Sharp uniform-in-diffusivity mixing rates for passive scalars in parallel shear flows

Abstract: We consider the advection-diffusion equation describing the evolution of a passive scalar in a background shear flow. We prove the optimal uniform-in-diffusivity mixing rate $| f |_{H^{-1}} \lesssim \langle t \rangle^{-1/(N+1)}$, $t \geq 0$, where $N$ is the maximal order of vanishing of the derivative $b'(y)$ of the shear profile, e.g., $N=1$ for plane Pouseille flow. Our proof is based on the description of the solution in terms of resolvents and involves pointwise estimates on the resolvent kernel. In the non-degenerate case, we further give a rigorous asymptotic description of generic solutions in terms of shear layers localized around the critical points. This verifies formal asymptotics in [McLaughlin-Camassa-Viotti, \textit{Physics of Fluids}, 22(11), 2010].