Abstract
The thermomagnetic convection of magnetic fluids in a cylindrical geometry subjected
to a homogeneous magnetic field is studied. The study is motivated by a novel
thermal instability [W. Luo et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 4134 (1999)].
As model system a composite cylinder with inner heating is considered which reflects
the symmetry of the experimentally setup. The general condition for the existence of
a potentially unstable stratification in the magnetic fluid is derived. Within a linear
stability analysis the critical external induction for the onset of thermomagnetic convection
is determined for dilute and nondilute magnetic fluids. The difference between both thresholds
allows to test experimentally whether a test sample is a dilute fluid or not.
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