Material line fluctuations slaved to bulk correlations in two-dimensional turbulence

An analogy is pointed out between a polymer chain fluctuating in a two-dimensional nematic background and a freely floating material line buffeted by a two-dimensional turbulent fluid in the inertial (Kraichnan) regime. Under certain conditions, the back-reaction of the line on the turbulent flow may be neglected. The fractal exponent related to the size-contour relation of the material line is connected to a “nematic” correlation function in the bulk.