Related papers: Introduction to Field Line Helicity
Magnetic helicity is a conserved quantity of ideal magneto-hydrodynamics characterized by an inverse turbulent cascade. Accordingly, it is often invoked as one of the basic physical quantities driving the generation and structuring of…
The mathematics and physics of each of the three aspects of magnetic field evolution -- topology, energy, and helicity -- is remarkably simple and clear. When the resistivity $\eta$ is small compared to an imposed evolution, $a/v$,…
Magnetic helicity is conserved under ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) and quasi-conserved even under a resistive process. The standard definition for magnetic helicity cannot be applied directly to an open magnetic field in a volume,…
Magnetic field relaxation is determined by both the field's geometry and its topology. For relaxation processes, however, it turns out that its topology is a much more stringent constraint. As quantifier for the topology we use magnetic…
We demonstrate that the inclusion of the helicity flux in the magnetic helicity balance in the nonlinear stage of galactic dynamo action results in a radical change in the magnetic field dynamics. The equilibrium value of the large-scale…
Newly emerging magnetic flux can show a complicated linked or interwoven topology of the magnetic field. The complexity of this linkage or knottedness of magnetic flux is related to the free energy stored in the magnetic field. Magnetic…
The electromagnetic helicity of the free electromagnetic field and the static magnetic helicity are shown to be two different embodiments of the same physical quantity, the total helicity. The total helicity is the sum of two terms: a term…
The helicity of a magnetic field is a fundamental property that is conserved in ideal MHD. It can be explored in the stellar context by mapping large-scale magnetic fields across stellar surfaces using Zeeman-Doppler imaging. A recent study…
Plasma relaxation in the presence of an initially braided magnetic field can lead to self-organization into relaxed states that retain non-trivial magnetic structure. These relaxed states may be in conflict with the linear force-free fields…
Maxwell's equations allow for some remarkable solutions consisting of pulsed beams of light which have linked and knotted field lines. The preservation of the topological structure of the field lines in these solutions has previously been…
We search for observational signatures of magnetic helicity in data from all-sky radio polarization surveys of the Milky Way Galaxy. Such a detection would help confirm the dynamo origin of the field and may provide new observational…
We consider the magnetic helicity balance for the galactic dynamo in the framework of the local dynamo problem, as well as in the no-z model (which includes explicitly the radial distribution of the magnetic fields). When calculating the…
Aims. The main aim of this work is to study the evolution of the recently introduced relative helicity of the magnetic polarity inversion line (PIL) in a magnetohydrodynamics simulation. Methods. The simulation used is a typical flux…
Some common properties of helical magnetic fields in decaying and driven turbulence are discussed. These include mainly the inverse cascade that produces fields on progressively larger scales. Magnetic helicity also restricts the evolution…
The magnetic helicity has paramount significance in nonlinear saturation of galactic dynamo. We argue that the magnetic helicity conservation is violated at the lepton stage in the evolution of early Universe. As a result, a cosmological…
Observations have shown that the Sun's magnetic field has helical structures. The helicity content in magnetic field configurations is a crucial constraint on the dynamical evolution of the system. Since helicity is connected with the…
The connection between helically isotropic MHD turbulence and mean-field dynamo theory is reviewed. The nonlinearity in the mean-field theory is not yet well established, but detailed comparison with simulations begin to help select viable…
Current helicity quantifies the location of twisted and sheared non-potential structures in a magnetic field. We simulate the evolution of magnetic fields in the solar atmosphere in response to flux emergence and shearing by photospheric…
Magnetic helicity is a key geometrical parameter to describe the structure and evolution of solar coronal magnetic fields. The accumulation of magnetic helicity is correlated with the non-potential magnetic field energy, which is released…
Mass currents in astrophysics generate gravitomagnetic fields of enormous complexity. Gravitomagnetic helicity, in direct analogy with magnetic helicity, is a measure of entwining of the gravitomagnetic field lines. We discuss…