Dynamo-driven plasmoid formation from a current-sheet instability
- Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States). Department of Astrophysical Sciences; Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
Axisymmetric current-carrying plasmoids are formed in the presence of nonaxisymmetric fluctuations during nonlinear three-dimensional resistive MHD simulations in a global toroidal geometry. In this study, we utilize the helicity injection technique to form an initial poloidal flux in the presence of a toroidal guide field. As helicity is injected, two types of current sheets are formed from the oppositely directed field lines in the injector region (primary reconnecting current sheet), and the poloidal flux compression near the plasma edge (edge current sheet). We first find that nonaxisymmetric fluctuations arising from the current-sheet instability isolated near the plasma edge have tearing parity but can nevertheless grow fast (on the poloidal Alfven time scale). These modes saturate by breaking up the current sheet. Second, for the first time, a dynamo poloidal flux amplification is observed at the reconnection site (in the region of the oppositely directed magnetic field). This fluctuation-induced flux amplification increases the local Lundquist number, which then triggers a plasmoid instability and breaks the primary current sheet at the reconnection site. Finally, the plasmoids formation driven by large-scale flux amplification, i.e., a large-scale dynamo, observed here has strong implications for astrophysical reconnection as well as fast reconnection events in laboratory plasmas.
- Research Organization:
- Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-09CH11466; SC0010565; SC0012467; AC02-09CHI1466
- OSTI ID:
- 1343562
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1336476
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 23, Issue 12; ISSN 1070-664X
- Publisher:
- American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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