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Abstract:
We present a study of the recently discovered spatially extended chaotic state known as spiral-defect chaos, which occurs in low-Prandtl number, large-aspect ratio Rayleigh-Bénard convection. We employ the modulus squared of the space-time Fourier transform of time series of two-dimensional shadowgraph images to construct the structure factor S(k, omega). This analysis is used to characterize the average spatial and temporal scales of the chaotic state. We find that the correlation length and time can be described by power law dependences on the reduced Rayleigh number epsilon. These power laws have as yet no theoretical explanation.
