The nonlinear temporal evolution of a disturbance to a stratified mixing layer

Abstract

Using a nonlinear critical layer analysis, Goldstein & Leib (1988) derived a set of nonlinear evolution equations governing the spatial growth of a two-dimensional instability wave on a homogeneous incompressible tanh y mixing layer. In this study, we extend this analysis to the temporal growth of the García model of an incompressible stratified shear layer. We consider the stage of the evolution in which the growth first becomes nonlinear, with the nonlinearity appearing inside the critical layer. The Reynolds number is assumed to be just large enough so that the unsteady, nonlinear and viscous terms all enter at the same order of magnitude inside the critical layer. The equations are solved numerically for the inviscid case.