Question

You place an empty pan directly on top of a stove burner, and turn on the burner. Soon, the temperature of the pan increases. How is heat transferred from the burner to the pan?

Answer 1

Assuming the ‘burner’ implies you are using gas, then it is predominantly convection.

Explanation:

Pans (or anything else) can heat up by three mechanisms: conduction (primarily solids in good thermal contact) convection (often described as “hot air rises” but applies in any fluid, whether a liquid or a gas) and radiation (shining.)

Whilst there is some contribution from the light (infra-red ‘light’ to be specific) of the gas flame, the vast majority is transferred by the hot gas rising as it expands.