Inviscid instability of a triangular jet ($U(y)=\max (1-|y|,0)$)

Decaying normal modes of this continuous piecewise-linear profile satisfy ${\varphi }^{\prime \prime }-k^2\varphi =0$ between the corners. Pressure matching at a piecewise-linear shear interface yields an odd varicose mode of a planar jet with real speed $c=(1-e^{-2k})/(2k)$ and an even sinuous mode of a planar jet whose speeds satisfyIts reduced discriminant factors as $(2k-3-e^{-2k}-4e^{-k})(2k-3-e^{-2k}+4e^{-k})$. The second factor is positive for $k>0$, while the first is strictly increasing and crosses zero once. Thus exactly the long-wave even branch is exponentially unstable, for $0<k<k_c$, where $2k_c-3-e^{-2k_c}-4e^{-k_c}=0$.