Calculation of the diffusion coefficient in acoustic turbulence

The first (Born) approximation commonly used to calculate the diffusion coefficient D_T of a passive scalar in acoustic turbulence is shown to be insufficient. Even for a small main parameter—the Mach number, M?1—the next approximation gives a larger contribution to D_T than does the first approximation, but negative in sign. We present a procedure for correctly calculating D_T based on the solution of a nonlinear DIA (direct interaction approximation) equation for the mean Green’s function of the problem. We include an additional term in the general formula for D_T that directly describes the compressibility of acoustic turbulence. This term has not been known previously and has been disregarded even in the Born approximation. A positive value was obtained for D_T=CM³u₀/p₀. The spectrum E(x) was assumed to be smooth at distances Δ x～M²?1.