Interactions between single domain particles

Abstract
We present a variation of the Wohlfarth–Henkel technique for studying interactions in single domain particles (SDPs) in which samples are prepared in different remanent states before the remanent magnetization curves are measured. By analyzing the resulting series of switching field distributions (SFDs), it is possible to separate the effects of positive (magnetizing) and negative (demagnetizing) interactions, even when one type dominates the other. The method is applied to two types of samples consisting of uniform SPDs of magnetite produced by magnetotactic bacteria: (1) whole bacterial cells containing single, linear chains of SDPs; and (2) SDPs extracted from the cells and allowed to aggregate into clumps.This work was partially supported by ONR Grant No. NO01489-J-1355. This is contribution 9307 of the Institute for Rock Magnetism. The Institute for Rock Magnetism is supported by grants from the Keck Foundation and the National Science Foundation