Density gradient stabilization of the Richtmyer–Meshkov instability

Numerical and analytical results on the growth rate of the Richtmyer–Meshkov (RM) instability in continuous density profiles are presented, and this paper relates them to the Rayleigh–Taylor (RT) instability by treating the shock as an instantaneous acceleration of incompressible fluids. Most of this work is in the linear regime, where it is found that density gradient stabilization is even more effective for the RM instability than for the RT instability. Recent experimental results are discussed and a numerical simulation of a shock-tube experiment with a continuous density profile between two gases is presented.