Because diamagnetic forces are very weak, their repulsive force alone can support only the lightest objects. In a strong magnetic field, however, some diamagnetic materials such as bismuth, silver, and graphite have a strong enough repulsive force to suspend their own weight. Rods of a paramagnetic material in a magnetic field align with the magnetic field lines. Paramagnetic materials are slightly more magnetically permeable than air or vacuum, a property that causes them to be weakly attracted by magnetic fields. Not surprisingly, the term paramagnetic is derived from Greek words meaning alongside magnetic .
Ferromagnetic materials are far more magnetically permeable than air or vacuum.
As do rods of paramagnetic materials, ferromagnetic rods align themselves alongside the magnetic field lines. However, ferromagnetic materials are so strongly attracted by magnetic fields and can be magnetized so easily that they are classed separately. The ferro in ferromagnetic is derived from the Latin word for iron, ferrum , but nickel, cobalt, and various alloys of these metals are also ferromagnetic. Magnetism at the molecular level is the basic phenomenon that levitates the nonmagnetic materials mentioned above. The disturbed electrons create their own magnetic field, causing the atoms to behave like little magnetic needles pointing in the direction opposite to the applied field.