Free Surface Behavior of a Liquid Metal under the Imposition of a High Frequency Magnetic Field

Abstract

Free surface behavior of a liquid metal under the imposition of a high frequency magnetic field has been examined. The high frequency magnetic field was generated by imposing a high frequency current on a coil surrounding the vessel filled with a liquid gallium. The magnetic field penetrated into a liquid gallium only from an upper surface due to the shielding effect of the copper vessel. A shallow standing wave on a free surface of a gallium was generated by a mechanical oscillator and its behavior was measured by a laser level sensor. The amplitude of the standing wave decreases with increase in the intensity and the frequency of the magnetic field. A damping behavior of the standing wave just after stopping the mechanical oscillation was also examined. The larger the intensity and the frequency of the magnetic field are, the more quickly the wave decays.