On the stability of a free surface of a magnetic fluid under microgravity

We have investigated the behavior of a free surface of a suspension of ferrimagnetic particles in heptane under strongly reduced gravity. It was found that the free surface is destabilized when a homogeneous magnetic field parallel to the surface is applied. The strength of the critical magnetic field parallel to the surface varies with the volume concentration of magnetic particles in the suspension. We show that the destabilization of the fluid layer is forced by the influence of the suspension on the homogeneity of the magnetic field producing a magnetic field component normal to the fluid surface. The dependence of the critical magnetic field on the volume concentration of magnetic particles can be explained by applying the theory of the normal-field instability to this field component under conditions of strongly reduced gravity. The experiments were carried out at the drop tower 'Bremen' of the Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity (ZARM) in Bremen.