LONG-WAVELENGTH INSTABILITY FOR UNIFORM SHEAR-FLOW

Uniform shear flow is a prototype nonequilibrium state admitting detai led study at both the macroscopic and microscopic levels via theory an d computer simulation. It is shown that the hydrodynamic equations for this state have a long wavelength instability. This result is obtaine d first from the Navier-Stokes equations and shown to apply at both lo w and high densities. Next, higher order rheological effects are inclu ded using a model kinetic theory. The results are compared favorably t o those from Monte Carlo simulation.