scholarly journals Magnetic helicity fluxes and their effect on stellar dynamos

2011 ◽  
Vol 7 (S286) ◽  
pp. 49-53
Author(s):  
Simon Candelaresi ◽  
Axel Brandenburg

AbstractMagnetic helicity fluxes in turbulently driven α2 dynamos are studied to demonstrate their ability to alleviate catastrophic quenching. A one-dimensional mean-field formalism is used to achieve magnetic Reynolds numbers of the order of 105. We study both diffusive magnetic helicity fluxes through the mid-plane as well as those resulting from the recently proposed alternate dynamic quenching formalism. By adding shear we make a parameter scan for the critical values of the shear and forcing parameters for which dynamo action occurs. For this αΩ dynamo we find that the preferred mode is antisymmetric about the mid-plane. This is also verified in 3-D direct numerical simulations.

2001 ◽  
Vol 203 ◽  
pp. 144-151
Author(s):  
A. Brandenburg

A number of problems of solar and stellar dynamo theory are briefly reviewed and the current status of possible solutions is discussed. Results of direct numerical simulations are described in view of mean-field dynamo theory and the relation between the α-effect and the inverse cascade of magnetic helicity is highlighted. The possibility of ‘catastrophic’ quenching of the α-effect is explained in terms of the constraint placed by the conservation of magnetic helicity.


2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (S274) ◽  
pp. 464-466
Author(s):  
Simon Candelaresi ◽  
Axel Brandenburg

AbstractIn turbulent dynamos the production of large-scale magnetic fields is accompanied by a separation of magnetic helicity in scale. The large- and small-scale parts increase in magnitude. The small-scale part can eventually work against the dynamo and quench it, especially at high magnetic Reynolds numbers. A one-dimensional mean-field model of a dynamo is presented where diffusive magnetic helicity fluxes within the domain are important. It turns out that this effect helps to alleviate the quenching. Here we show that internal magnetic helicity fluxes, even within one hemisphere, can be important for alleviating catastrophic quenching.


2013 ◽  
Vol 722 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael L. Waite

AbstractDirect numerical simulations are used to investigate potential enstrophy in stratified turbulence with small Froude numbers, large Reynolds numbers, and buoyancy Reynolds numbers ($R{e}_{b} $) both smaller and larger than unity. We investigate the conditions under which the potential enstrophy, which is a quartic quantity in the flow variables, can be approximated by its quadratic terms, as is often done in geophysical fluid dynamics. We show that at large scales, the quadratic fraction of the potential enstrophy is determined by $R{e}_{b} $. The quadratic part dominates for small $R{e}_{b} $, i.e. in the viscously coupled regime of stratified turbulence, but not when $R{e}_{b} \gtrsim 1$. The breakdown of the quadratic approximation is consistent with the development of Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities, which are frequently observed to grow on the layerwise structure of stratified turbulence when $R{e}_{b} $ is not too small.


2011 ◽  
Vol 676 ◽  
pp. 110-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. BOHORQUEZ ◽  
E. SANMIGUEL-ROJAS ◽  
A. SEVILLA ◽  
J. I. JIMÉNEZ-GONZÁLEZ ◽  
C. MARTÍNEZ-BAZÁN

We investigate the stability properties and flow regimes of laminar wakes behind slender cylindrical bodies, of diameter D and length L, with a blunt trailing edge at zero angle of attack, combining experiments, direct numerical simulations and local/global linear stability analyses. It has been found that the flow field is steady and axisymmetric for Reynolds numbers below a critical value, Recs (L/D), which depends on the length-to-diameter ratio of the body, L/D. However, in the range of Reynolds numbers Recs(L/D) < Re < Reco(L/D), although the flow is still steady, it is no longer axisymmetric but exhibits planar symmetry. Finally, for Re > Reco, the flow becomes unsteady due to a second oscillatory bifurcation which preserves the reflectional symmetry. In addition, as the Reynolds number increases, we report a new flow regime, characterized by the presence of a secondary, low frequency oscillation while keeping the reflectional symmetry. The results reported indicate that a global linear stability analysis is adequate to predict the first bifurcation, thereby providing values of Recs nearly identical to those given by the corresponding numerical simulations. On the other hand, experiments and direct numerical simulations give similar values of Reco for the second, oscillatory bifurcation, which are however overestimated by the linear stability analysis due to the use of an axisymmetric base flow. It is also shown that both bifurcations can be stabilized by injecting a certain amount of fluid through the base of the body, quantified here as the bleed-to-free-stream velocity ratio, Cb = Wb/W∞.


2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (S264) ◽  
pp. 197-201
Author(s):  
Dhrubaditya Mitra ◽  
Reza Tavakol ◽  
Axel Brandenburg ◽  
Petri J. Käpylä

AbstractWe summarise recent results form direct numerical simulations of both non-rotating helically forced and rotating convection driven MHD equations in spherical wedge-shape domains. In the former, using perfect-conductor boundary conditions along the latitudinal boundaries we observe oscillations, polarity reversals and equatorward migration of the large-scale magnetic fields. In the latter we obtain angular velocity with cylindrical contours and large-scale magnetic field which shows oscillations, polarity reversals but poleward migration. The occurrence of these behviours in direct numerical simulations is clearly of interest. However the present models as they stand are not directly applicable to the solar dynamo problem. Nevertheless, they provide general insights into the operation of turbulent dynamos.


2004 ◽  
Vol 11 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 619-629 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. O. Gómez ◽  
P. D. Mininni

Abstract. Magnetohydrodynamic dynamo action is often invoked to explain the existence of magnetic fields in several astronomical objects. In this work, we present direct numerical simulations of MHD helical dynamos, to study the exponential growth and saturation of magnetic fields. Simulations are made within the framework of incompressible flows and using periodic boundary conditions. The statistical properties of the flow are studied, and it is found that its helicity displays strong spatial fluctuations. Regions with large kinetic helicity are also strongly concentrated in space, forming elongated structures. In dynamo simulations using these flows, we found that the growth rate and the saturation level of magnetic energy and magnetic helicity reach an asymptotic value as the Reynolds number is increased. Finally, extensions of the MHD theory to include kinetic effects relevant in astrophysical environments are discussed.


2014 ◽  
Vol 562 ◽  
pp. A53 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Brandenburg ◽  
O. Gressel ◽  
S. Jabbari ◽  
N. Kleeorin ◽  
I. Rogachevskii

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