physics

Physics of Fluids

Physics of Fluids is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Physics of Fluids rather than just read about it. In short: Physics of Fluids is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering fluid dynamics. Established by the American Institute of Physics in 1958 and currently published by AIP Publishing.

Key takeaways

Physics of Fluids belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Physics of Fluids to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Physics of Fluids from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Physics of Fluids is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering fluid dynamics. Established by the American Institute of Physics in 1958 and currently published by AIP Publishing. The journal focus is the dynamics of gases, liquids, and complex or multiphase fluids—and the journal contains original research resulting from theoretical, computational, and experimental studies.

History From 1958 through 1988, the journal included plasma physics. From 1989 until 1993, the journal split into Physics of Fluids A covering fluid dynamics, and Physics of Fluids B, on plasma physics. In 1994, the latter was renamed Physics of Plasmas, and the former continued under its original name, Physics of Fluids. The journal was originally published by the American Institute of Physics in cooperation with the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics. In 2016, the American Institute of Physics became the sole publisher. From 1985 to 2015, Physics of Fluids published the Gallery of Fluid Motion, containing award-winning photographs, images, and visual streaming media of fluid flow. With funding from the American Institute of Physics the annual "François Naftali Frenkiel Award" was established by the American Physical Society in 1984 to reward a young scientist who published a paper containing significant contributions to fluid dynamics during the previous year. The award-winning paper was chosen from Physics of Fluids until 2016, but is presently chosen from Physical Review Fluids. Similarly, the invited papers from plenary talks at the annual American Physical Society Division of Fluid Dynamics were formerly published in Physics of Fluids but, since 2016, are now published in either this journal or Physical Review Fluids.

Reception Physics of Fluids A, Physics of Fluids B, and Physics of Fluids were ranked 3, 4, and 6, respectively, based on their "impact from 1981-2004" within the category of journals on the physics of fluids and plasmas. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2025 impact factor of 3.8.

Editors-in-chief The following persons are or have been editors-in-chief:

1958–1981: François Naftali Frenkiel 1982–1997: Andreas Acrivos 1998–2015: John Kim, L. Gary Leal 2015–2025: Alan Jeffrey Giacomin 2025–present: Savvas Hatzikiriakos and Gerald Fuller

See also List of fluid mechanics journals

References

Further reading Scott, John T. (2008), "Fifty years of Physics of Fluids", Physics of Fluids, 20 (1): 011301–011301–4, Bibcode:2008PhFl...20a1301S, doi:10.1063/1.2832774, ISSN 1070-6631 Kim, John; Leal, L. Gary (2008), "Editorial: Fifty years of Physics of Fluids", Physics of Fluids, 20 (1): 010401–010401–5, Bibcode:2008PhFl...20a0401K, doi:10.1063/1.2832366, ISSN 1070-6631

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Physics of Fluids

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Physics of Fluids claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Physics of Fluids before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Physics of Fluids ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Physics of Fluids

In research: Physics of Fluids appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Physics of Fluids in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Physics of Fluids is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Academic journals established in 1958, American Institute of Physics academic journals, English-language journals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Physics of Fluids outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Physics of Fluids in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Physics of Fluids means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Physics of Fluids out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Physics of Fluids in simple terms?

Physics of Fluids is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering fluid dynamics. Established by the American Institute of Physics in 1958 and currently published by AIP Publishing.

Why does Physics of Fluids matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Physics of Fluids?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Physics of Fluids.