On the late phase of relaxation of two-dimensional fluids: turbulence of unitons

Abstract

The two-dimensional ideal fluid and the plasma confined by a strong magnetic field exhibit an intrinsic tendency to organization due to the inverse spectral cascade. In the asymptotic states reached at relaxation the turbulence has vanished and there are only coherent vortical structures. We are interested in the regime that precedes these ordered flow patterns, in which there still is turbulence and imperfect but robust structures have emerged. To develop an analytical description we propose to start from the stationary coherent states and (in the direction opposite to relaxation) explore the space of configurations before the extremum of the functional that defines the structures has been reached. We find necessary to assemble different but related models: point-like vortices, its field theoretical formulation as interacting matter and gauge fields, chiral model and surfaces with constant mean curvature. These models are connected by the similar ability to described randomly interacting coherent structures. They derive exactly the same equation for the asymptotic state (sinh-Poisson equation, confirmed by numerical calculation of fluid flows). The chiral model, to which one can arrive from self-duality equation of the field theoretical model for fluid and from constant mean curvature surface equations, appears to be the suitable analytical framework. Its solutions, the unitons, aquire dynamics when the system is not at the extremum of the action. In the present work we provide arguments that the underlying common nature of these models can be used to develop an approach to fluid and plasma states of turbulence interacting with structures.

Keywords

• turbulence
• coherent structures
• self-duality
• constant mean curvature surfaces
• chiral model
• unitons