physics

National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

National High Magnetic Field Laboratory is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand National High Magnetic Field Laboratory rather than just read about it. In short: The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (MagLab) is a facility at Florida State University, the University of Florida, and Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, that performs magnetic field research in physics, biology, bioengineering, chemistry, geochemistry, and biochemistry. It is the only such facility in the US, and is among twelve high magnetic facilities worldwide.

Key takeaways

National High Magnetic Field Laboratory belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect National High Magnetic Field Laboratory to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of National High Magnetic Field Laboratory from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (MagLab) is a facility at Florida State University, the University of Florida, and Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, that performs magnetic field research in physics, biology, bioengineering, chemistry, geochemistry, and biochemistry. It is the only such facility in the US, and is among twelve high magnetic facilities worldwide. The lab is supported by the National Science Foundation and the state of Florida, and works in collaboration with private industry. The facility also includes the DC Magnet building and the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance building. The lab holds several world records for the world's strongest magnets, including highest magnetic field of 45.5 tesla. For nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy experiments, its 33-short-ton (29-long-ton; 30 t) series connected hybrid (SCH) magnet broke the record during a series of tests conducted by MagLab engineers and scientists on 15 November 2016, reaching its full field of 36 tesla.

History

Proposal and award In 1989, Florida State University (FSU), Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the University of Florida submitted a proposal to the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a new national laboratory supporting interdisciplinary research in high magnetic fields. The plan proposed a federal-state partnership serving magnet-related research, science and technology education, and partnering industry. The goal was to maintain the competitive position of the US in magnet-related research and development. Following a peer-review competition, the NSF approved the FSU-led consortium's proposal.

Competing proposal by MIT In a competing proposal to the NSF, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with the University of Iowa, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and Argonne National Laboratory, had suggested improving the existing world-class Francis Bitter Magnet Laboratory at MIT. On September 5, 1990, MIT researchers asked the 21 members of the National Science Board (NSB) to "review and reconsider" its decision. With $60 million at stake in the NSF grant, MIT stated it would phase out the Francis Bitter Lab if it lost its appeal, the first of its kind in NSF history. The request was turned down September 18, 1990.

Early years The laboratory's early years were spent establishing infrastructure, building the facility, and recruiting faculty. The Tallahassee complex was dedicated on October 1, 1994, to a large crowd, with keynote speaker Vice President Al Gore.

Folk legend A scientifically unsupported folk legend and popular joke among Tallahassee residents is that the magnetic lab shields Tallahassee from hurricanes and from inclement weather in general.

Mission The lab's mission, as set forth by the NSF, is: "To provide the highest magnetic fields and necessary services for scientific research conducted by users from a wide range of disciplines, including physics, chemistry, materials science, engineering, biology and geology." The lab focuses on four objectives:

Develop user facilities and services for magnet-related research, open to all qualified scientists and engineers Advance magnet technology in cooperation with industry Promote a multidisciplinary research environment and administer in-house research program that uses and advances the facilities Develop an educational outreach program

Education and public outreach The National MagLab promotes science education and supports science, engineering, and science teachers through its Center for Integrating Research and Learning. Programs include mentorships in an interdisciplinary learning environment. Through the Magnet Academy, the lab's website provides educational content on electricity and magnetism. The National MagLab also conducts monthly tours open to the public, and hosts an annual open house with about 10,000 attendees. Special tour and outreach opportunities are also available to local schools. In an interview on Skepticality, Dr. Scott Hannahs said, "If you come by on the third Saturday in February I believe we have an open house and we have tesla coils shooting sparks and we melt rocks in the geochemistry group and we measure the speed of sound and we have lasers and potato launchers and we just have all sorts of things showing little scientific principles and stuff. We get together and we have about 5,000 people show up to come and tour a physics lab which is a pretty amazing group of people."

Programs

Florida State University programs The Tallahassee laboratory at Florida State University is a 370,000 sq ft (34,000 m2) complex and has approximately 300 faculty, staff, graduate, and postdoctoral students. Its director is physicist Kathleen Amm. Its chief scientist is Laura Greene.

DC field program The facility contains 14 resistive magnet cells connected to a 48 megawatt DC power supply and 15,000 square feet (1,400 m2) of cooling equipment to remove the heat generated by the magnets. The facility houses several magnets, including a 45 tesla hybrid magnet, which combines resistive and superconducting magnets. The lab's 41.4 tesla resistive magnet is the strongest DC (continuous-field) resistive magnet in the world, and the 25 Tesla Keck magnet has the highest homogeneity of any resistive magnet.

NMR spectroscopy and imaging This program serves a broad user base in solution and solid state NMR spectroscopy and MRI and diffusion measurements at high magnetic field strengths. The lab develops technology, methodology, and applications at high magnetic fields through both in-house and external user activities. An in-house made 900 MHz (21.1 tesla) NMR magnet has an ultra-wide bore measuring 105 mm (about 4 inches) in diameter, this superconducting magnet has the highest field for MRI study of a living animals.

Ion cyclotron resonance The Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry program is involved in instrument and technique development and applications of FT-ICR mass spectrometry. Under the leadership of director Alan G. Marshall, the program continuously develops techniques and instruments and applications of FT-ICR mass spectrometry. The program has several instruments, including a 14.5 tesla, 104 mm bore system.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what National High Magnetic Field Laboratory claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to National High Magnetic Field Laboratory before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about National High Magnetic Field Laboratory ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

In research: National High Magnetic Field Laboratory appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: National High Magnetic Field Laboratory is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1994 establishments in Florida, Florida State University buildings and structures, National Science Foundation, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for National High Magnetic Field Laboratory outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what National High Magnetic Field Laboratory means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain National High Magnetic Field Laboratory out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in simple terms?

Why does National High Magnetic Field Laboratory matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study National High Magnetic Field Laboratory?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on National High Magnetic Field Laboratory.