Re: How can neutrons have magnetism if they have no electricity?

Radium wrote:
Hi:

If all magnetism is electrical in origin, then how can a neutron --
being a completely non-electric entity -- have any magnetism at all?

The neutron, as a particle, has zero charge, but that doesn't make it a
completely "non-electric entity". The neutron does have zero electric
charge and a non-zero magnetic moment, that is a measurable fact.

In analogy with atoms, which are also electrically neutral and also
have non-trivial magnetic moments, this property suggests that the
neutron is a composite particle. In fact the Standard Model of particle
physics posits that the neutron is composed of three quarks (two down,
one up). Their charges add up to zero, however their intrinsic spins
(which are half integral) can never add up to zero. Whenever an odd
number of fermions (particles with half integral intrinsic spin) form a
bound system, there must always be a residual total spin, and hence a
non-zero magnetic moment. You may take this as a theoretical
explanation.

Hope this helps.

Igor

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