Magnetic Susceptibility

Abstract

Magnetic susceptibility is an extremely sensitive indicator of the magnetic minerals present in rock, archaeological artifacts, and environmental samples, because any slight variation in magnetic mineralogy is usually reflected by a profound change in susceptibility. Recently, the temperature variation of magnetic susceptibility monitoring has been very useful to: (1) identify the type and chemical composition of ferromagnetic minerals based on their characteristic temperatures (e.g., Curie temperature, Verwey transition); (2) resolve the ferromagnetic versus paramagnetic contribution to magnetic susceptibility; and (3) evaluate alteration during thermal events. Furthermore, dependence of magnetic susceptibility on frequencies is indicative of the possible presence of ultrafine magnetic particles in rocks, ceramics, and soils, which, in turn, may be interpreted in terms of genesis or environmental changes.