Reileigh-Taylor instability induced by electromagnetic forces

V. D. Khait

Abstract
A magnetohydrodynamic instability similar to the instability of a heavy fluid on a lighter fluid is considered. When there are two media with different electrical conductivity and an electric current transverse to the magnetic field flows along the interface, then under certain conditions the electromagnetic force j ×B acts as the force of gravity. The analysis is carried out within the framework of magnetohydrodynamics in a galvanic approximation with dissipative processes neglected. In contrast to some papers, the Hall effect is taken into account and it is assumed that the media differ not only in electrical conductivity, but also in density and the Hall parameter. An exact solution of the magnetohydrodynamic equations gives the dependence of 1he oscillation frequency (