Geometric phases of water waves

Recently, Banner et al. (2014) highlighted a new fundamental property of open ocean wave groups, the so-called crest slowdown. For linear narrowband waves, this is related to the geometric and dynamical phase velocities $U_d$ and $U_g$ associated with the parallel transport through the principal fiber bundle of the wave motion with $\mathit{U}(1)$ symmetry. The theoretical predictions are shown to be in fair agreement with ocean field observations, from which the average crest speed $c=U_d+U_g$ with $c/U_d\approx0.8$ and $U_{g}/U_d\approx-0.2$

Hamiltonian description and traveling waves of the spatial Dysthe equations

The spatial version of the fourth-order Dysthe equations describe the evolution of weakly nonlinear narrowband wave trains in deep waters. For unidirectional waves, the hidden Hamiltonian structure and new invariants are unveiled by means of a gauge transformation to a new canonical form of the evolution equations. A highly accurate Fourier-type spectral scheme is developed to solve for the equations and validate the new conservation laws, which are satisfied up to machine precision. Further, traveling waves are numerically investigated using the Petviashvili method. It is found that their collision appears inelastic, suggesting the non-integrability of the Dysthe equations.Comment: Research report. 17 pages, 7 figures, 38 references. Other author's papers can be downloaded at http://www.lama.univ-savoie.fr/~dutykh/ . arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1110.408

Camassa-Holm type equations for axisymmetric Poiseuille pipe flows

We present a study on the nonlinear dynamics of a disturbance to the laminar state in non-rotating axisymmetric Poiseuille pipe flows. The associated Navier-Stokes equations are reduced to a set of coupled generalized Camassa-Holm type equations. These support singular inviscid travelling waves with wedge-type singularities, the so called peakons, which bifurcate from smooth solitary waves as their celerity increase. In physical space they correspond to localized toroidal vortices or vortexons. The inviscid vortexon is similar to the nonlinear neutral structures found by Walton (2011) and it may be a precursor to puffs and slugs observed at transition, since most likely it is unstable to non-axisymmetric disturbances.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures, 31 references. Other author's papers can be downloaded at http://www.denys-dutykh.com

Kinematics of fluid particles on the sea surface. Hamiltonian theory

We derive the John-Sclavounos equations describing the motion of a fluid particle on the sea surface from first principles using Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms applied to the motion of a frictionless particle constrained on an unsteady surface. The main result is that vorticity generated on a stress-free surface vanishes at a wave crest when the horizontal particle velocity equals the crest propagation speed, which is the kinematic criterion for wave breaking. If this holds for the largest crest, then the symplectic two-form associated with the Hamiltonian dynamics reduces instantaneously to that associated with the motion of a particle in free flight, as if the surface did not exist. Further, exploiting the conservation of the Hamiltonian function for steady surfaces and traveling waves we show that particle velocities remain bounded at all times, ruling out the possibility of the finite-time blowup of solutions

Matrix Geometries Emergent from a Point

We describe a categorical approach to finite noncommutative geometries. Objects in the category are spectral triples, rather than unitary equivalence classes as in other approaches. This enables to treat fluctuations of the metric and unitary equivalences on the same footing, as representatives of particular morphisms in this category. We then show how a matrix geometry (Moyal plane) emerges as a fluctuation from one point, and discuss some geometric aspects of this space.Comment: 1 figur