Transition threshold of Couette flow for 2D Boussinesq equations

Abstract

In this paper, we prove the stability threshold of $\alpha\leq \frac13$ for 2D Boussinesq equations around the Couette flow in $\mathbb{T}\times \mathbb{R}$ with Richardson number $\gamma^2>\frac14$ and different viscosity $\nu$ and thermal diffusivity $\mu$. More precisely, if $\|v_{in}-(y,0)\|_{H^{s+1/2}}+ \|\rho_{in}+\gamma^2 y-1\|_{H^{s+1/2}}\leq c(\min\{\nu,\mu\})^{1/3}$, $\frac{\nu+\mu}{2\gamma\sqrt{\nu \mu} }< 2-\varepsilon$, $s>3/2$, then the asymptotic stability holds. This stability threshold is consistent with the optimal stability threshold for the 2D Navier-Stokes equations in Sobolev space. And in the sense of inviscid damping effect, the regularity assumption of the initial data should be sharp.