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The story
For many years, magnetic properties have been classified into two types: “ferromagnetism,” in which all spins align in the same direction, and “antiferromagnetism,” in which neighboring spins point in opposite directions and cancel out so no external magnetism appears. The former has been known since ancient times, while the latter was discovered in 1933. Recently, however, researchers found materials whose spins alternate like an antiferromagnet’s, yet which can still carry a flow of spin (a “spin current”) the way ferromagnets do — and in 2022 this class was named “altermagnets.” On the 5ch Science News+ board, a thread saw a string of replies explaining the mechanics of this new classification, along with discussion of its relationship to magnetic monopoles and chirality.
After decades of being split into just two types, a third kind of magnetism has now been confirmed
The magnets that hold your kid’s drawings to the fridge or point a compass needle north are a familiar, tangible force for most people.
But to physicists, magnetism is one of the quantum properties of matter, and it’s far more intricate than that.
Source: nazology.kusuguru.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
And then divide➗, huh※
Guess it says we still need better observation tech!
So does that mean even brain-machine interfaces (EEG) turn out to be incomplete for this too?
And I'm reading Re: #4 as implying dark matter could be observed this way too
If we could observe the magnetic fields produced by the method above, couldn't that lead to actually finding dark matter?
Still undiscovered as a fundamental particle: as of 2026, magnetic monopoles have yet to be confirmed as an independent elementary particle, either in nature or in accelerator experiments.
Someone smart, enlighten me (lit. "erotic person" — 5ch slang for a know-it-all)
What matters is a property every single electron has — one often compared to spinning on its own axis, called "spin."
Spin comes in "up" and "down," and when these line up in a set pattern, the material is considered magnetic.
The first type, ferromagnetism, is when all spins align in the same direction.
Because the directions line up and a magnetic field shows up externally, humans have known about and used this kind of magnet since ancient times.
The second type, antiferromagnetism, was discovered in 1933, where spins alternate up-down-up-down.
Since neighboring spins cancel each other out, the material as a whole produces no external magnetic force.
For nearly 90 years after that, it was taken for granted that magnetism split into just these two kinds.
In recent years, materials have turned up that seem to have both characteristics at once.
Their spins alternate like an antiferromagnet's, with no net magnetization overall.
And yet, they apparently can carry a spin current the way a ferromagnet does.
These two properties were once thought to be mutually exclusive.
So in 2022, researchers gave this strange group of materials the name "altermagnet."
From the future to the past
The theory that this kind of movement called "time travel" is impossible just got more precise!
Has humanity pushed spin tech forward another step…
I figured the third one would be something that doesn't stick together and isn't a "pole" at all — but that's not it
Ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic makes two
Looks like antiferromagnetic just splits into two, making three
Feels like ferromagnetic might split into two as well over some spin business
That's what they're saying, apparently
"Oltermagnetzu" or whatever (mangled pronunciation)
The last piece of the puzzle is chirality
Oh right, that's the thing someone was joking sounds like "kira-kira" (sparkly)
Just kidding
That's gotta be a gross-out image, viewer discretion advised
It's like one of those "hasu-kora" shots (lotus-seed-pod collages — a classic trypophobia meme)
Re: Re: #40
Sorry about that…
Background and key points of this discussion
The “third property” mentioned here isn’t a new magnetic pole to sit alongside N and S — it’s an additional category in how electron spins can be arranged. Against the 90-year-old split between ferromagnetism (all spins aligned) and antiferromagnetism (alternating spins that cancel out), altermagnets arrange their spins in an antiferromagnetic-like pattern while still generating a spin current, which is why they’re drawing interest for low-power spintronics applications. The thread saw some confusion mistaking this for a discussion of monopoles, plus tangents into still-unconfirmed magnetic monopole research, but the original article’s real focus is that the symmetry of the crystal structure (chirality) is the key to this property. Since the back half of the thread also drifted into unrelated posts about brain-stimulation research and conspiracy-flavored comments, this article focuses on the exchanges specifically about magnetic classification.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Science News+) thread “[Nazology] After decades of being split into just two types, a third kind of magnetism has now been confirmed.”
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