ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Dipole field strength in free space

Okay kiddo, let's imagine you have a magnet. When you hold the magnet, you feel like it's pulling and pushing things, right? That pulling and pushing power is called a magnetic field.

Now, let's imagine dividing the magnet into two equal parts. Each part will have its own north and south pole, just like the whole magnet. When we have two opposing poles, like a north and a south facing each other, we call that a "dipole."

When we talk about "dipole field strength in free space," what we mean is how strong that magnet's pulling and pushing power is when there is nothing around it to get in the way. That's why we say "in free space," because it's not being blocked or affected by anything else.

The strength of the dipole field depends on a few things, like how big the magnet is and how far away you are from it. The bigger the magnet, the stronger the field will be. The farther away you are, the weaker the field will be.

Scientists have figured out how to measure the strength of a dipole field in free space using a unit of measurement called a tesla (named after a famous scientist). So when we say the dipole field strength is 0.5 tesla, we know that's pretty strong!

So there you have it, kiddo. A dipole field strength in free space is how strong a magnet's pulling and pushing power is when there's nothing around to get in the way.