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For $|N^2|\ll {\Omega }^2$, this leading amplitude-growth rate is largest at thermal diffusion rate of a Fourier mode $\beta =\Omega$, giving ${\sigma }_{\max }=-N^2/(4\Omega )$ when $N^2<0$.

For an axisymmetric vertical mode of a shearing sheet in this Boussinesq approximation, the perturbations have no horizontal gradients, so background-shear advection vanishes. The linear Coriolis acceleration and perturbation advection of the background shear givewhile thermal conduction and incompressibility giveHere $\beta$ is the thermal diffusion rate of a Fourier mode, not the cooling exponent in Question 2. Since $k\ne 0$, incompressibility forces $u_z^{\prime }=0$, and the vertical momentum equation then forces $P^{\prime }=0$ for this nonzero-wavenumber amplitude.

The three remaining amplitudes satisfyA nontrivial solution requires the determinant to vanish, giving the convective overstability dispersion relationNo division by $s$ or $s+\beta$ was needed, so the thermal energy mode of a shearing sheet is retained. The notation $N^2$ denotes a signed buoyancy frequency squared and can be negative for an adverse stratification; it must not be restricted to the square of a real positive frequency.

Write $k=2\pi /\lambda$. For $T=A{e}^{\alpha t}\cos (ky)$, direct partial differentiation givesHence $T_t=\kappa T_{yy}$ exactly when $\alpha =-\kappa k^2$, proving the claimed diffusion equation solution. At $t=0$, $e^0=1$, so $T(0,y)=A\cos (2\pi y/\lambda )$. The infinite spatial domain needs no end-boundary conditions. For positive thermal diffusivity the amplitude decreases, as described by the thermal diffusion rate of a Fourier mode.

The thermal diffusion length $\ell (t)=\sqrt{\alpha t}$ is the characteristic length over which thermal conduction changes a temperature distribution during time $t$ in the constant-thermal diffusivity model. It is a scale, not a sharp front or distance travelled at a constant speed: the heat equation has infinite propagation speed mathematically. Different definitions of penetration depth introduce numerical factors. In particular, the normalized one-dimensional heat kernel has spatial variance $2\alpha t$, so its root-mean-square width is $\sqrt{2\alpha t}$.

At $t=10\mathrm{s}$, the model materials have thermal diffusion lengths $4.47$ and $2.24\mathrm{mm}$. For $L=10\mathrm{mm}$ their thermal diffusion times are $50$ and $200\mathrm{s}$. These values describe the same heat equation as the thermal diffusion rate of a Fourier mode; the different numerical factors come from the definition of the scale.