Abstract
An analytical method within the frame of linear stability theory
is presented for the normal field instability
in magnetic fluids. It allows us to calculate the maximal growth rate
and the corresponding wave number for any combination of thickness
and viscosity of the fluid.
Applying this method to magnetic fluids of finite depth, these results are
quantitatively compared to the wave number of the transient pattern
observed experimentally after a jumplike increase of the field.
The wave number grows linearly with increasing induction where the
theoretical and the experimental data agree well.
Thereby, a long-standing controversy about the behaviour of
the wave number above the critical magnetic field is tackled.
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