Answer to Question #45717 in Electricity and Magnetism for victor

Question

It is NOT possible for two magnetic field lines to cross because -----------------
two magnets cannot contribute to the field
the field would have to be infinite
the field cannot have two different directions
the magnetic potential energy would have to be infinite

Answer 1

Solution: magnetic field lines are just a representation of the field itself. They show us where the field is pointing at any chosen point in space. Now if the lines cross, that would mean that the field at the crossing point is pointing in two different directions, which would be contradicting our original idea.
Answer: c) the field cannot have two different directions.