  Successful realization of ferromagnetic nematic liquid crystals has opened up
the possibility to experimentally study a completely new set of fundamental
physical phenomena. In this contribution we present a detailed investigation of
some aspects of the static response and the complex dynamics of ferromagnetic
liquid crystals under the application of an external magnetic field.
Experimental results are then compared with a macroscopic model. Dynamics of
the director were measured by optical methods and analyzed in terms of a
theoretical macroscopic model. A dissipative cross-coupling coefficient
describing the dynamic coupling between the two system order parameters, the
magnetization and the nematic director, is needed to explain the results. In
this contribution we examine the dependency of this coefficient on material
parameters and the saturation magnetization and the liquid crystal host.
Despite the complexity of the system, the theoretical description allows for a
proper interpretation of the results and is connected to several microscopic
aspects of the colloidal suspension.
