Low cost demonstration experiment Lorentz force: Change in path of charged particles in magnetic field

The path of charged particles is affected when they enter a magnetic field. This change of path largely depends on the angle between the applied magnetic field and the direction of motion of the charged particle (and its velocity) entering the magnetic field. This is demonstrated by means of a simple, low-cost experiment. A high voltage is used to ionize the air between a spark gap. The flow of charged particles between the spark gap is altered by applying a magnetic field from a rare earth permanent magnet having surface magnetic field induction of 0.12 T.