AUTOCATALYTIC REACTION-DIFFUSION MODEL FOR INTERMITTENCY IN TURBULENCE

We present a model of a diffusing chemical species undergoing stochast ic autocatalytic (birth-death) reactions. This system develops intermi ttent population distributions with strongly non-Gaussian statistics. The structure of such distributions is studied by means of numerical s imulations, applying the cluster technique used to analyze fully devel oped hydrodynamical turbulence. We find that the population distributi ons of this simple birth-death model is strikingly similar to the vort icity distribution obtained in computer calculations on developed turb ulence.