Magneto-thermo-elastic instability of ferromagnetic plates in thermal and magnetic fields

Based on a generalized variational principle for magneto-thermo-elasticity, a theoretical model is proposed to describe the coupled magneto-thermo-elastic interaction of soft ferromagnetic plates. Using the linearized theory of magneto-elasticity and perturbation technique, we analyze the magneto-elastic and magneto-thermo-elastic instability of simply supported ferromagnetic plates subjected to thermal and magnetic loadings. A coupled nonlinear finite element procedure is developed next to simulate the magneto-thermo-elastic behavior of a ferromagnetic plate. The effects of thermal and magnetic fields on the magneto-thermo-elastic bending and buckling is investigated in some detail. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.