Vacuum permeability
The physical constant μ0, commonly called the vacuum permeability, permeability of free space, permeability of vacuum or magnetic constant is an ideal, (baseline) physical constant, which is the value of magnetic permeability in a classical vacuum. Vacuum permeability is derived from production of a magnetic field by an electric current or by a moving electric charge and in all other formulas for magnetic-field production in a vacuum. In the reference medium of classical vacuum, µ0 has an exact defined value:
in the SI system of units.
As a constant, it can also be defined as a fundamental invariant quantity, and is also one of three components that defines free space through Maxwell's equations. In classical physics, free space is a concept of electromagnetic theory, corresponding to a theoretically perfect vacuum and sometimes referred to as the vacuum of free space, or as classical vacuum, and is appropriately viewed as a reference medium.
The ampere defines vacuum permeability
Permeability (electromagnetism)
In electromagnetism, permeability is the measure of the ability of a material to support the formation of a magnetic field within itself. Hence, it is the degree of magnetization that a material obtains in response to an applied magnetic field. Magnetic permeability is typically represented by the (italicized) Greek letter µ. The term was coined in September 1885 by Oliver Heaviside. The reciprocal of magnetic permeability is magnetic reluctivity.
In SI units, permeability is measured in henries per meter (H/m or H·m−1), or newtons per ampere squared (N·A−2). The permeability constant (µ0), also known as the magnetic constant or the permeability of free space, is a measure of the amount of resistance encountered when forming a magnetic field in a classical vacuum. The magnetic constant has the exact (defined) value (µ0 = 4π × 10−7 H·m−1 ≈ 1.2566370614…×10−6 H·m−1 or N·A−2).
A closely related property of materials is magnetic susceptibility, which is a dimensionless proportionality factor that indicates the degree of magnetization of a material in response to an applied magnetic field.
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