I know it’s kind of a stupid question, but I have been thinking this for a while. Do magnets affect the electricity itself that flows inside a wire? For example, say I am charging my phone and it’s connected to a wall socket. If I placed a magnet in the middle of my charger wire (like literally on top of the wire) would the magnet stop the electricity from flowing since it’s getting attracted to the magnet? Would it have any effect at all on the flow of electrons inside the wire?
In: Physics
A changing magnetic field induces an electrical current in a conductor but a static magnetic field does not.
So you have an effect when you put the magnet there or remove it but not when it is there. The effect is minimal because both positive and negative conductors are very close together so the induced current in both will cancel each other out.
If you would cut the charger cables apart and move the wire apart the effect will be larger when you put it close to one wire but unlikely large enough too disturbed the charging because USB allows for a voltage range of 4.4 – 5.25 V and there is part to filter out small transient voltages.
For any significant effect, you need to turn the wire into a coil and move the magnet through the coils. Enough loops in the coil and a strong magnet that move fast could create a voltage that could kill the phone.
The combination of wires in coils and magnets where one part move is exactly how electrical generator and motors are constructed. Here is a [simple demonstration](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9b0J29OzAU) where a battery is used so you use electricity to create motion and not the other way around.
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