Experimental evidence for granular shear-flow instability in the Epstein regime

Stability analysis of two-fluid protoplanetary disc models has enriched our understanding of how solids can grow into larger bodies called planetesimals. Dust particles entrained in a gas stream modify the flow, creating shear layers prone to instability. In such environments, drag occurs in the free-molecular (Epstein) regime. Recreating these two-phase flows on Earth is difficult due to gravity-driven buoyancy. Here, we use particle image velocimetry to study a low-pressure dust-gas mixture at Knudsen numbers up to 10 in microgravity. We observe a granular shear flow instability, characterized by a periodic velocity field, which can be modeled to first order as a Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability. This behavior resembles a Kelvin-Helmholtz instability and provides a benchmark for two-fluid theories relevant to planet formation. Understanding the formation of planetesimals in protoplanetary disks requires insights into the instabilities caused by dust particles in gas streams. The authors use particle image velocimetry in microgravity to reveal a granular shear-flow instability, resembling a Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, offering a benchmark for two-fluid theories in planet formation.