Determination of the magnetization of weights using a gaussmeter

A new apparatus has been constructed to determine the magnetization of austenitic stainless steel weights. The magnetic properties of the weights are determined before their mass calibration to ensure that the magnetic interactions are negligible. The aim of this work is to carry out a measurement of the low magnetization up to 2.5 /spl mu/T, regardless of any external conditions such as the Earth´s and other ambient magnetic fields. The system consists of a gauss-meter having a readability of 10 nT, a shield box made of permalloy, linear and rotary motor stages, a probe stand and a personal computer. A three-channel gauss-meter with a three-axis probe is used to measure the magnetization. To minimize the influence of the ambient magnetic field, a test weight is placed in a shield box. In this paper the features and results of performance tests of the apparatus are described.