Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Convection patterns in nonequilibrium Kawasaki dynamics at low temperature
Meander Van den Brande1, Kyosuke Adachi2,3, François Huveneers1
1King's College London, Department of Mathematics, Strand, London WC2R 2LS, United Kingdom.
None:
We study a conservative stochastic lattice gas (Kawasaki dynamics) coupled in the bulk to a heat bath, which leads to standard phase separation at low uniform temperatures. Instead, a macroscopic temperature gradient drives the system into a nonequilibrium steady state. In this state, the usual long-range order is replaced by robust convection patterns, featuring regularly spaced stripe structures. We show that these nonequilibrium states differ markedly from equilibrium configurations with the same local temperature profiles. Finally, we develop a macroscopic description that captures these behaviors and provides a unified framework for understanding the observed patterns.
Related Concept Videos
Kinetic Theory of an Ideal Gas
The number of molecules in one mole is called Avogadro's number...
Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II
Mechanisms of Heat Transfer I
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Population Distribution
Mechanisms of Heat Transfer
Conduction, accounting for approximately 3% of body heat loss at rest, is the process of exchanging heat between molecules of two materials in direct contact. This can result in both heat loss and gain. For instance, when the body is submerged in water, which conducts heat 20 times more effectively than air, it can either lose or gain significant heat.
Kinetic Molecular Theory: Molecular Velocities, Temperature, and Kinetic Energy

