The structure of a shock wave in a rarefied polyatomic gas is studied on the basis of the theory of extended thermodynamics. Three types of the shock wave structure observed in experiments, that is, the nearly symmetric shock wave structure (type A, small Mach number), the asymmetric structure (type B, moderate Mach number), and the structure composed of thin and thick layers (type C, large Mach number), are explained by the theory in a unified way. The theoretical prediction of the profile of the mass density agrees well with the experimental data. The well-known Bethe-Teller theory of the shock wave structure in a polyatomic gas is reexamined in the light of the present theory.

• Received 8 October 2013

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.89.013025