Magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor instability in solid media

A linear analysis of the magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor instability at the interface between a Newtonian fluid and an elastic-plastic solid is performed by considering a uniform magnetic B →, parallel to the interface, which has diffused into the fluid but not into the solid. It is found that the magnetic field attributes elastic properties to the viscous fluid which enhance the stability region by stabilizing all the perturbation wavelengths shorter than λ 0 ∞ B 2 for any initial perturbation amplitude. Longer wavelengths are stabilized by the mechanical properties of the solid provided that the initial perturbation wavelength is smaller than a threshold value determined by the yield strength and the shear modulus of the solid. Beyond this threshold, the amplitude grows initially with a growth rate reduced by the solid strength properties. However, such properties do not affect the asymptotic growth rate which is only determined by the magnetic field and the fluid viscosity. The described physical situation intends to resemble some of the features present in recent experiments involving the magnetic shockless acceleration of flyers plates.