Thermomagnetic convection induced by a time-modulated driving force in magnetic fluids

It is well-known that the flow properties of magnetic fluids – so called ferrofluids – can be modified by applying an external magnetic field. Under certain conditions, the magnetic force induced by this external field causes a convective flow. What has yet to be investigated is what happens when this driving force is modulated in time. For this purpose, a horizontal ferrofluid layer has been exposed to an intermittent magnetic field, which causes a time-modulated force. This force depends on the strength of the external magnetic field and the fluid temperature, and therefore the flow phenomenon generated is called thermomagnetic convection. In addition, if the fluid layer is heated from below, the classical thermal convection contributes to the flow system. In our studies, both effects – thermomagnetic and thermal – contribute together to the convection. The experimental results presented here confirm previous theoretical investigations about the influence of the frequency of the driving force on the strength of the convective flow, which reach minimum values at certain frequencies. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)