Hi,
Due a shopping travel wonder if a airport X Ray scan can damage a Alnico or Neodymium magnet?
Thanks
Due a shopping travel wonder if a airport X Ray scan can damage a Alnico or Neodymium magnet?
Thanks
Since they don't seem to damage the magnets in HDDs, which are neodymium, I bet they wouldn't harm neo drivers. I doubt alnico would be anything to worry about, either.
I'm a scientist who has does occasionally X-Ray metal, and no, it's not going to hurt it one bit.
> X Ray scan can damage a ...magnet?
Google has answers, many very sensible.
In short, as said: a magnet is too "solid" to be the least affected by scan X-rays, anything short of the focus of a fusion reactor.
I wondered if the magnet would freak-out the X-ray machine. *Inside*, the X-ray machine is a thermionic electron diode. Magnet very close could maybe shift the electrons off-beam and reduce output. But you are unlikely to be that close to the highly shielded X-ray tube. Even at close distances, no horrible ill-effect is normally seen in guitar amps with speaker magnets practically against electron tubes.
Can a magnet screw-up the X-ray image? No, or the effect is very-very-very small, as reported in an elaborate 1922 experiment: Phys. Rev. 20, 134 (1922) - The Effect of the Magnetic Field on the Absorption of X-Rays
And of course if your magnet makes psychedelic swirls on the scan, they will just tear your luggage apart. (I had wind-chimes in a suitcase but on X-ray they looked like shotgun barrels....)
But call your airline. Magnets may be prohibited!! They often can not go by air-freight. I suppose the reason is the Magnetic Compass. While aircraft today mostly steer by dead-reckoning and GPS and approach beams, they may still have a compass for fall-back. (But then so should the ships that bring magnets here from overseas?)
Google has answers, many very sensible.
In short, as said: a magnet is too "solid" to be the least affected by scan X-rays, anything short of the focus of a fusion reactor.
I wondered if the magnet would freak-out the X-ray machine. *Inside*, the X-ray machine is a thermionic electron diode. Magnet very close could maybe shift the electrons off-beam and reduce output. But you are unlikely to be that close to the highly shielded X-ray tube. Even at close distances, no horrible ill-effect is normally seen in guitar amps with speaker magnets practically against electron tubes.
Can a magnet screw-up the X-ray image? No, or the effect is very-very-very small, as reported in an elaborate 1922 experiment: Phys. Rev. 20, 134 (1922) - The Effect of the Magnetic Field on the Absorption of X-Rays
And of course if your magnet makes psychedelic swirls on the scan, they will just tear your luggage apart. (I had wind-chimes in a suitcase but on X-ray they looked like shotgun barrels....)
But call your airline. Magnets may be prohibited!! They often can not go by air-freight. I suppose the reason is the Magnetic Compass. While aircraft today mostly steer by dead-reckoning and GPS and approach beams, they may still have a compass for fall-back. (But then so should the ships that bring magnets here from overseas?)
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Compass in an airliner is more likely to be inertial or gyro than plain old magnets. Not really bothered by magnets in the hold.
Even so, airlines' regulations may vary on transportation of magnetic materials -so it never hurts to check first - particularly on international flights where you might be changing between connecting carriers - for example, QANTAS :
Magnetic Material
Any item that can cause more than a 2 degree swing on a compass is not permitted as passenger baggage.
Requirements
Magnetic Material
Any item that can cause more than a 2 degree swing on a compass is not permitted as passenger baggage.
Requirements
- place the package on the ground (by itself) and orientate it East/West
- hold a compass at least 2m from the surface of the package
- ensure magnet does not make the needle on the compass move more than 2 degrees
Remembering over 20 years ago ones going to the airport, had a camera in the cabin luggage bag which was an old style film roll loaded camera, arriving at the x-ray machines I thought the x-ray might damage the film so I was going to unzip my bag while the security team suddenly got a bit warry there as if I was going to pull up an Uzi. 😀
Well, everything went well as I explained what I was going to do and was told the x-ray machines are safe to film cameras.
Well, everything went well as I explained what I was going to do and was told the x-ray machines are safe to film cameras.
X and Gamma rays don’t affect magnetic properties of magnets.
A magnet outside of the metal enclosure of an x-ray generating tube can’t affect the operation of the vacuum tube inside.
Commercial airplanes still have magnetic sensors used for navigation. They are called “flux valves”. They are located the furthest away from the fuselage, usually close to the wing tips.
They are not affected by a few magnets inside the fuselage, although they are very sensitive to a local magnetic disturbance. Anything in a radius of ~2 feet has to be non magnetic (e.g. special non magnetic bolts and fasteners).
www.TheAirlinePilots.com :: View topic - Remote Indicating Compass
George
A magnet outside of the metal enclosure of an x-ray generating tube can’t affect the operation of the vacuum tube inside.
Commercial airplanes still have magnetic sensors used for navigation. They are called “flux valves”. They are located the furthest away from the fuselage, usually close to the wing tips.
They are not affected by a few magnets inside the fuselage, although they are very sensitive to a local magnetic disturbance. Anything in a radius of ~2 feet has to be non magnetic (e.g. special non magnetic bolts and fasteners).
www.TheAirlinePilots.com :: View topic - Remote Indicating Compass
George
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