Physics
Ferrofluid surface instability
A magnetic field competes with gravity and surface tension to raise a spiked surface.
Try this
Cross the threshold field and watch a hexagonal surface mode grow. Raise surface tension and compare the wavelength.
The model and its limits
Linear magnetic threshold and a prescribed hexagonal mode with illustrative saturation. This is not a full magnetohydrodynamic free-surface solver. Height is magnified.
Equations used in the module
Equations k_c = √(ρg/σ) λ_c = 2π/k_c p_m = B²χ²/[μ_0(1+χ)(2+χ)]
