Abstract
The effects of sheared equilibrium flow and magnetic field on the Rayleigh–Taylor instability (RTI) are investigated and the linear growth rate is obtained analytically in the presence of a sharp interface. It is shown that the shear flow acts as a driving force and is the dominating drive when Atwood number AT, wave number k, flow shear δu, and gravitational acceleration g satisfy k(1−AT2)δu2∕AT⪢g. As AT increases growth rate increases first and then falls down if (2kδu2)<g is satisfied, and otherwise it rises monotonically. When magnetic stabilizing effect governs, RTI only occurs in the long wave region and not only the permitted band, 0<k<gAT∕[vra2−δu2(1−AT2)], is extended but the instability is enhanced as δu increases or the reduced Alfven speed vra decreases. For regime governed by the destabilizing effect of shear flow, growth rate increases as k and δu increase.
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