Heat transport model for the transition between scaling regimes in quasistatic and full magnetoconvection

TL;DR

This paper introduces a unified model for magnetoconvection that captures the smooth transition between buoyancy-dominated and Lorentz force-dominated regimes, validated by simulations and experiments, with extensions to rotating systems.

Contribution

A novel single-parameter model that accurately describes the transition between different magnetoconvection regimes, including high Prandtl number effects and potential extensions to rotating convection.

Findings

Model accurately captures regime transition in magnetoconvection.

Validated against numerical simulations and experimental data.

Extensible to rotating magnetoconvection scenarios.

Abstract

In magnetoconvection, the flow is governed by the interplay between gravitational buoyancy and the Lorentz force, with one of these forces dominating in different regimes. In this paper, we develop a model with a single adjustable parameter that accurately captures the smooth transition from a buoyancy-dominated regime to one dominated by the Lorentz force. A perturbative extension of the model accounts for distinct transition features that occur at high Prandtl numbers. We validate the model for magnetoconvection in both the quasistatic regime and at finite magnetic Reynolds numbers using data from direct numerical simulations and existing experimental data sets. The model contains a natural extension to rotating convection and offers a potential generalisation to rotating magnetoconvection.