Justin and I conducted an experiment to make a magnetic field using nothing but a battery, copper wire, some paper clips and a singular small magnet.

To create the magnetic field we taped the magnet atop of the battery and attached a paper clip to either side of the battery, the positive and negative ends. We then placed the copper wire in between the two paper clips to make a sort of bridge and close the circuit. This allows electrons to pass through. We noticed that the copper wire began to spin rather quickly as we put it through the paper clips.

The spinning occurs due to both the current and the magnet. The magnet creates a magnetic field with both a positive and negative side. The battery has a positive and negative side as well. As the electrons flow through the copper wire they enter the magnetic field and depending where in the field they are they will either be repulsed or attracted. As one side of the wire is repulsed and the other attracted it spins in a circular motion. The higher volt battery you have the faster it will spin.

Below we have a video of our experiment:

IMG_2572