Turbulent Diffusion of Magnetic Field Lines in Astrophysical Plasmas

1996 ◽  
Vol 470 ◽  
pp. 858 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Barghouty ◽  
J. R. Jokipii
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Turbulent Diffusion ◽  
Astrophysical Plasmas ◽  
Field Lines

scholarly journals The development of magnetic field line wander by plasma turbulence

2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory G. Howes ◽  
Sofiane Bourouaine
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Field Line ◽  
Magnetic Field Line ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Magnetic Energy ◽  
Plasma Turbulence ◽  
Alfven Wave ◽  
Astrophysical Plasmas ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
The Magnetic Field

Plasma turbulence occurs ubiquitously in space and astrophysical plasmas, mediating the nonlinear transfer of energy from large-scale electromagnetic fields and plasma flows to small scales at which the energy may be ultimately converted to plasma heat. But plasma turbulence also generically leads to a tangling of the magnetic field that threads through the plasma. The resulting wander of the magnetic field lines may significantly impact a number of important physical processes, including the propagation of cosmic rays and energetic particles, confinement in magnetic fusion devices and the fundamental processes of turbulence, magnetic reconnection and particle acceleration. The various potential impacts of magnetic field line wander are reviewed in detail, and a number of important theoretical considerations are identified that may influence the development and saturation of magnetic field line wander in astrophysical plasma turbulence. The results of nonlinear gyrokinetic simulations of kinetic Alfvén wave turbulence of sub-ion length scales are evaluated to understand the development and saturation of the turbulent magnetic energy spectrum and of the magnetic field line wander. It is found that turbulent space and astrophysical plasmas are generally expected to contain a stochastic magnetic field due to the tangling of the field by strong plasma turbulence. Future work will explore how the saturated magnetic field line wander varies as a function of the amplitude of the plasma turbulence and the ratio of the thermal to magnetic pressure, known as the plasma beta.

scholarly journals The Parker problem: existence of smooth force-free fields and coronal heating

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David I. Pontin ◽  
Gunnar Hornig
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Coronal Heating ◽  
Plasma Parameters ◽  
Astrophysical Plasmas ◽  
Plasma Dynamics ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Free Fields ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
The Many ◽  
Ideal Plasma

AbstractParker (Astrophys J 174:499, 1972) put forward a hypothesis regarding the fundamental nature of equilibrium magnetic fields in astrophysical plasmas. He proposed that if an equilibrium magnetic field is subjected to an arbitrary, small perturbation, then—under ideal plasma dynamics—the resulting magnetic field will in general not relax towards a smooth equilibrium, but rather, towards a state containing tangential magnetic field discontinuities. Even at astrophysical plasma parameters, as the singular state is approached dissipation must eventually become important, leading to the onset of rapid magnetic reconnection and energy dissipation. This topological dissipation mechanism remains a matter of debate, and is a key ingredient in the nanoflare model for coronal heating. We review the various theoretical and computational approaches that have sought to prove or disprove Parker’s hypothesis. We describe the hypothesis in the context of coronal heating, and discuss different approaches that have been taken to investigating whether braiding of magnetic field lines is responsible for maintaining the observed coronal temperatures. We discuss the many advances that have been made, and highlight outstanding open questions.

Stochastic magnetic field lines diffusion in a toroidal configuration (Tokamak)

2000 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Tabet ◽  
H. Imrane ◽  
D. Saifaoui ◽  
A. Dezairi ◽  
F. Miskane
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Stochastic Magnetic Field

Exact nonlinear wave solutions of the incompressible magnetohydrodynamic equations in a sheared magnetic field

1990 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiromitsu Hamabata
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Incompressible Fluid ◽  
Large Amplitude ◽  
Uniform Magnetic Field ◽  
Magnetohydrodynamic Equations ◽  
Wave Solutions ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Incompressible Magnetohydrodynamic Equations ◽  
Physical Quantities ◽  
Nonlinear Wave Solutions

Exact wave solutions of the nonlinear jnagnetohydrodynamic equations for a highly conducting incompressible fluid are obtained for the cases where the physical quantities are independent of one Cartesian co-ordina.te and for where they vary three-dimensionally but both the streamlines and magnetic field lines lie in parallel planes. It is shown that there is a class of exact wave solutions with large amplitude propagating in a straight but non-uniform magnetic field with constant or non-uniform velocity.

scholarly journals Magnetic nulls in interacting dipolar fields

2021 ◽  
Vol 87 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd Elder ◽  
Allen H. Boozer
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Current Density ◽  
Magnetic Flux Tube ◽  
Electron Inertia ◽  
Characteristic Spatial Scale ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Dipolar Fields ◽  
Time Required ◽  
Magnetic Null ◽  
The Magnetic Field

The prominence of nulls in reconnection theory is due to the expected singular current density and the indeterminacy of field lines at a magnetic null. Electron inertia changes the implications of both features. Magnetic field lines are distinguishable only when their distance of closest approach exceeds a distance $\varDelta _d$ . Electron inertia ensures $\varDelta _d\gtrsim c/\omega _{pe}$ . The lines that lie within a magnetic flux tube of radius $\varDelta _d$ at the place where the field strength $B$ is strongest are fundamentally indistinguishable. If the tube, somewhere along its length, encloses a point where $B=0$ vanishes, then distinguishable lines come no closer to the null than $\approx (a^2c/\omega _{pe})^{1/3}$ , where $a$ is a characteristic spatial scale of the magnetic field. The behaviour of the magnetic field lines in the presence of nulls is studied for a dipole embedded in a spatially constant magnetic field. In addition to the implications of distinguishability, a constraint on the current density at a null is obtained, and the time required for thin current sheets to arise is derived.

Magnetic Field Spectroheliograms from the San Fernando Observatory

1971 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
pp. 329-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dale Vrabec
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Magnetic Fields ◽  
Spiral Structure ◽  
Longitudinal Component ◽  
Solar Telescope ◽  
Solar Magnetic Fields ◽  
San Fernando ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
The Magnetic Field ◽  
Field Network

Zeeman spectroheliograms of photospheric magnetic fields (longitudinal component) in the CaI 6102.7 Å line are being obtained with the new 61-cm vacuum solar telescope and spectroheliograph, using the Leighton technique. The structure of the magnetic field network appears identical to the bright photospheric network visible in the cores of many Fraunhofer lines and in CN spectroheliograms, with the exception that polarities are distinguished. This supports the evolving concept that solar magnetic fields outside of sunspots exist in small concentrations of essentially vertically oriented field, roughly clumped to form a network imbedded in the otherwise field-free photosphere. A timelapse spectroheliogram movie sequence spanning 6 hr revealed changes in the magnetic fields, including a systematic outward streaming of small magnetic knots of both polarities within annular areas surrounding several sunspots. The photospheric magnetic fields and a series of filtergrams taken at various wavelengths in the Hα profile starting in the far wing are intercompared in an effort to demonstrate that the dark strands of arch filament systems (AFS) and fibrils map magnetic field lines in the chromosphere. An example of an active region in which the magnetic fields assume a distinct spiral structure is presented.

scholarly journals Efficiency of thermal conduction in a magnetized circumgalactic medium

2021 ◽  
Vol 502 (1) ◽  
pp. 1263-1278
Author(s):  
Richard Kooij ◽  
Asger Grønnow ◽  
Filippo Fraternali
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Thermal Conduction ◽  
Large Temperature ◽  
Gas Condensation ◽  
Circumgalactic Medium ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Gas Accretion ◽  
Cloud Evolution ◽  
The Magnetic Field ◽  
Cold Gas

ABSTRACT The large temperature difference between cold gas clouds around galaxies and the hot haloes that they are moving through suggests that thermal conduction could play an important role in the circumgalactic medium. However, thermal conduction in the presence of a magnetic field is highly anisotropic, being strongly suppressed in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field lines. This is commonly modelled by using a simple prescription that assumes that thermal conduction is isotropic at a certain efficiency f < 1, but its precise value is largely unconstrained. We investigate the efficiency of thermal conduction by comparing the evolution of 3D hydrodynamical (HD) simulations of cold clouds moving through a hot medium, using artificially suppressed isotropic thermal conduction (with f), against 3D magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) simulations with (true) anisotropic thermal conduction. Our main diagnostic is the time evolution of the amount of cold gas in conditions representative of the lower (close to the disc) circumgalactic medium of a Milky-Way-like galaxy. We find that in almost every HD and MHD run, the amount of cold gas increases with time, indicating that hot gas condensation is an important phenomenon that can contribute to gas accretion on to galaxies. For the most realistic orientations of the magnetic field with respect to the cloud motion we find that f is in the range 0.03–0.15. Thermal conduction is thus always highly suppressed, but its effect on the cloud evolution is generally not negligible.

scholarly journals On the dynamical interaction between overshooting convection and an underlying dipole magnetic field – I. The non-dynamo regime

2021 ◽  
Vol 503 (1) ◽  
pp. 362-375
Author(s):  
L Korre ◽  
NH Brummell ◽  
P Garaud ◽  
C Guervilly
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Turbulent Diffusion ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Molecular Diffusion ◽  
Mean Field ◽  
Stable Region ◽  
Turbulent Regime ◽  
Poloidal Magnetic Field ◽  
Dynamical Interaction ◽  
Large Scale Field

ABSTRACT Motivated by the dynamics in the deep interiors of many stars, we study the interaction between overshooting convection and the large-scale poloidal fields residing in radiative zones. We have run a suite of 3D Boussinesq numerical calculations in a spherical shell that consists of a convection zone with an underlying stable region that initially compactly contains a dipole field. By varying the strength of the convective driving, we find that, in the less turbulent regime, convection acts as turbulent diffusion that removes the field faster than solely molecular diffusion would do. However, in the more turbulent regime, turbulent pumping becomes more efficient and partially counteracts turbulent diffusion, leading to a local accumulation of the field below the overshoot region. These simulations suggest that dipole fields might be confined in underlying stable regions by highly turbulent convective motions at stellar parameters. The confinement is of large-scale field in an average sense and we show that it is reasonably modelled by mean-field ideas. Our findings are particularly interesting for certain models of the Sun, which require a large-scale, poloidal magnetic field to be confined in the solar radiative zone in order to explain simultaneously the uniform rotation of the latter and the thinness of the solar tachocline.

scholarly journals Study of relativistic magnetized outflows with relativistic equation of state

2019 ◽  
Vol 488 (4) ◽  
pp. 5713-5727
Author(s):  
Kuldeep Singh ◽  
Indranil Chattopadhyay
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Angular Momentum ◽  
Equation Of State ◽  
Polar Angle ◽  
Relativistic Equation ◽  
Azimuthal Velocity ◽  
Astrophysical Jets ◽  
Composition Parameter ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Flow Experiences

ABSTRACT We study relativistic magnetized outflows using relativistic equation of state having variable adiabatic index (Γ) and composition parameter (ξ). We study the outflow in special relativistic magnetohydrodynamic regime, from sub-Alfvénic to super-fast domain. We showed that, after the solution crosses the fast point, magnetic field collimates the flow and may form a collimation-shock due to magnetic field pinching/squeezing. Such fast, collimated outflows may be considered as astrophysical jets. Depending on parameters, the terminal Lorentz factors of an electron–proton outflow can comfortably exceed few tens. We showed that due to the transfer of angular momentum from the field to the matter, the azimuthal velocity of the outflow may flip sign. We also study the effect of composition (ξ) on such magnetized outflows. We showed that relativistic outflows are affected by the location of the Alfvén point, the polar angle at the Alfvén point and also the angle subtended by the field lines with the equatorial plane, but also on the composition of the flow. The pair dominated flow experiences impressive acceleration and is hotter than electron–proton flow.

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