Linear Growth of Rayleigh–Taylor Instability of Two Finite-Thickness Fluid Layers**Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant Nos 11275031, 11475034, 11575033 and 11274026, and the National Basic Research Program of China under Grant No 2013CB834100.

Abstract

The linear growth of Rayleigh–Taylor instability (RTI) of two superimposed finite-thickness fluids in a gravitational field is investigated analytically. Coupling evolution equations for perturbation on the upper, middle and lower interfaces of the two stratified fluids are derived. The growth rate of the RTI and the evolution of the amplitudes of perturbation on the three interfaces are obtained by solving the coupling equations. It is found that the finite-thickness fluids reduce the growth rate of perturbation on the middle interface. However, the finite-thickness effect plays an important role in perturbation growth even for the thin layers which will cause more severe RTI growth. Finally, the dependence of the interface position under different initial conditions are discussed in some detail.