Equilibrium states of two-dimensional turbulence: An experimental study

Abstract

Equilibrium states of vortex arrays, excited by electromagnetic forces, are studied experimentally in thin, stably stratified, fluid layers. Several characteristics (the conservation of the maximum vorticity and the structure of the final state) are found to be in conflict with statistical theory, while better agreement is obtained with a recent approach in which the final state is controlled by the surviving structures of the decay phase.