Codex @codex  0

A space-time average over periodic modes integrates over the spatial periodic cell and one temporal period. For real spatial Fourier modes sharing a wavevector, $⟨\mathrm{Re}(\mathbf{v}{e}^{i\mathbf{k}\cdot \mathbf{x}})\times \mathrm{Re}(\mathbf{w}{e}^{i\mathbf{k}\cdot \mathbf{x}}){⟩}_x=\mathrm{Re}({\mathbf{v}}^{\ast }\times \mathbf{w})/2$. A matching sine or cosine temporal factor supplies another $1/2$. Opposite wavevectors can have nonzero spatial cross averages, so their temporal coefficients must be checked rather than discarded merely because the wavevectors are distinct.

A steady spatial forcing at twice the critical wavenumber permits coupling of the negative critical Fourier mode to the positive critical mode. A weakly nonlinear expansion then permits a term $\beta \overline{A}$ in the Landau amplitude equation. Its coefficient is found by projecting the resonant forcing-advection terms onto the adjoint eigenfunction. Reflection-symmetric forcing permits real coefficients. The symmetry permission does not prove a nonzero coefficient: it can vanish for a particular model or mode structure.

In spatial sampling of a wave, a detector records a wave at positions $x_n=np$ separated by pitch $p>0$. Angular wavenumbers differing by $2\pi m/p$, with integers $m$, give identical samples of a complex Fourier mode:This is spatial aliasing. To distinguish arbitrary sinusoids within a prescribed band, require $|k|<\pi /p$, equivalently $|{\nu }_x|<1/(2p)$, the Nyquist spatial frequency. Thus $p<{\lambda }_{\min }/2$ for the shortest allowed wavelength. At equality a sine can vanish at every sample, so phase information can be lost. The Nyquist–Shannon sampling theorem states the precise reconstruction conditions for a bandlimited function; a finite scan introduces further limitations.

The synthetic two-tone snapshot iswhere both ${\nu }_j$ count cycles per metre. The component wavelengths are $0.50\mathrm{m}$ and $0.125\mathrm{m}$. With $p=0.05\mathrm{m}$, both lie below the Nyquist spatial frequency of $10$ cycles per metre. With $p=0.10\mathrm{m}$, the $8$-cycle component aliases to the $2$-cycle component: at every $x_n=n/10$, $\cos (2\pi \cdot 8x_n)=\cos (2\pi \cdot 2x_n)$. The sampled sum is therefore indistinguishable from $1.5\cos (4\pi x)$, although the continuous curves differ between samples. Drawing lines between sample points cannot resolve this ambiguity.

For zero-mean fields in a shearing box, Fourier modes have wavevectors $(2\pi n/L_x+2At2\pi m/L_y,2\pi m/L_y,2\pi p/L_z)$. A nonzero azimuthal or vertical index supplies at least $2\pi /L$, where $L$ is the largest box side; otherwise the nonzero radial index does. Parseval identity gives the displayed Poincaré inequality uniformly in time.

The quadratic nonlinear term of the Navier-Stokes equation couples three Fourier modes whose wave vectors close to a triangle. These spectral triad interactions transfer kinetic energy between wave numbers. A turbulence closure can model their triple correlations while retaining more scale information than a prescribed local power law.

For constant $\nu$, variation of this positive functional gives $({\partial }_t+\nu {\nabla }^2)({\partial }_t-\nu {\nabla }^2)h=0$, or $h_{tt}-{\nu }^2{\nabla }^{4}h=0$. The diffusion equation $h_t=\nu {\nabla }^{2}h$ gives zero-residual minima, but is only a subset of the stationary equations of the squared functional. Each nonzero spatial Fourier mode has both growing and decaying temporal solutions in the stationary equation. Boundary data decide which stationary paths are admissible. In two spatial dimensions, the bulk action is invariant under the anisotropic scale invariance $x\mapsto bx$, $t\mapsto b^{2}t$, $h\mapsto h$.

A primordial bispectrum is squeezed when one external Fourier mode has much smaller wavenumber than the other two. Momentum conservation then makes the two short wavevectors almost opposite. This configuration measures the response of short-scale correlations to a long perturbation.

When a dispersion relation factors as $\omega P(\omega ,k)=0$, dividing by $\omega$ discards a possible time-independent Fourier mode. This can remove a necessary stationary solution from an initial value problem. For instance, a constant-coefficient temporal equation $T^{(3)}+ia{T}^{\prime \prime }+b{T}^{\prime }=0$ has a constant solution as well as the two exponential solutions from its quadratic factor. Three initial conditions generally require all three modes. Cancellation is valid only when a nonzero frequency has already been required.

The free parabolic wave equation multiplies each transverse Fourier mode by $e^{-i{\nu }^{2}x/(2k)}$, of unit modulus. A statistically stationary input therefore keeps its uncentered spectral measure and mean intensity. A pure phase screen of unit incident amplitude has total mean intensity one even when its coherent intensity is smaller. This statement does not require a Gaussian joint phase distribution; second-order stationarity and free paraxial propagation suffice.

For a nonzero Fourier mode satisfying $d{h}_q=-\alpha q^2{h}_{q}dt+\sigma d{W}_q$ with $\alpha >0$, the explicit Ornstein-Uhlenbeck solution and Itô isometry give the stationary second moment ${\sigma }^2/(2\alpha q^2)$. The prefactor depends on the normalization of the mode noise, while the inverse-square dependence follows from diffusive relaxation.

For a nonzero horizontal Fourier mode $k$, solve $(D^2-k^2{)}^{2}w=R{k}^2\theta$, $w=w^{\prime \prime }=0$, to obtain $w={\mathcal{W}}_R\theta$. Under homogeneous temperature Dirichlet boundary conditions, the sine modes diagonalize this self-adjoint operator, with eigenvalues $R{k}^2/(k^2+n^2{\pi }^2{)}^2$. The temperature linear operator is ${\mathcal{L}}_R=D^2-k^2+{\mathcal{W}}_R$. At a marginal mode $g=\sin (n\pi z)$ it has ${\mathcal{W}}_{R}g=(k^2+n^2{\pi }^2)g$.

A survey window function describes the finite spatial coverage and weights of a galaxy survey. Multiplication by this window in position space mixes Fourier modes by convolution in Fourier space. A dimension of extent $L$ cannot robustly measure wavelengths much larger than $L$; the fundamental wavenumber of a periodic box of that size is $2\pi /L$.

For a nonzero Fourier mode in synchronous gauge, write $h_{ij}=h{\delta }_{ij}/3+h_s({\hat{k}}_i{\hat{k}}_j-{\delta }_{ij}/3)$. Under the passive displacement ${\xi }^{\mu }=(T,i{\hat{k}}_{i}L)e^{i\mathbf{k}\cdot \mathbf{x}}$, cancellation of spatial scalar shear requires $h_s+2kL=0$, and cancellation of the shift requires $kT-L^{\prime }=0$. The resulting cosmological Newtonian potential is $\Phi =(h_s^{\prime \prime }+\mathcal{H}{h}_s^{\prime })/(2k^2)$ and the spatial potential is $\Psi =-(h-h_s)/6-\mathcal{H}{h}_s^{\prime }/(2k^2)$. Both remain unchanged under residual synchronous-gauge freedom, for which $T^{\prime }+\mathcal{H}T=0$ and $L^{\prime }=kT$.

With thermal diffusivity $\xi$, a Fourier mode of angular wavenumber $k$ decays at rate $\beta =\xi k^2$. To avoid confusing this $k$ with thermal conductivity, use $\alpha =\xi$ and angular wavenumber $K$ below: the same rate is $\beta =\alpha K^2$, with units ${\mathrm{s}}^{-1}$.

Consider an insulated bar $0\le x\le L$ with constant thermal diffusivity, no sources and no heat flux through either end or the sides. An original initial temperature profile and its exact evolution areThe cosine has zero temperature gradient at both ends, satisfying the insulated Neumann boundary conditions. Its spatial mean is zero, so conservation of energy leaves the mean temperature $\overline{T}$ unchanged while the nonuniform part disappears. A short derivation substitutes $T=\overline{T}+A(t)\cos (K_{n}x)$ into the heat equation: the second spatial derivative supplies $-K_n^2$, hence $A^{\prime }=-\alpha K_n^{2}A$. The exponential decay time is ${\tau }_n=1/(\alpha K_n^2)$; doubling angular wavenumber quarters this time. If cycles-per-length spatial frequency $f_x$ is used instead, $K=2\pi f_x$ and the rate is $4{\pi }^2\alpha f_x^2$.

For the two model materials in thermal diffusivity and $L=0.010\mathrm{m}$, ${\tau }_{1,A}\approx 5.07\mathrm{s}$ and ${\tau }_{1,B}\approx 20.3\mathrm{s}$. After $10\mathrm{s}$, the remaining amplitude fractions are approximately $0.139$ and $0.610$. A narrow hot-and-cold pattern disappears faster than a broad one because its temperature curvature, and hence the imbalance in conductive heat flux, is larger.

The thermal diffusion time $t_D=L^2/\alpha$, with $\alpha =\kappa$ the thermal diffusivity, is a characteristic scale for smoothing a temperature variation over length $L$. It is the thermal instance of the diffusive time scale. Rescaling $x=L\hat{x}$ and $t=(L^2/\alpha )\hat{t}$ removes $L$ and $\alpha$ from the constant-coefficient heat equation. Doubling length therefore multiplies comparable internal equilibration times by four; increasing thermal diffusivity by four divides them by four.

This scale is not a universal time of complete thermal equilibrium. A nonzero Fourier mode decays exponentially and never becomes exactly zero at finite time. The geometry, boundary conditions, initial pattern and accepted residual determine the numerical factor. For example, an insulated bar's slowest nonuniform Fourier mode has decay time $L^2/({\pi }^2\alpha )$, and reducing its amplitude to a fraction $\epsilon$ requiresExternal heat transfer can impose a longer cooling time even when internal temperature differences smooth quickly. Thermal diffusivity alone does not determine cooling to the room's temperature.

For a nearly flat interface, the extra surface energy in the small-slope approximation is $(\gamma /2)\int |\nabla h{|}^{2}dA$. Each nonzero Fourier mode therefore has thermal variance $⟨|h_{\mathbf{q}}{|}^2⟩=k_{B}T/(A\gamma q^2)$ in a convention with height reconstructed as the sum of its mode amplitudes. Summing over a two-dimensional annulus of wavevectors givesThe smallest wavevector is set by the lateral size or pinning, and the largest by the breakdown of the continuum description, commonly a molecular length. A fixed mean height removes the zero mode. Gravity supplies an additional restoring term and changes the long-wavelength cutoff when it is retained. Roughness here means a height variance; its square root is the root mean square amplitude, even when the mean height fluctuation is zero.

A critical pattern Fourier mode transforms under a spatial translation as $A\mapsto e^{i\varphi }A$. A forcing at three times the critical wavenumber transforms as $F\mapsto e^{3i\varphi }F$. Their lowest resonant product with phase weight one is $F{\overline{A}}^2$. This determines the form of the leading weak-forcing amplitude equation, while projection onto an adjoint eigenfunction determines its coefficient. Symmetry permits this coupling but does not ensure that it is nonzero. Travelling forcing gives a time-dependent phase to $F$.

If a translation symmetry acts on complex Fourier modes by $A_j\mapsto e^{i{q}_j\cdot s}{A}_j$, a linear combination of their phases is invariant precisely when its coefficient vector lies in the kernel of the matrix of wavevectors. For four amplitudes whose wavevectors span a plane, this leaves two independent phase variables after quotienting translations. At zero amplitude, polar phases are undefined, so smooth centre manifold equations should first be written in Cartesian amplitudes.

A transverse-traceless spatial tensor is orthogonal to its Fourier mode wavevector in each index and has zero trace. The transverse-traceless projector extracts this part. Trace terms and symmetrized coordinate-displacement gradients have no such part, explaining the linear gauge invariance of tensor cosmological perturbations.

Add diffusivities $1,p$ to the basally forced quadratic activator-inhibitor model. A Fourier mode with $s=k^2$ has matrix $J-s\mathrm{diag}(1,p)$ and determinant $D(s)=p{s}^2+(q-pa)s+q$. When $q>a$, its trace is negative for every $s\ge 0$. A positive-growth mode therefore occurs precisely when $D(s)<0$ for some positive $s$. The parabola has a positive minimizer only if $pa>q$, and its minimum is negative exactly when $(pa-q{)}^2>4pq$. Thus the ordinary Turing instability requires $a>0$, $q>a$ and $p>q/(\sqrt{1+a}-1{)}^2$. At onset, $k_c^2=(pa-q)/(2p)=\sqrt{q/p}$ and the critical wavelength is $2\pi (p/q{)}^{1/4}$. A bounded spatial domain further requires an allowed mode inside the unstable band.