Diamagnetic Levitation with Pyrolytic Graphite - $20 How-To 

+dieselphiend Yes I believe this is possible, and I think you can find some videos on RU-vid showing Halbach array tracks. However, I doubt you could propel it with a "normal" power laser beam, as the friction of the air would still dominate.

I did this many many years ago and you can use a larger square the corners of mine nearly reached the edge of the magnets and it floats higher too! BUT I did have the cubes and 0.5" and also used about 1/8 inch spacers in between the cubes.

As far as turning corners, you could build a circular track in the shape of the inside of a torus (donut). At low speeds, the graphite would float above the bottom of the track, and as the velocity increases it will "ride up" the outside of the track due to centrifugal force. Would be very cool to see in action. It would have to be pretty large area compared to the size of the magnets, unless you could get custom shaped magnets...

Bismuth is the most diamagnetic of all metals, but it still more weakly diamagnetic than pyrolytic graphite. It is also quite a bit denser. So, a piece of bismuth of the same thickness would levitate much less, if at all, due to it's much higher weight. I have another apparatus that levitates a small magnet between chunks of bismuth, but it requires a large upper magnet, carefully adjusted to cancel the force of gravity. The weak diamagnetic effects of the chunks of bismuth merely help to "stabilize" the small magnet in this zone.

thanks!

Lance Roark g

courtesy of overwrought productions

Behold the moaning comment without a helpfull timestamp

@@shaunlastname391 damn

@@lanceroark6386 😂

The theory is a bit dense, but essentially, the object falling toward the magnet creates a changing magnetic field in the object, which affects electron orbitals, inducing a corresponding current in them, which repels the external magnetic field. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamagnetism#Theory

Good question. I've not heard about graphite as a superconductor, but carbon nanotubes can be, so there may be some effect. Unfortunately I don't have access to any liquid nitrogen (or liquid helium!) to try it... :(

Interesting question. I don't have any graphite dust handy, but I would imagine that it would collect at the null points of magnetic flux (where the corners of the magnets come together), and avoid the center of each magnet's face.

Bismuth is the most diamagnetic of all metals, but it still more weakly diamagnetic than pyrolytic graphite. It is also quite a bit denser. So, a piece of bismuth of the same thickness would levitate much less, if at all, due to it's much higher weight. I have another apparatus that levitates a small magnet between chunks of bismuth, but it requires a large upper magnet, carefully adjusted to cancel the force of gravity. The weak diamagnetic effects of the chunks of bismuth merely help to "stabilize" the small magnet in this zone.

Kevin Patterson what if you draw with a pencil on a tiny paper square on both sides and see if it floats. 🤔✏️

The diamagnetic fields of these types of materials are so weak that I doubt it could be useful for suspending the weight of a car. Using a _much_ more powerful magnet beneath would also have the effect of magnetically attracting the steel of the car (pulling it down). Also, you should realize that these "floating" diamagnetic objects don't _weigh less_. They weigh the same as if they were not floating; the magnetic field "holds them up". In other words, if my magnets weigh 10g and my graphite weighs 1g, if I put the magnets on a scale and float the graphite above them, the scale will read 11g. So your car wouldn't weigh any less. The magnetic field is like an invisible spring, a lot like the regular springs in a car's suspension.

Good points. I tend to think eventually someone will figure out a way to do the anti-gravity or anti-grav support mechanisms. Vehicles will need to be of a non-magnetic metal or composite.

I'm not aware of any current or proposed technology that can actually manipulate gravity (other than moving large amounts of mass around, lol), but if anyone ever discovers a way, it will definitely be a total game-changer. NASA is supposedly experimenting with RF resonant cavity thrusters ("EmDrive"), which theoretically could be used to provide hovering thrust even on Earth's surface (not actually reducing the mass or gravitational pull on the vehicle, though). The Alcubierre drive is a proposed type of "warp" drive for theoretical faster-than-light travel, which might be possibly used for gravitational side-effects...

@@kevpatt you could use the dirigible technologies for that but you might have to ask the USA to undo the 1937 helium control act so you can actually use it

for every action a reaction if a magnet push its pushes if it pulls it pulls but it cant make it disappear you can take the contact out of a bearing though

🤔

yes it does

becauuuuuusseeeeee duuuuuuuuuudddee ;)