Superparamagnetic Materials
Superparamagnetic materials are a type of magnetic material that exhibit unique properties at the nanoscale. Unlike traditional magnets, which can retain their magnetization, superparamagnetic materials do not have a permanent magnetic moment. Instead, their magnetization can change rapidly in response to an external magnetic field, making them useful in various applications, such as in magnetic nanoparticles for drug delivery and data storage.
These materials typically consist of small magnetic particles that are below a certain size, usually around 20 nanometers. At this scale, thermal energy can cause the magnetic moments of the particles to flip direction randomly, leading to a lack of net magnetization in the absence of an external field. This behavior is crucial for applications in biomedical imaging and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).