513 research outputs found
Convergence Rates in L^2 for Elliptic Homogenization Problems
We study rates of convergence of solutions in L^2 and H^{1/2} for a family of
elliptic systems {L_\epsilon} with rapidly oscillating oscillating coefficients
in Lipschitz domains with Dirichlet or Neumann boundary conditions. As a
consequence, we obtain convergence rates for Dirichlet, Neumann, and Steklov
eigenvalues of {L_\epsilon}. Most of our results, which rely on the recently
established uniform estimates for the L^2 Dirichlet and Neumann problems in
\cite{12,13}, are new even for smooth domains.Comment: 25 page
Large-scale impact of Saharan dust on the North Atlantic Ocean circulation
The potential for a dynamical impact of Saharan mineral dust on the North Atlantic Ocean large-scale circulation is investigated. To this end, an ocean general circulation model forced by atmospheric fluxes is perturbed by an idealized, seasonally varying, net shortwave flux anomaly, as it results from remote sensing observations of aerosol optical thickness representing Saharan dust load in the atmosphere. The dust dynamical impact on the circulation is assessed through a comparison between perturbed and an unperturbed run. Results suggest that, following the dust-induced shortwave irradiance anomaly, a buoyancy anomaly is created in the Atlantic offshore the African coast, which over the course of the time propagates westward into the interior Atlantic while progressively subducting. Changes in the large-scale barotropic and overturning circulations are significant after 3 years, which coincides with the elapsed time required by the bulk of the buoyancy perturbation to reach the western boundary of the North Atlantic. Although small in amplitude, the changes in the meridional overturning are of the same order as interannual-to-decadal variability. Variations in the amplitude of the forcing lead to changes in the amplitude of the response, which is almost linear during the first 3 years. In addition, a fast, but dynamically insignificant, response can be observed to propagate poleward along the eastern boundary of the North Atlantic, which contributes to a nonlinear response in the subpolar region north of 40°N
Reactive Turbulent Flow in Low-Dimensional, Disordered Media
We analyze the reactions and
occurring in a model of turbulent flow in two dimensions. We find the reactant
concentrations at long times, using a field-theoretic renormalization group
analysis. We find a variety of interesting behavior, including, in the presence
of potential disorder, decay rates faster than that for well-mixed reactions.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev.
Diffusive transport and self-consistent dynamics in coupled maps
The study of diffusion in Hamiltonian systems has been a problem of interest
for a number of years.
In this paper we explore the influence of self-consistency on the diffusion
properties of systems described by coupled symplectic maps. Self-consistency,
i.e. the back-influence of the transported quantity on the velocity field of
the driving flow, despite of its critical importance, is usually overlooked in
the description of realistic systems, for example in plasma physics. We propose
a class of self-consistent models consisting of an ensemble of maps globally
coupled through a mean field. Depending on the kind of coupling, two different
general types of self-consistent maps are considered: maps coupled to the field
only through the phase, and fully coupled maps, i.e. through the phase and the
amplitude of the external field. The analogies and differences of the diffusion
properties of these two kinds of maps are discussed in detail.Comment: 13 pages, 14 figure
Dispersion Coefficients by a Field-Theoretic Renormalization of Fluid Mechanics
We consider subtle correlations in the scattering of fluid by randomly placed
obstacles, which have been suggested to lead to a diverging dispersion
coefficient at long times for high Peclet numbers, in contrast to finite
mean-field predictions. We develop a new master equation description of the
fluid mechanics that incorporates the physically relevant fluctuations, and we
treat those fluctuations by a renormalization group procedure. We find a finite
dispersion coefficient at low volume fraction of disorder and high Peclet
numbers.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure; to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Effects of Turbulent Mixing on the Critical Behavior
Effects of strongly anisotropic turbulent mixing on the critical behavior are
studied by means of the renormalization group. Two models are considered: the
equilibrium model A, which describes purely relaxational dynamics of a
nonconserved scalar order parameter, and the Gribov model, which describes the
nonequilibrium phase transition between the absorbing and fluctuating states in
a reaction-diffusion system. The velocity is modelled by the d-dimensional
generalization of the random shear flow introduced by Avellaneda and Majda
within the context of passive scalar advection. Existence of new nonequilibrium
types of critical regimes (universality classes) is established.Comment: Talk given in the International Bogolyubov Conference "Problems of
Theoretical and Mathematical Physics" (Moscow-Dubna, 21-27 August 2009
The Navier wall law at a boundary with random roughness
We consider the Navier-Stokes equation in a domain with irregular boundaries.
The irregularity is modeled by a spatially homogeneous random process, with
typical size \eps \ll 1. In a parent paper, we derived a homogenized boundary
condition of Navier type as \eps \to 0. We show here that for a large class
of boundaries, this Navier condition provides a O(\eps^{3/2} |\ln
\eps|^{1/2}) approximation in , instead of O(\eps^{3/2}) for periodic
irregularities. Our result relies on the study of an auxiliary boundary layer
system. Decay properties of this boundary layer are deduced from a central
limit theorem for dependent variables
Spectrum of the Fokker-Planck operator representing diffusion in a random velocity field
We study spectral properties of the Fokker-Planck operator that represents
particles moving via a combination of diffusion and advection in a
time-independent random velocity field, presenting in detail work outlined
elsewhere [J. T. Chalker and Z. J. Wang, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf 79}, 1797
(1997)]. We calculate analytically the ensemble-averaged one-particle Green
function and the eigenvalue density for this Fokker-Planck operator, using a
diagrammatic expansion developed for resolvents of non-Hermitian random
operators, together with a mean-field approximation (the self-consistent Born
approximation) which is well-controlled in the weak-disorder regime for
dimension d>2. The eigenvalue density in the complex plane is non-zero within a
wedge that encloses the negative real axis. Particle motion is diffusive at
long times, but for short times we find a novel time-dependence of the
mean-square displacement, in dimension d>2, associated
with the imaginary parts of eigenvalues.Comment: 8 pages, submitted to Phys Rev
Stochastic reconstruction of sandstones
A simulated annealing algorithm is employed to generate a stochastic model
for a Berea and a Fontainebleau sandstone with prescribed two-point probability
function, lineal path function, and ``pore size'' distribution function,
respectively. We find that the temperature decrease of the annealing has to be
rather quick to yield isotropic and percolating configurations. A comparison of
simple morphological quantities indicates good agreement between the
reconstructions and the original sandstones. Also, the mean survival time of a
random walker in the pore space is reproduced with good accuracy. However, a
more detailed investigation by means of local porosity theory shows that there
may be significant differences of the geometrical connectivity between the
reconstructed and the experimental samples.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
Malvinas-slope water intrusions on the northern Patagonia continental shelf
The Patagonia continental shelf located off southeastern South America is bounded offshore by the Malvinas Current, which extends northward from northern Drake Passage (~55&deg; S) to nearly 38&deg; S. The transition between relatively warm-fresh shelf waters and Subantarctic Waters from the western boundary current is characterized by a thermohaline front extending nearly 2500 km. We use satellite derived sea surface temperature, and chlorophyll-<I>a</I> data combined with hydrographic and surface drifter data to document the intrusions of slope waters onto the continental shelf near 41&deg; S. These intrusions create vertically coherent localized negative temperature and positive salinity anomalies extending onshore about 150 km from the shelf break. The region is associated with a center of action of the first mode of non-seasonal sea surface temperature variability and also relatively high chlorophyll-<I>a</I> variability, suggesting that the intrusions are important in promoting the local development of phytoplankton. The generation of slope water penetrations at this location may be triggered by the inshore excursion of the 100 m isobath, which appears to steer the Malvinas Current waters over the outer shelf
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