Measuring the Permeability of Vacuum Using a Smartphone

Abstract

[EN] The paper offers a few activities for high school students which use the magnetometer of a smartphone to measure the value of magnetic fields. The first part of the paper deals with finding the magnetometer of the used smartphone. Following is the first selection of activities which are focused on discovering the equation for measuring the magnetic field of coil with a negligible length, while the second selection of activities use the discovered equation to measure the permeability of vacuum and finally to measure the magnetic field of the earth. Sample results of the experiments are given, showing the accuracy and effectiveness of the conducted experiments. The activities offer teachers a novel way for teaching the equation for calculating the magnetic field of a coil, as well as measuring the permeability of vacuum in a classroom environment.