Simulation of static critical phenomena in non-ideal fluids with the Lattice Boltzmann method

Abstract

A fluctuating non-ideal fluid at its critical point is simulated with the Lattice Boltzmann method. It is demonstrated that the method, employing a Ginzburg-Landau free energy functional, correctly reproduces the static critical behavior associated with the Ising universality class. A finite-size scaling analysis is applied to determine the critical exponents related to the order parameter, compressibility and specific heat. A particular focus is put on finite-size effects and issues related to the global conservation of the order-parameter.

23 pages, 16 figures