Trapped modes in the water-wave problem for a freely floating structure

Abstract

Trapped modes in the linearized water-wave problem are free oscillations of an unbounded fluid with a free surface that have finite energy; it has been known for some time that such modes are supported by certain structures when held fixed. This paper investigates the problem of a freely floating structure that is able to move in response to the hydrodynamic forces acting upon it and it is shown that trapped modes also exist in this problem. For a freely floating structure, a trapped mode is a coupled oscillation of the fluid and the structure. © 2006 Cambridge University Press.