nelson, Matthew Stoltzfus,
Kenneth C. Kemp, Michael Lufaso, and Theodore L.
Slide 2:
Levitation of a magnet on top of a superconductor 2 by Brown. Chemistry: The Central Science. Harlow,
Julien Bobroff is licensed under CC-BY SA 3.0 via Essex: Pearson Education Limited, 2016.
Wikimedia Commons.
Chang, Raymond, and Kenneth Goldsby. General
Chemistry: The Essential Concepts. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2014.
Cracolice, Mark S., and Edward I. Peters. Introductory
Chemistry: An Active Learning Approach. Belmont,
CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning, 2011.
Cullity, B. D., and C. D. Graham. Introduction to Magnetic
Materials. Hoboken, NJ: IEEE/Wiley, 2009.
McMurry, John. Chemistry. Boston: Prentice-Hall, 2012.
Silberberg, Martin S. Principles of General Chemistry.
New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2013. 30
