arXiv subjects

Frédéric Moisy

Publications and source records attributed to Frédéric Moisy.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Nonlinear synthetic Schlieren methods for free-surface topography measurement using telecentric imaging

Free-surface synthetic Schlieren (FS-SS) is a high-resolution, refraction-based optical technique for measuring the instantaneous elevation of a liquid interface. Under the assumptions of small amplitude, small slope, and small paraxial angle, the method yields a linear relationship between the gradient of the surface elevation and the apparent displacement field of a refracted pattern imaged through the surface. Here, we propose three new, nonlinear extensions of the FS-SS method that are specifically dedicated to telecentric imaging. Paraxial distortions are eliminated with a telecentric lens, thereby simplifying the optical model. This allows us to derive nonlinear surface reconstruction models that reach beyond the usual limits of small slope and small wave-magnitudes. We implement these nonlinear surface reconstruction algorithms and compare them to the original, linear reconstruction algorithm in three different experiments, using a solid glass lens, spreading oil drops and nonlinear Faraday waves. At the price of a few iterations, we can realise nonlinear surface reconstructions that are more precise, in particular when we reach high slopes or high amplitude regimes. We share a library that encodes these nonlinear surface reconstruction algorithms.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2026

Capillary effects on preferential orientation of floaters in gravity waves

We study the influence of capillary effects on the motion of thin elastic plates denser than water drifting in propagating surface gravity waves. Such floaters experience a mean angular drift that rotates them toward two preferential orientations: parallel to the direction of wave propagation (longitudinal) or parallel to the wave crests (transverse). We develop a diffractionless model (Froude-Krylov approximation) to compute the mean yaw moment acting on floaters with arbitrary bending rigidity, small relative to the wavelength. Capillary forces are incorporated through a quasi-static volume formulation based on the fluid volume displaced by the floater and its meniscus. The model predicts that the preferential orientation is governed by the non-dimensional parameter $F = kL_x^2/\overline{h}$ recently introduced in Herreman et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol.999, 2024, A92), where $k$ is the wavenumber, $L_x$ the floater length, and $\overline{h}$ the equilibrium immersion depth, provided that $\overline{h}$ accounts for capillary effects. The orientation depends on how $F$ compares to a critical value $F_c$, which is a function of the ratio of the flexural length to the floater length. These predictions are in good agreement with experiments performed with thin metal rectangular plates of various length, width and thickness.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2026

Effect of wind turbulence on wave generation over a viscous liquid

When wind blows over the surface of a viscous liquid, a clear transition from irregular small-amplitude streamwise-oriented wrinkles to well-defined nearly two-dimensional regular waves is observed at a critical wind velocity. We examine how free-stream turbulence in the air influences the growth of wrinkles and regular waves, as well as the transition between these two regimes. Experiments are carried out in a wind tunnel, in which air is blown over a tank filled with silicone oil whose viscosity is fifty times higher than that of water. The free-stream turbulence is enhanced using upstream grids, achieving relative turbulence intensities up to 8%. Surface deformations are measured using Free-Surface Synthetic Schlieren with micrometer accuracy. Velocity measurements are performed using hot-wire anemometry above the interface and particle image velocimetry in the liquid. Results reveal two primary effects of grid-enhanced free-stream turbulence: an increase in the wrinkle amplitude, and a reduction in the critical wind speed at the onset of regular waves. Nevertheless, the wrinkle-wave transition still corresponds to an approximately constant friction velocity. Similar to a classical boundary layer over a flat plate, the friction velocity is found to decrease with fetch. From a wave energy balance, we develop a qualitative model explaining why, with the highly viscous liquid considered here, this decrease in the friction velocity results in a non-monotonic variation of the wave amplitude with the fetch.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2023

Ostwald-like ripening in the two-dimensional clustering of passive particles induced by swimming bacteria

Clustering passive particles by active agents is a promising route for fabrication of colloidal structures. Here, we report the dynamic clustering of micrometric beads in a suspension of motile bacteria. We characterize the coarsening dynamics for various bead sizes, surface fractions and bacterial concentrations. We show that the time scale $τ$ for the onset of clustering is governed by the time of first encounter of diffusing beads. At large time ($t \gg τ$), we observe a robust cluster growth as $t^{1/3}$, similar to the Ostwald ripening mechanism. From bead tracking measurements, we extract the short-range bacteria-induced attractive force at the origin of this clustering.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2019

Motility and Phototaxis of $Gonium$, the Simplest Differentiated Colonial Alga

Green algae of the $Volvocine$ lineage, spanning from unicellular $Chlamydomonas$ to vastly larger $Volvox$, are models for the study of the evolution of multicellularity, flagellar dynamics, and developmental processes. Phototactic steering in these organisms occurs without a central nervous system, driven solely by the response of individual cells. All such algae spin about a body-fixed axis as they swim; directional photosensors on each cell thus receive periodic signals when that axis is not aligned with the light. The flagella of $Chlamydomonas$ and $Volvox$ both exhibit an adaptive response to such signals in a manner that allows for accurate phototaxis, but in the former the two flagella have distinct responses, while the thousands of flagella on the surface of spherical $Volvox$ colonies have essentially identical behaviour. The planar 16-cell species $Gonium~pectorale$ thus presents a conundrum, for its central 4 cells have a $Chlamydomonas$-like beat that provide propulsion normal to the plane, while its 12 peripheral cells generate rotation around the normal through a $Volvox$-like beat. Here, we combine experiment, theory, and computations to reveal how $Gonium$, perhaps the simplest differentiated colonial organism, achieves phototaxis. High-resolution cell tracking, particle image velocimetry of flagellar driven flows, and high-speed imaging of flagella on micropipette-held colonies show how, in the context of a recently introduced model for $Chlamydomonas$ phototaxis, an adaptive response of the peripheral cells alone leads to photo-reorientation of the entire colony. The analysis also highlights the importance of local variations in flagellar beat dynamics within a given colony, which can lead to enhanced reorientation dynamics.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2019

Turbulent windprint on a liquid surface

We investigate the effect of a light turbulent wind on a liquid surface, below the onset of wave generation. In that regime, the liquid surface is populated by small disorganised deformations elongated in the streamwise direction. Formally identified recently by Paquier et al. (2015), the deformations that occur below the wave onset were named wrinkles. We provide here a theoretical framework for this wrinkle regime, using the viscous response of a free surface liquid submitted to arbitrary normal and tangential interfacial stresses at its upper boundary. We relate the spatio-temporal spectrum of the surface deformations to that of the applied interfacial pressure and shear stress fluctuations. For that, we evaluate the spatio-temporal statistics of the turbulent forcing using Direct Numerical Simulation of a turbulent air channel flow, assuming no coupling between the air and the liquid flows. Combining theory and numerical simulation, we thus obtain synthetic wrinkles that reproduce previous experimental investigations. We show that the wrinkles are a multi-scale superposition of random wakes generated by the turbulent fluctuations. They result mainly from the nearly isotropic pressure fluctuations generated in the boundary layer, rather than from the elongated shear stress fluctuations. The wrinkle regime described in this paper naturally arises as the viscous-saturated asymptotic of the inviscid growth theory of Phillips (1957). Experiments indicate that the onset of exponential wave growth depends on the liquid viscosity. Our theory suggests that the empirical criterion for the onset is satisfied when the wrinkle amplitude reaches a given fraction of the viscous sublayer thickness. It indicates that the turbulent fluctuations near the onset may play a role in the triggering of exponential wave growth.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2018

Wake of inertial waves of a horizontal cylinder in horizontal translation

We analyze theoretically and experimentally the wake behind a horizontal cylinder of diameter $d$ horizontally translated at constant velocity $U$ in a fluid rotating about the vertical axis at a rate $Ω$. Using particle image velocimetry measurements in the rotating frame, we show that the wake is stabilized by rotation for Reynolds number ${\rm Re}=Ud/ν$ much larger than in a non-rotating fluid. Over the explored range of parameters, the limit of stability is ${\rm Re} \simeq (275 \pm 25) / {\rm Ro}$, with ${\rm Ro}=U/2Ωd$ the Rossby number, indicating that the stabilizing process is governed by the Ekman pumping in the boundary layer. At low Rossby number, the wake takes the form of a stationary pattern of inertial waves, similar to the wake of surface gravity waves behind a ship. We compare this steady wake pattern to a model, originally developed by [Johnson, J. Fluid Mech. 120, 359 (1982)], assuming a free-slip boundary condition and a weak streamwise perturbation. Our measurements show a quantitative agreement with this model for ${\rm Ro}\lesssim 0.3$. At larger Rossby number, the phase pattern of the wake is close to the prediction for an infinitely small line object. However, the wake amplitude and phase origin are not correctly described by the weak-streamwise-perturbation model, calling for an alternative model for the boundary condition at moderate rotation rate.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2016

Two-dimensionalization of the flow driven by a slowly rotating impeller in a rapidly rotating fluid

We characterize the two-dimensionalization process in the turbulent flow produced by an impeller rotating at a rate $ω$ in a fluid rotating at a rate $Ω$ around the same axis for Rossby number $Ro=ω/Ω$ down to $10^{-2}$. The flow can be described as the superposition of a large-scale vertically invariant global rotation and small-scale shear layers detached from the impeller blades. As $Ro$ decreases, the large-scale flow is subjected to azimuthal modulations. In this regime, the shear layers can be described in terms of wakes of inertial waves traveling with the blades, originating from the velocity difference between the non-axisymmetric large-scale flow and the blade rotation. The wakes are well defined and stable at low Rossby number, but they become disordered at $Ro$ of order of 1. This experiment provides insight into the route towards pure two-dimensionalization induced by a background rotation for flows driven by a non-axisymmetric rotating forcing.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2016

Turbulent drag in a rotating frame

What is the turbulent drag force experienced by an object moving in a rotating fluid? This open and fundamental question can be addressed by measuring the torque needed to drive an impeller at constant angular velocity $ω$ in a water tank mounted on a platform rotating at a rate $Ω$. We report a dramatic reduction in drag as $Ω$ increases, down to values as low as $12$\% of the non-rotating drag. At small Rossby number $Ro = ω/Ω$, the decrease in drag coefficient $K$ follows the approximate scaling law $K \sim Ro$, which is predicted in the framework of nonlinear inertial wave interactions and weak-turbulence theory. However, stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements indicate that this drag reduction rather originates from a weakening of the turbulence intensity in line with the two-dimensionalization of the large-scale flow.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2015

Influence of the multipole order of the source on the decay of an inertial wave beam in a rotating fluid

We analyze theoretically and experimentally the far-field viscous decay of a two-dimensional inertial wave beam emitted by a harmonic line source in a rotating fluid. By identifying the relevant conserved quantities along the wave beam, we show how the beam structure and decay exponent are governed by the multipole order of the source. Two wavemakers are considered experimentally, a pulsating and an oscillating cylinder, aiming to produce a monopole and a dipole source, respectively. The relevant conserved quantity which discriminates between these two sources is the instantaneous flowrate along the wave beam, which is non-zero for the monopole and zero for the dipole. For each source the beam structure and decay exponent, measured using particle image velocimetry, are in good agreement with the predictions.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2015

Disentangling inertial waves from eddy turbulence in a forced rotating turbulence experiment

We present a spatio-temporal analysis of a statistically stationary rotating turbulence experiment, aiming to extract a signature of inertial waves, and to determine the scales and frequencies at which they can be detected. The analysis uses two-point spatial correlations of the temporal Fourier transform of velocity fields obtained from time-resolved stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements in the rotating frame. We quantify the degree of anisotropy of turbulence as a function of frequency and spatial scale. We show that this space-time-dependent anisotropy is well described by the dispersion relation of linear inertial waves at large scale, while smaller scales are dominated by the sweeping of the waves by fluid motion at larger scales. This sweeping effect is mostly due to the low-frequency quasi-two-dimensional component of the turbulent flow, a prominent feature of our experiment which is not accounted for by wave turbulence theory. These results question the relevance of this theory for rotating turbulence at the moderate Rossby numbers accessible in laboratory experiments, which are relevant to most geophysical and astrophysical flows.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2014

Direct and inverse energy cascades in a forced rotating turbulence experiment

We present experimental evidence for a double cascade of kinetic energy in a statistically stationary rotating turbulence experiment. Turbulence is generated by a set of vertical flaps which continuously injects velocity fluctuations towards the center of a rotating water tank. The energy transfers are evaluated from two-point third-order three-component velocity structure functions, which we measure using stereoscopic particle image velocimetry in the rotating frame. Without global rotation, the energy is transferred from large to small scales, as in classical three-dimensional turbulence. For nonzero rotation rates, the horizontal kinetic energy presents a double cascade: a direct cascade at small horizontal scales and an inverse cascade at large horizontal scales. By contrast, the vertical kinetic energy is always transferred from large to small horizontal scales, a behavior reminiscent of the dynamics of a passive scalar in two-dimensional turbulence. At the largest rotation rate the flow is nearly two-dimensional, and a pure inverse energy cascade is found for the horizontal energy. To describe the scale-by-scale energy budget, we consider a generalization of the Kármán-Howarth-Monin equation to inhomogeneous turbulent flows, in which the energy input is explicitly described as the advection of turbulent energy from the flaps through the surface of the control volume where the measurements are performed.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2014

Scale-dependent cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry in a forced rotating turbulence experiment

We characterize the statistical and geometrical properties of the cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry in a statistically-steady forced rotating turbulence experiment. Turbulence is generated by a set of vertical flaps which continuously inject velocity fluctuations towards the center of a tank mounted on a rotating platform. We first characterize the cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry from conventional single-point vorticity statistics. We propose a phenomenological model to explain the emergence of the asymmetry in the experiment, from which we predict scaling laws for the root-mean-square velocity in good agreement with the experimental data. We further quantify the cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry using a set of third-order two-point velocity correlations. We focus on the correlations which are nonzero only if the cyclone-anticyclone symmetry is broken. They offer two advantages over single-point vorticity statistics: first, they are defined from velocity measurements only, so an accurate resolution of the Kolmogorov scale is not required; second, they provide information on the scale-dependence of the cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry. We compute these correlation functions analytically for a random distribution of independent identical vortices. These model correlations describe well the experimental ones, indicating that the cyclone-anticyclone asymmetry is dominated by the large-scale long-lived cyclones.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2013

Ship wakes: Kelvin or Mach angle?

From the analysis of a set of airborne images of ship wakes, we show that the wake angles decrease as $U^{-1}$ at large velocities, in a way similar to the Mach cone for supersonic airplanes. This previously unnoticed Mach-like regime is in contradiction with the celebrated Kelvin prediction of a constant angle of $19.47\degree$ independent of the ship's speed. We propose here a model, confirmed by numerical simulations, in which the finite size of the disturbance explains this transition between the Kelvin and Mach regimes at a Froude number $Fr = U/\sqrt{gL} \simeq 0.5$, where $L$ is the hull ship length.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2011

Experimental evidence of a triadic resonance of plane inertial waves in a rotating fluid

Plane inertial waves are generated using a wavemaker, made of oscillating stacked plates, in a rotating water tank. Using particle image velocimetry, we observe that, after a transient, the primary plane wave is subject to a subharmonic instability and excites two secondary plane waves. The measured frequencies and wavevectors of these secondary waves are in quantitative agreement with the predictions of the triadic resonance mechanism. The secondary wavevectors are found systematically more normal to the rotation axis than the primary wavevector: this feature illustrates the basic mechanism at the origin of the energy transfers towards slow, quasi two-dimensional, motions in rotating turbulence.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2011

Direct measurements of anisotropic energy transfers in a rotating turbulence experiment

We investigate experimentally the influence of a background rotation on the energy transfers in decaying grid turbulence. The anisotropic energy flux density, ${\bf F} ({\bf r}) = < δ{\bf u}\,(δ{\bf u})^2 >$, where $δ{\bf u}$ is the vector velocity increment over separation ${\bf r}$, is determined for the first time using Particle Image Velocimetry. We show that rotation induces an anisotropy of the energy flux $\nabla \cdot {\bf F}$, which leads to an anisotropy growth of the energy distribution $E({\bf r}) = < (δ{\bf u})^2 >$, in agreement with the Kármán-Howarth-Monin equation. Surprisingly, our results prove that this anisotropy growth is essentially driven by a nearly radial, but orientation-dependent, energy flux density ${\bf F} ({\bf r})$.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2010

Excitation of inertial modes in a closed grid turbulence experiment under rotation

We report an experimental study of the decay of grid-generated turbulence in a confined geometry submitted to a global rotation. Turbulence is generated by rapidly towing a grid in a parallelepipedic water tank. The velocity fields of a large number of independent decays are measured in a vertical plane parallel to the rotation axis using a corotating Particle Image Velocimetry system. We first show that, when a "simple" grid is used, a significant amount of the kinetic energy (typically 50%) is stored in a reproducible flow composed of resonant inertial modes. The spatial structure of those inertial modes, extracted by band-pass filtering, is found compatible with the numerical results of Maas [Fluid Dyn. Res. 33, 373 (2003)]. The possible coupling between these modes and turbulence suggests that turbulence cannot be considered as freely decaying in this configuration. Finally, we demonstrate that these inertial modes may be significantly reduced (down to 15% of the total energy) by adding a set of inner tanks attached to the grid. This suggests that it is possible to produce an effectively freely decaying rotating turbulence in a confined geometry.

physics.flu-dyn↗