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Can plasma under ANY circumstances get attracted to a magnet? y/n If so, then under what circumstances?

Max
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    related https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/238361/ – anna v May 24 '17 at 17:48
  • Charged particles in a magnetic field obey the Lorentz force. The Earth is basically a big dipole bar magnet and particles respond to its field just as you would expect from the Lorentz force. It's not really that particles are "attracted" to a magnetic like iron filings. They respond to it because it applies a force, but the force is orthogonal to both the field and the particle velocity. – honeste_vivere May 25 '17 at 12:54

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The particles in a plasma can have a magnetic dipole moment (nuclear or electronic). A magnetic dipole experiences a force in a diverging magnetic field.

So the short answer appears to be "yes" - in a diverging field, a plasma will experience some attraction.

Whether that force is ever stronger than the other forces in the plasma is not something that can easily be answered - but then you didn't ask.

Floris
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