Non-local sub-characteristic zones of influence in unsteady interactive boundary-layers

The properties of incompressible, unsteady, interactive, boundary layers are examined for a model hypersonic boundary layer and internal flow past humps or, equivalently, external flow past short-scaled humps. Using a linear high frequency analysis, it is shown that the domains of dependence within the viscous sublayer may be a strong function of position within the sublayer and may be strongly influenced by the pressure displacement interaction, or the prescribed displacement condition. Detailed calculations are presented for the hypersonic boundary layer. This effect is found to carry over directly to the fully viscous problem as well as the nonlinear problem. In the fully viscous problem, the non-local character of the domains of dependence manifests itself in the sub-characteristics. Potential implications of the domain of dependence structure on finite difference computations of unsteady boundary layers are briefly discussed