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Alfvén's Theorem
In magnetohydrodynamics, Alfvén's theorem, or the frozen-in flux theorem, "states that in a fluid with infinite electric conductivity, the magnetic field is frozen into the fluid and has to move along with it." Hannes Alfvén put the idea forward for the first time in 1942. In his own words: "In view of the infinite conductivity, every motion (perpendicular to the field) of the liquid in relation to the lines of force is forbidden because it would give infinite eddy currents. Thus the matter of the liquid is “fastened” to the lines of force...." In later life, Alfvén changed his mind and advised against use of his own theorem. However, Alfvén's theorem is much used today because of a second mechanism, magnetic reconnection. This is a breakdown of Alfvén's theorem in thin current sheets and is important as it can untangle field lines that would become increasingly tangled by plasma velocity shears and vortices in regions of low plasma beta if Alfvén's theorem applied everywh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magnetohydrodynamics
Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD; also called magneto-fluid dynamics or hydromagnetics) is the study of the magnetic properties and behaviour of electrically conducting fluids. Examples of such magnetofluids include plasmas, liquid metals, salt water, and electrolytes. The word ''magnetohydrodynamics'' is derived from ' meaning magnetic field, ' meaning water, and ' meaning movement. The field of MHD was initiated by Hannes Alfvén, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1970. The fundamental concept behind MHD is that magnetic fields can induce currents in a moving conductive fluid, which in turn polarizes the fluid and reciprocally changes the magnetic field itself. The set of equations that describe MHD are a combination of the Navier–Stokes equations of fluid dynamics and Maxwell’s equations of electromagnetism. These differential equations must be solved simultaneously, either analytically or numerically. History The first record ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orientation (vector Space)
The orientation of a real vector space or simply orientation of a vector space is the arbitrary choice of which ordered bases are "positively" oriented and which are "negatively" oriented. In the three-dimensional Euclidean space, right-handed bases are typically declared to be positively oriented, but the choice is arbitrary, as they may also be assigned a negative orientation. A vector space with an orientation selected is called an oriented vector space, while one not having an orientation selected, is called . In mathematics, orientability is a broader notion that, in two dimensions, allows one to say when a cycle goes around clockwise or counterclockwise, and in three dimensions when a figure is left-handed or right-handed. In linear algebra over the real numbers, the notion of orientation makes sense in arbitrary finite dimension, and is a kind of asymmetry that makes a reflection impossible to replicate by means of a simple displacement. Thus, in three dimensions, it is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Induction Equation
The induction equation, one of the magnetohydrodynamic equations, is a partial differential equation that relates the magnetic field and velocity of an electrically conductive fluid such as a plasma. It can be derived from Maxwell's equations and Ohm's law, and plays a major role in plasma physics and astrophysics, especially in dynamo theory. Mathematical statement Maxwell's equations describing the Faraday's and Ampere's laws read: \vec \times \vec= -, and \vec\times\vec = \mu_0\vec, where: *\vec is the electric field. *\vec is the magnetic field. *\vec is the electric current. The displacement current can be neglected in a plasma as it is negligible compared to the current carried by the free charges. The only exception to this is for exceptionally high frequency phenomena: for example, for a plasma with a typical electrical conductivity of \sigma = 10^7 \mathrm , the displacement current is smaller than the free current by a factor of 10^3 for frequencies below 2.10^ \mathrm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alfvén Wave
In plasma physics, an Alfvén wave, named after Hannes Alfvén, is a type of plasma wave in which ions oscillate in response to a restoring force provided by an effective tension on the magnetic field lines. Definition An Alfvén wave is a low-frequency (compared to the ion gyrofrequency) travelling oscillation of the ions and magnetic field in a plasma. The ion mass density provides the inertia and the magnetic field line tension provides the restoring force. Alfvén waves propagate in the direction of the magnetic field, and the motion of the ions and the perturbation of the magnetic field are transverse to the direction of propagation. However, Alfvén waves existing at oblique incidences will smoothly change into magnetosonic waves when the propagation is perpendicular to the magnetic field. Alfvén waves are dispersionless. Alfvén velocity The low-frequency relative permittivity \varepsilon of a magnetized plasma is given by : \varepsilon = 1 + \frac where is the ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wiener Process
In mathematics, the Wiener process is a real-valued continuous-time stochastic process named in honor of American mathematician Norbert Wiener for his investigations on the mathematical properties of the one-dimensional Brownian motion. It is often also called Brownian motion due to its historical connection with the physical process of the same name originally observed by Scottish botanist Robert Brown (Scottish botanist from Montrose), Robert Brown. It is one of the best known Lévy processes (càdlàg stochastic processes with stationary increments, stationary independent increments) and occurs frequently in pure and applied mathematics, economy, economics, quantitative finance, evolutionary biology, and physics. The Wiener process plays an important role in both pure and applied mathematics. In pure mathematics, the Wiener process gave rise to the study of continuous time martingale (probability theory), martingales. It is a key process in terms of which more complicated sto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Noise
In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used, with this or similar meanings, in many scientific and technical disciplines, including physics, acoustical engineering, telecommunications, and statistical forecasting. White noise refers to a statistical model for signals and signal sources, rather than to any specific signal. White noise draws its name from white light, although light that appears white generally does not have a flat power spectral density over the visible band. In discrete time, white noise is a discrete signal whose samples are regarded as a sequence of serially uncorrelated random variables with zero mean and finite variance; a single realization of white noise is a random shock. Depending on the context, one may also require that the samples be independent and have identical probability distribution (in other words independent and iden ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Langevin Equation
In physics, a Langevin equation (named after Paul Langevin) is a stochastic differential equation describing how a system evolves when subjected to a combination of deterministic and fluctuating ("random") forces. The dependent variables in a Langevin equation typically are collective (macroscopic) variables changing only slowly in comparison to the other (microscopic) variables of the system. The fast (microscopic) variables are responsible for the stochastic nature of the Langevin equation. One application is to Brownian motion, which models the fluctuating motion of a small particle in a fluid. Brownian motion as a prototype The original Langevin equation describes Brownian motion, the apparently random movement of a particle in a fluid due to collisions with the molecules of the fluid, m\frac=-\lambda \mathbf+\boldsymbol\left( t\right). Here, \mathbf is the velocity of the particle, and m is its mass. The force acting on the particle is written as a sum of a viscous force ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stochastic Differential Equation
A stochastic differential equation (SDE) is a differential equation in which one or more of the terms is a stochastic process, resulting in a solution which is also a stochastic process. SDEs are used to model various phenomena such as stock prices or physical systems subject to thermal fluctuations. Typically, SDEs contain a variable which represents random white noise calculated as the derivative of Brownian motion or the Wiener process. However, other types of random behaviour are possible, such as jump processes. Random differential equations are conjugate to stochastic differential equations. Background Stochastic differential equations originated in the theory of Brownian motion, in the work of Albert Einstein and Smoluchowski. These early examples were linear stochastic differential equations, also called 'Langevin' equations after French physicist Langevin, describing the motion of a harmonic oscillator subject to a random force. The mathematical theory of stochasti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dynamo Theory
In physics, the dynamo theory proposes a mechanism by which a celestial body such as Earth or a star generates a magnetic field. The dynamo theory describes the process through which a rotating, convecting, and electrically conducting fluid can maintain a magnetic field over astronomical time scales. A dynamo is thought to be the source of the Earth's magnetic field and the magnetic fields of Mercury and the Jovian planets. History of theory When William Gilbert published ''de Magnete'' in 1600, he concluded that the Earth is magnetic and proposed the first hypothesis for the origin of this magnetism: permanent magnetism such as that found in lodestone. In 1919, Joseph Larmor proposed that a dynamo might be generating the field. However, even after he advanced his hypothesis, some prominent scientists advanced alternative explanations. Einstein believed that there might be an asymmetry between the charges of the electron and proton so that the Earth's magnetic field would ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magnetohydrodynamic
Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD; also called magneto-fluid dynamics or hydromagnetics) is the study of the magnetic properties and behaviour of electrically conducting fluids. Examples of such magnetofluids include plasmas, liquid metals, salt water, and electrolytes. The word ''magnetohydrodynamics'' is derived from ' meaning magnetic field, ' meaning water, and ' meaning movement. The field of MHD was initiated by Hannes Alfvén, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1970. The fundamental concept behind MHD is that magnetic fields can induce currents in a moving conductive fluid, which in turn polarizes the fluid and reciprocally changes the magnetic field itself. The set of equations that describe MHD are a combination of the Navier–Stokes equations of fluid dynamics and Maxwell’s equations of electromagnetism. These differential equations must be solved simultaneously, either analytically or numerically. History The first record ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flux Tube
A flux tube is a generally tube-like ( cylindrical) region of space containing a magnetic field, B, such that the cylindrical sides of the tube are everywhere parallel to the magnetic field lines. It is a graphical visual aid for visualizing a magnetic field. Since no magnetic flux passes through the sides of the tube, the flux through any cross section of the tube is equal, and the flux entering the tube at one end is equal to the flux leaving the tube at the other. Both the cross-sectional area of the tube and the magnetic field strength may vary along the length of the tube, but the magnetic flux inside is always constant. As used in astrophysics, a flux tube generally means an area of space through which a strong magnetic field passes, in which the behavior of matter (usually ionized gas or plasma) is strongly influenced by the field. They are commonly found around stars, including the Sun, which has many flux tubes from tens to hundreds of kilometers in diameter. Sunspots ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
