# Growth dynamics of turbulent spots in plane Couette flow

## TL;DR

This study combines experimental and numerical methods to analyze how turbulent spots grow and spread in plane Couette flow, revealing the influence of large-scale flows and different growth mechanisms across various Reynolds numbers.

## Contribution

It provides a comprehensive scenario of turbulent spot growth dynamics in plane Couette flow, integrating experimental and numerical insights and highlighting the role of large-scale flows.

## Key findings

- Growth rate correlates with large-scale flow intensity.
- Advection and destabilization contribute to spot growth at different stages.
- A unified growth scenario applicable to other shear flows is proposed.

## Abstract

We experimentally and numerically investigate the temporal aspects of turbulent spots spreading in a plane Couette flow for transitional Reynolds numbers between 300 and 450. Spot growth rate, spot advection rate and large-scale flow intensity are measured as a function of time and Reynolds number. All these quantities show similar dynamics clarifying the role played by large-scale flows in the advection of the turbulent spot. The contributions of each possible growth mechanism: growth induced by large scale advection or growth by destabilization, are discussed for the different stages of the spot growth. A scenario which gathers all these elements is providing a better understanding of the growth dynamics of turbulent spots in plane Couette flow that should possibly apply to other extended shear flows.