Why are iron, cobalt, and nickel magnetic, but other metals are not?
In: Physics
To Eli5, while this doesn’t cover all of it, metals form in crystalline structures, and there are a few different types. Some types arrange the electrons so that they are magnetic and others don’t (they are all magnetic, just to greatly different degrees). Also, most metals and metal alloys can be forced into different crystal structures by cooling slowly or rapidly.
Take steel for example. Based on its heating and cooling method, and its atomic mixture, it can form various crystal structures. This site has a good explanation and pictures. https://www.outokumpu.com/expertise/2020/the-stainless-steel-family#:~:text=All%20steels%20are%20an%20alloy%20of%20iron%20and,a%20gamma-iron%20face-centered-cubic%20%28fcc%29%20lattice%20–%20forming%20austenite.
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