Related papers: Prospects for observing the magnetorotational inst…
All experiments, which have been proposed so far to model the magnetorotational instability (MRI) in the laboratory, involve a Couette flow of liquid metals in a rotating annulus. All liquid metals have small magnetic Prandtl numbers, Pm,…
Global axisymmetric stability of viscous, resistive, magnetized Couette flow is re-examined, with the emphasis on flows that would be hydrodynamically stable according to Rayleigh's criterion: opposing gradients of angular velocity and…
Although the magnetorotational instability (MRI) has been widely accepted as a powerful accretion mechanism in magnetized accretion disks, it has not been realized in the laboratory. The possibility of studying MRI in a rotating…
Despite the importance of the magnetorotational instability (MRI) as a fundamental mechanism for angular momentum transport in magnetized accretion disks, it has yet to be demonstrated in the laboratory. A liquid sodium alpha-omega dynamo…
Turbulent motion driven by the magnetorotational instability (MRI) is believed to provide an anomalous viscosity strong enough to account for observed accretion rates in protostellar accretion disks. In the first of two papers, we perform…
The magnetorotational instability (MRI) has been suggested to have an important role on the dynamics of accretion disks. We investigate MRI as an alternative way for guiding the plasma from the disk to the funnel flow at the…
Differentially rotating flows of unmagnetized, highly conducting plasmas have been created in the Plasma Couette Experiment. Previously, hot-cathodes have been used to control plasma rotation by a stirring technique [C. Collins et al.,…
We describe an instability of viscoelastic Couette-Taylor flow that is directly analogous to the magnetorotational instability (MRI) in astrophysical magnetohydrodynamics, with polymer molecules playing the role of magnetic field lines. By…
The magnetorotational instability (MRI) is thought to be a powerful source of turbulence and momentum transport in astrophysical accretion discs, but obtaining observational evidence of its operation is challenging. Recently, laboratory…
In collisionless and weakly collisional plasmas, such as hot accretion flows onto compact objects, the magnetorotational instability (MRI) can differ significantly from the standard (collisional) MRI. In particular, pressure anisotropy with…
The magnetorotational instability (MRI) of a weakly ionized, differentially rotating, magnetized plasma disk is investigated in the multi-fluid framework. The disk is threaded by a uniform vertical magnetic field and charge is carried by…
We analyze the morphology of the Magneto-rotational Instability (MRI) for a stratified viscous plasma disk configuration in differential rotation, taking into account the so-called corotation theorem for the background profile. In order to…
The magnetorotational instability (MRI) has been proposed as the method of angular momentum transport that enables accretion in astrophysical discs. However, for weakly-ionized discs, such as protoplanetary discs, it remains unclear whether…
The magnetorotational instability (MRI) plays a crucial role in regulating the accretion efficiency in astrophysical accretion disks. In low-luminosity disks around black holes, such as Sgr A* and M87, Coulomb collisions are infrequent,…
We report 3D numerical simulations of the flow of an electrically conducting fluid in a spherical shell when a magnetic field is applied. Different spherical Couette configurations are investigated, by varying the rotation ratio between the…
This review article summarizes two decades of laboratory research aimed at understanding the dynamics of accretion disks, with particular emphasis on magnetohydrodynamic experiments involving liquid metals and plasmas. First, the…
In this paper, we investigate numerically the flow of an electrically conducting fluid in a cylindrical Taylor-Couette flow when an axial magnetic field is applied. To minimize Ekman recirculation due to vertical no-slip boundaries, two…
The standard magnetorotational instability (SMRI) is a promising mechanism for turbulence and rapid accretion in astrophysical disks. It is a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instability that destabilizes otherwise hydrodynamically stable disk…
The redistribution of angular momentum is a long standing problem in our understanding of protoplanetary disk (PPD) evolution. The magnetorotational instability (MRI) is considered a likely mechanism. We present the results of a study…
The azimuthal version of the magnetorotational instability (MRI) is a non-axisymmetric instability of a hydrodynamically stable differentially rotating flow under the influence of a purely or predominantly azimuthal magnetic field. It may…