Nonlinear Kelvin—Helmholtz instability in magnetic fluids of finite thickness: effects of a tangential magnetic field

Abstract

The nonlinear stability of a horizontal interface separating two streaming magnetic fluids of finite thickenss is investigated in two dimensions. The fluids are considered to be inviscid and incompressible. The magnetic field is applied along the direction of streaming. The method of multiple scales, in both space and time, is used to examine the stability properties of the system arising from second-harmonic resonance. A pair of partial differential equations for the amplitude of the wave and its second harmonic are derived. These describe the evolution of the wave train up to cubic order, and may be regarded as the counterparts of the single nonlinear Schrödinger equation that occurs in the non-resonant case. The stability condition of this equation is discussed both analytically and numerically, and stability diagrams are obtained. Regions of stability and instability are identified. The nonlinear cut-off wavenumber separating the regions of stability from those of instability is obtained. The equation governing the evolution of the amplitude at the critical point is also obtained, which leads to a nonlinear Klein—Gordon equation.