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    Mixing, anisotropy, and Lagrangian dispersion in Rayleigh-Taylor turbulence under variable acceleration

    Dongxiao Zhao and Gaojin Li*

    • *Contact author: gaojinli@sjtu.edu.cn

    Phys. Rev. Fluids 11, 093903 – Published 18 September, 2026

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/r4vw-jkyc

    Abstract

    This study investigates miscible Rayleigh-Taylor (RT) turbulence subjected to gravity removal or reversal at different stages of its development, using high-resolution numerical simulations and Lagrangian passive-particle tracking. The state of the mixing layer at the switching time, particularly its thickness and turbulent intensity, is shown to control the subsequent evolution. Gravity reversal transforms the unstable RT layer into a weakly turbulent, stably stratified flow with a thick mixed region. The vertical mass flux and kinetic-energy anisotropy exhibit decaying oscillations whose characteristic period increases with the mixing-layer thickness at reversal and is described by the Brunt-Väisälä frequency. In contrast, gravity removal eliminates further buoyancy production without imposing a restoring force, allowing the mixing layer to continue broadening through inertial coasting while retaining the large-scale structure inherited from the preceding RT stage. The Lagrangian analysis distinguishes absolute material transport from relative turbulent stirring. After gravity removal, the vertical velocity correlation remains positive over a comparatively long interval, sustaining both single-particle displacement and particle-pair separation. Gravity reversal instead drives the correlation through zero and induces particle oscillations consistent with the Brunt-Väisälä timescale, thereby suppressing both absolute transport and the relative stretching of initially neighboring particles. These results show that the postswitch dynamics are governed jointly by the flow state at the switching time and by whether the modified forcing preserves or actively destroys vertical velocity memory.

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